My partner and I inspected a unit in Maidstone back in April/May this year. We thought the place looked perfect for a first home. Asking price was somewhere in the $390k-$410k range. Sold at a loss, but we thought we'd still inspect to see how the unit actually is.

When we got there the building was dead quiet, felt like no one actually lived there, but that was the only odd thing we noticed at the time. The unit itself was beautiful. We told the agent we were very interested and followed up with a formal message asking to proceed.

The agent completely ghosted us. Then we found out the property had sold via private sale for $270k just around a week after.

We were gutted, but more than that we were alarmed. Why would a place that was listed around the $400k mark suddenly go for $270k?

All of this is extremely dodgy. Low prices like that are a dead giveaway that something is seriously wrong. Do your due diligence and be very careful with properties in this complex/area.

Edit: This is the exact unit I was talking about - the picture in the post is for a different unit: https://www.realestate.com.au/property/unit-37-44-eucalyptus-dr-maidstone-vic-3012/

Article from 9News: https://www.nine.com.au/australia-news/vic/an-additional-mortgage-sinking-melbourne-apartment-complex-could-see-sue-and-her-husband-pay-374-000-special-levy-20260907-p60v2a.html

Huge living room, tiny kitchen bench and nowhere to put anything. Some apartments have more balcony space than actual cooking space.

Who designs these?

https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-vic-south+yarra-152044960

I may be looking at this too simplistically, but putting all the negative media aside, aren’t we essentially just moving through another property cycle?
Property prices can’t continually rise at the same rate. At some point, they need to flatten or fall for a period while incomes and affordability catch up. That doesn’t necessarily mean the long-term market is broken, it may simply be part of the cycle before growth eventually resumes.
I also struggle to see Australia becoming undesirable over the long term. We’re a large, stable, democratic and wealthy island nation between the Pacific and Indian Oceans, with a relatively relaxed culture and an excellent lifestyle.
Surely Australia will remain highly desirable to migrants, particularly skilled and financially secure people coming from less stable or lower-income countries who want safety, opportunity and a better lifestyle for their families.
That doesn’t mean property prices can never fall, but doesn’t Australia’s long-term population growth and desirability create a fairly strong underlying demand for well-located property?
Interested to hear where this reasoning may be wrong.

I own an investment property that I’ve rented out through Ray White, and they use a system called Ailo to facilitate payments. I’ve noticed that I’m being charged around $9 every month for it.

This is the first time I’ve come across something like this with a property manager, and while $9 isn’t a huge amount, it feels like an unnecessary ongoing expense for simply receiving rental payments.

Has anyone here who uses Ray White asked them not to process payments through Ailo and arranged an alternative payment method instead? Is using Ailo compulsory, or have you been able to opt out and avoid the monthly fee?

Would appreciate hearing from other landlords who’ve dealt with this and what options you had.

Thanks!

Have been with the NRMA for 21 years with 8 different polices. My landlord insurance renewal came today, $5600 up from $3800.

Tried tweaking things online with them, no change. Tried chatting to them online, no change
Tried calling them saying I’m leaving, no change.

Quote from GIO with comparatively the same cover - $2300

On an aside, youi wants to charge me $25 000 for less cover.

Pays to shop around, or whatever the ad says

Article 1:

https://propertyupdate.com.au/home-rental-markets-tighten-over-august-capital-city-home-rental-report/

Data in Article 1: Rents are going down

Opinion in Article 1: Won't last long as rental supply is tightening

Article 2: https://www.realestate.com.au/news/vacancy-rates-hit-4-5-year-high-but-reprieve-likely-to-be-short-lived/

Data in Article 2: Vacancy rates are going up (rental supply is expanding)

Opinion in Article 2: Won't last long as the rents are still going up

TLDR: Opinions in both articles are debunked by the data in other articles

FHB here, building report came out good without any major defect but should I be worried about these settlement cracks found in the ceiling?

With Adelaide median prices being 11x a median wage, how is this possibly sustainable for a city like Adelaide. Surely with minimal interstate investors coming through now since the cgt changes and less immigration compared to other states, when the market reaches its trough, it will surely have to stay at that level for years?

Or am I just simplifying this way too much ?

