Cash For Clunkers In Australia.

[rob83ke70]

kylie informs me that we got about 1800 out of the first home buyers grant - the real estate was quite nice and straightforward, the conveyancer and the bank was the problem.

 

they managed to lose documents between the conveyancer and the bank (about two blocks apart).

 

Robert.

[altezzaclub]

I did Felix, but I figured I should have got it on one of the four houses I bought with NZ money- either the first investment property or the one we live in.

 

....having poured over a million bucks in the local economy!

 

(Which is a lesson for all you youngsters starting out..)

[67Rolla-Ken]

Alttezza, you missed the point of the scheme completely. It was to help young people get into a market that had been swamped (and thus prices inflated) by people moving in from overseas (or over east as the case was for WA).

 

You are part of the cause, no way should you get the grant.

 

 

Edit: I should add that I don't mean this as a personal attack, I greatly appreciate the knowledge and perspective you bring to Rollaclub :lolcry:

The reason this topic gets to me is that just because of my age I had to pay over $300k for a house that for the past 20 years had only moved in value from ~$60k to ~$100k. Most people 5 years or more older than me were given ~$100-200k equity almost overnight.

Edited August 1, 2010 by 67Rolla-Ken

[altezzaclub]

Ah, a point Ken, but the real driver behind house prices is the Govt, Federal, State and local! (hobbyhorse of mine!)

 

They control the release of land, the taxes on houses and the sale of them, the design & cost of materials used through their standards and the rates charged for "social responsibility adn wealth redistribution"

 

If housing was left purely to the free market it would be dirt cheap, as any landowner could split his land up or build two houses on a piece and sell one, and the houses could be anything you want to build, a plywood shack or a mansion.

 

I wouldn't get into the housing market for a year or two right now, its a bubble that needs about 25% trimming off the top to return to the long-term average, although that depends where you are talking about. The ratio of house price to average wage has gone crazy, so people have to carry far more debt than in the past, which means the Govt have to prop the banks up and constantly stimulate (give worthless pieces of paper called 'money' away!) to keep it all going.

 

Hopefully it won't crash like it has in the USA, or you will owe more on your mortgage than what the house is worth. However you're right in that the massive climb in value will not keep going, so you won't make a fortune buying and selling house every 5years.

 

All that will be paid for by you taxpayers over the next 20years, as well as paying off the higher debts. I'll probably still be paying taxes too, but I wouldn't guarantee being alive in 20years! That will signal the start of cheap housing for the younger generation as the baby-boomers move into retirement homes & die, leaving stack of homes for a decreasing population.

[Pieman]

This is just another one of labors hair brained schemes. When they offer a rebate, people from lower socioeconomic areas will rush in and buy new cars that they can't afford, putting more people into debt. The dealers will up their price when business picks up. Labor benefits from keeping people burdened and dependent on the state.

[Hiro Protagonist]

This is just another one of labors hair brained schemes. When they offer a rebate, people from lower socioeconomic areas will rush in and buy new cars that they can't afford, putting more people into debt. The dealers will up their price when business picks up. Labor benefits from keeping people burdened and dependent on the state.

 

Except that the First Home Owners Grant was introduced by the Howard government back in 2000. Labor simply gave it a boost when the GFC hit.

Edited August 1, 2010 by Hiro Protagonist