Tax office hits high end sales

NEGATIVE gearing has been hitting the headlines throughout this election campaign while a far more interesting real estate change has been set into play by the Australian Taxation Office. Anyone who sells a property for $2 million or more will be required to provide a clearance certificate to the buyer from the tax office evidencing they are an Australian resident for tax purposes. These changes come into force from 1 July 2016. The purpose is to ensure foreign tax payers meet their tax obligations, and buyers must withhold 10 per cent of the purchase price – or an agreed adjusted amount – that would be remitted to the ATO. There aren’t many residential sales in our region above $2 million dollars but that will not stop this taxation change affecting our local market. This ATO-enforced price ceiling may in fact create a very strong economic reason for foreign buyers to look beyond the capital cities to our affordable regional markets with strong universities, tourism and business to invest in. We can only hope the draconian methods of the ATO will ultimately benefit the FNQ property market by means of more activity from the foreign investment market and those looking to buy and sell real estate without being audited. Ray Murphy, general manager, RE/MAX Cairns BUY a block before getting carried away with a dream home design, says one of Cairns’ top building experts.

From small windows and render only used on a property’s facade to poor lighting and an unusable front entrance – these are the design mistakes which can be avoided.

Dixon Homes managing director Andrew Thomas said there were a few simple tips to keep in mind when deciding on a home design.

“Inexperienced people tend to pick a house often before they have their land,” he said.

“They end up being really attached to the design and i t doesn’t necessary suit the land.

“As a spec ( spec ulative) builder, I look at the land and design the house to suit the land, taking into account the slope, the aspect and the driveway.”

Mr Thomas said another tip was building a property which could add long-term value.

“A lot of people have a tendency to put their own requirements into a home.

“You do what you want for yourself but it often makes it difficult to sell.

“Some have disproportionate rooms – too big or small relative to the house, and the number of rooms – large three bedrooms instead of having a fourbedroom home.”

He said bold colours were also a common design flaw.

“Colour schemes are one of the biggest mistakes.

“Look at the first impression of the home – exterior colours that people have strong views on or strong colours can be a deter- DRONES might be taking to the skies to get aerial shots of real estate and apps are increasingly being used to househunt, rent before people even look inside the home.

“Natural lighting is very important, the traps some people make (include) rooms that are too big and not enough natural light gets in.

“Another one is maximising the frontage of the home on the block, so it makes it look more imposing.”

While design trends are constantly evolving, Mr Thomas said it was often best to stick with neutral and well-thought out features.

“There are always new trends in kitchens and bathrooms,” he said. Try and steer away from anything bold … because it can often date the house. Use classic colours and tiles.” but the most important human element of property is tipped to remain unchanged.

According to one of Australia’s leading internet entrepreneurs Daniel Petre, robots will be doing most of the jobs humans do now, in the future.

Mr Petre – who once worked with Microsoft founder Bill Gates – spoke to almost 4000 agents at the recent Australasian Real Estate Conference on the Gold Coast and predicted 52 per cent of current jobs (mostly i n retail) would disappear because of advances in robots. But despite changes in technology, the real estate industry might be one sector to buck the trend.

“There will always be people required in real estate,” Mr Petre said.

“I’m not suggesting agents won’t be there; they will be there. But price estimation will always be done better by software than any human being.

“Local data is provided far better by software than individuals,” he added.