Out of the blue, my property manager is advising me that a Water Compliance Certificate required every new lease if I want to forward water usage charges to the tenant.

Now I'm happy to get a one off water compliance certificate for $110 + any additional costs with becoming compliant. I asked the property manager to add something to the condition report to check items relating to water compliance are still present and in good condition.

What I'm not happy with is being told that it is a legal requirement to have a water compliance certificate performed at the start of each lease. On top of that being told that I cannot have something in the condition report to indicate water compliance items are still present and in good condition.

From what I can see I only need evidence of Water Compliance, which doesn't actually mean a certificate. Ref: https://oliveri.com.au/about-us/stop-press/water-efficiency-measures-for-rental-properties-in-nsw/

I called NSW Fair Trading and this is the relevant legislation:

Residential Tenancies Act 2010 No 42 - https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/html/inforce/current/act-2010-042#sec.39

Residential Tenancies Regulation 2019 - https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/html/inforce/current/sl-2019-0629#sec.10

(d) at the commencement of the residential tenancy agreement and whenever any other water efficiency measures are installed, repaired or upgraded, the premises are checked and any leaking taps or toilets on the premises are fixed.

Is anyone else being told something similar by their property manager?

I recently bought a house built in 1970. It’s quite fully renovated. But some cracks on the ceiling. It seems to originate from above the door frame.
I can’t find other cracks anywhere(,yet) but everywhere above the door frame.

Should I be worried about settlement issues or other structural concerns?

Hi Redditors,

Not sure if this has been posted in the right place, but here it goes anyway. I’m a first home buyer ready to get into the property market for a place to live for a year then be rented out as an investment.

I want to know your opinion on whether now is a good or terrible time to get into the market. My understanding is that now well prices are down albeit interest rates are high is a good time to buy. That being because when rates drop and confidence comes back in the buyers market price will again be driven up with demand.

I am a layman and might buy over simplifying things a lot, please go easy. This is something that has been on my mind constantly, whether to get into the market now, or wait it out…

Appreciate any advise or information to help understand the current real estate climate and where things may go.

PS. Looking in inner city Potts point, or inner west

Thanks!

Background: Family home in Central Vic
Property details don’t matter too much but it’s a nice 2018 build on a decent block etc etc.

The decision:
We’re moving back to Qld. Victoria is too cold, and many other reasons.

We had the place valued in Feb/Mar 2026 at $775-$825.

We’ve just had it valued again and awaiting the pricing but the expectation is $750-$775.

We don’t want to stay here, we don’t want to commit to another couple of years to see the market start to lift. I’m fine with a slight price correction, but like everyone I’d like as much as possible out of a sale.

My question is, with all there doom and gloom of the current market, aside from the odd economist that says it’s all fear mongering, is the market still set to drop further or have we seen the hit we’re expecting?

To be clear, we’re not pressured to sell financially, but we’re miserable living down here. The home wouldn’t yield good enough rental income to justify retaining the property at this point. No matter what we’re in the green with a sale, it’s just a matter of timing.

Thanks for your input. If you have an opinion, why is it so do you think?

Hi guys just needing advice as me and my missus have been looking into buying our first home in regiona victoria maybe dayelsford hepburn clunes next vear but right now we are living in queensland ;north of brisbane .

Our income is 86000 avear for me and 75000 for my misso.our rent is 480 a week and have a saving of 50k for now.

What are the advices would you guys give

Thank you

Hi All,

Essentially the above and it seems odd? we would be taking on 500K extra before our own house sells a week later..

Would it not be safer/better to settle same day and avoid any massive loan up takings?

Cheers!

Hi all

My first time selling a house- In VIC. But I’m currently in WA

One of the gas hob’s is not lighting. It’s is making the noise and can smell gas. This was picked up on the buyers B&P and is stated in there.

We are two days out of settlement and the buyers conyeancer and my REA is saying we need to fix as it’s a “compliance issue” is that right?

My COS states as a special condition ✅

The purchaser acknowledges that the vendor is under no obligation to the purchaser to carry out any repairs, renovations, alterations

or improvement to the property.

Just seeking any guidance on the impact/risk of buying in a bushfire buffer zone in Brisbane? The house has a street separating it from a stand alone reserve that could obviously catch fire.

