On 5 December 2018, the Government released the first draft of legislation dealing with the proposed ring-fencing of tax losses from rental properties. First impression on reading the Bill is that it is extraordinarily complicated and leaves questions unanswered. Here is a quick summary of the key points........

 

There is a reasonable chance you have already heard about the phenomenal rates being offered almost across the board now with most banks having rate specials down into the 3%'s.

What you may not be aware of is that you don’t necessarily need to wait until your current fixed rates expire in order to take advantage of these very low rates.

There is no doubt the Tax Working Group’s recently released interim report is the topic du jour. Accordingly, it is only appropriate that I offer my two cents’ worth, particularly in relation to the comments on a possible capital gains tax. 
 

• The Tax Working Group (TWG) has ruled out a land tax or an inheritance tax, but appears to me to clearly be pushing towards implementation of CGT. They have noted that it is premature to form a view without firstly determining exactly how the tax may apply, but I would be highly surprised if their final report did not support implementation of CGT.
• The TWG is of the view that CGT should apply across assets broadly, so not restricted solely to real estate. It would also apply to shares, intellectual property, goodwill, business assets etc. The one exception to this will be the family home.  

Can you borrow money to renovate?
The short answer – is yes. There are two key ways of borrowing for renovations (large, or small).

If you’re looking at purchasing your first home, using your KiwiSaver fund is a fantastic way to get a head start toward your deposit. I thought it may be worthwhile just covering some of the rules for individuals who are struggling to keep up with some of the changes as they happen. 

Buying off the plan can be an exciting proposal, it has many benefits which can be capitalized on if purchasing correctly and with enough due diligence put into practice, however every rose has its thorns, and it is important to be aware of the risks that can be associated to this method of purchasing property.

A bridging loan is a loan to assist you in purchasing a new property before you’ve unconditionally sold your existing property. This loan remains in place until the existing/old home is sold, and then you are left with the difference as your new mortgage. This can be either when upsizing, or downsizing.

What's happening in property finance, what meth testing levels should I be following, and what are my latest non-bank finance options?

We cover it all in this co-hosted webinar with industry experts Kris Pedersen of Kris Pedersen Mortgages and David Faulkner of RealiQ. 
 
Kris and David will discuss a range of updates in the market, including:

 
 

I was always taught in relation to saving and investing that it is not the amount that counts, it’s where you put it – it’s allocation. Time is an investor’s best friend, and understanding the power of compounding interest, and other minor tricks can be the difference in turning a little into a lot. The median wage in NZ when annualized ends up being about $49,900, take away student loan payments and Kiwisaver, add rising rents, potential other debt (credit cards, HP’s, etc.), and this can be a heavy load to carry for an individual already, let alone trying to spare cash for savings and investments – which in many cases, the low risk ones such as bank savings rates aren’t even keeping up with inflation! What do you do?

Why use a broker over your bank?

This is a question that is often asked, so it seems worth covering a few points from different perspectives which may help shine some light on the differences (or opportunities) presented by working with one or the other.

From a banking perspective:

When you’re considering applying for a loan, it makes more sense to approach a broker than it is to approach a bank because of the sheer range of options that are available to you, due to their independence. This is only one of many benefits.

When applying for a loan...

There are imminent changes to the bright-line test which will affect you if you are planning to buy or restructure investment property. 

You are probably already familiar with the two-year bright-line test that was introduced in October 2015. Under this test, investment property that is sold within two years of settlement is subject to tax on any increase in value. 

The Labour Government has always said they will extend this test to five years. On 15 February it was announced that the new.....

 

I’ve noticed most people starting this year with a bit of optimism. However, it’s hard to say how much of that is based around fundamentals, and how much is more attributable to the amazing weather we have been having and a decent summer break.

From our side of the Finance Desk, it has actually been a busy start to the year with quite a few purchasers signing up new properties over the break, and general rhetoric has suggested that well-presented properties have been moving relatively quickly. Most banks have also been in contact saying that they are.....

 

For example, let’s say you owned a home which is now worth $1m. You have debt against this property with bank A, of $400k. You have been looking at the market, and would like to buy an investment for $500k. Based on current LVR rules for investments (35% deposit and 65% loan) you would need to come up with $175k as a deposit for this purchase. As we are aware you can top-up to 80% on your home, it means.....

It’s not the relaxing to 70% that some investors had been expecting however the increase from 60% to a 65% threshold will in some cases be the difference in getting another property transaction across the line. That is the big news for investors in the Financial Stability Report which was released earlier this morning.