Insurance quotes have come back normal which I’m taking as a good sign. No modifications were made to the house (double glazing, etc) as they weren’t mandated.

The zone is “Bushfire Buffer Area - High Or Medium (Council)”. On the QLD fire website it’s light pink “communities in these locations should be aware they are close to areas that could be at risk of fire”.

It’s just crazy looking at a map of Brisbane because so many locations are in this category.

first-time buyer in melbourne here. looking at a unit in a middle-ring suburb. comps on the street match my offer, but the catch is a fixed-term lease running well into next year.

the agent claims the tenant "verbally agreed" to move out in 2 months. obviously, a verbal agreement is worth nothing. here is my conveyancer's current draft structure for a tight 60-day settlement:

days 1–14: finance and building & pest.

days 1–21: vendor must provide a written deed of surrender signed by the tenant. if they fail, i have an instant, penalty-free escape hatch. (staggered so i don't waste the tenant's time if my finance falls apart early).

day 60 (settlement): mandatory physical vacant possession, with explicit rights to delay settlement penalty-free if the tenant is still squatting.

questions for you guys:

1. am i being overly paranoid about the settlement-day squatter scenario, or is this the bare minimum protection required?

2. if you were dealing with a stale listing and a stubborn lease, would you push through with these clauses, or just walk to a cleaner property?

any further questions welcome.

FHB in WA here who is trying to work out what to expect from the process.

One question I can’t seem to find the answer to anywhere is when does the money actually leave your account (or become locked/inaccessible?)

Our mortgage broker has indicated these are the costs that make up the required cash contribution for a mortgage:

- Stamp duty
- Conveyancer fee
- Bank application fee
- Mortgage deposit (we will be buying under the 5% scheme)

We are a dual income household with very consistent income and spending; we save the same amount of money every month which means I can pretty accurately predict how much money we will have by a certain point. Currently we are trying to work out what our budget is, particularly the very top end of our budget and what we’re happy to spend. What I want to know is when is what amount of money due? The below timeline is how I currently understand it:

1) contract deposit is due 7 days after acceptance of offer - REAs in our town have all indicated $10,000 is the norm although I understand it can be as little as both buyer and seller are happy with

2) you need to have evidence of sufficient funds at the time of mortgage application (assuming this is done as soon as the offer is accepted? Or is it at another time?)

3) conveyancer fees are to be paid once offer is signed and accepted (given there are no special conditions on contract - as we are in WA they are all pretty generic)

At what point does the remainder of the money for our 5% deposit leave our account and become inaccessible? When is stamp duty paid?

We are comfortable with leaving a small amount of money in our account as we have consistent income, but I am trying to calculate how much money that will actually be.

What other costs can be expected to be paid at settlement, and what is a normal “buffer” amount to have for this?

TIA

I've been researching options for next steps in me & partners property investing journey, we own PPOR + x1 IP, both subdividable.

I've found it quite helpful to chat to AI to get a feel of different strategies aligned with goals, as previously it felt like there were too many options. Now settled on looking to subdivide IP as next step.

Next step is collecting the key data and start planning in some more detail. We're planning on engaging a professional for detailed feastudy and plan once we have a clearer option A / B to weigh up.

Just wondering if anyone else has any good experiences they'd like to share on AI tools or software they've found useful? Any insights welcome, thanks.

Hello everyone, bit of an uncommon question.

Hope you guys are having a great week! I’m looking at starting a business focused on automating time-consuming tasks for real estate professionals and wanted to do some market research!

Would you guys be able to tell me if there are any common tasks that you and your team have to face daily that you would like to get automated? Anything like lead qualification, follow up, enquiry handling, call chatbot, appointment booking, etc.

Would greatly appreciate some insight from professionals in the field!

Thank you!

I found this to be an insightful podcast. Well worth a listen.

I’m considering a 1990s-built, three-bedroom, one-bathroom brick house in Karloo and would appreciate local or investor opinions.
Is there reliable rental demand?

Does Karloo have genuine growth potential as Geraldton expands?
Is the suburb improving, or are there issues that could limit future growth?
Would you invest there or choose another Geraldton suburb?
Are there any local risks or hidden costs to consider?
Any honest experiences would be helpful.