Contract
« Previous EntriesWatch out for the hidden cost; building contracts not worth the paper they are written on
Wednesday, June 17th, 2009Gina of Parklands learned this to her cost. She was not able to be at home while minor renovations were taking place, and says that the job was botched. No worries, she thought. It stated on her invoice that the builder is a member of a professional body which is supposed to cover homeowners in [...]
Tips for Building Contractor Dealing Sibling Conflicts
Wednesday, June 17th, 2009When contractor one sanguinely tells you that he is carrying out spouse’s orders to do something which sounds incredibly stupid, you blithely say, ‘Oh, alright.’ His timing is impeccable: you are worn out, distracted. Spouse is horrified. How could you be so naive, so gullible? Who is the boss around here?
Major overhaul or complete replacement of an old, run-down property
Saturday, June 13th, 2009There are several large items in an old, run-down property which will almost certainly need a major overhaul or complete replacement.
Home Renovation, things to consider when designing continued
Friday, June 12th, 2009Security: Unless you live in a gated community with 24-hr surveillance, or in a utopia where security is not an issue, you cannot duck this one. Security needs to be considered early on and fine-tuned as you build. When designing our staircase, I merrily insisted on having, window at step number three, until our draughts [...]
Home Renovation, things to consider when designing
Friday, June 12th, 2009This is not an all-inclusive list but it’s a start. Experts start regaling you with talk of a ‘gourmet kitchen‘, ‘double-volume interiors’, ‘designer this and designer that’. It is very seductive language, but at the end of the project, you may find that you have lost sight of the bigger picture. When designing, consider the [...]
How much do you be aware: Mortgage Bond Finance continued
Friday, June 5th, 2009Interest rates
Once the bond is approved, offered and accepted by the applicant (who now becomes the mortgagor), the question arises as to when interest payments to the building society should be made. Interest on building society bonds is normally paid monthly in arrears but the first instalment in the case of existing properties can vary [...]
Owning Property, Private Identification Protection
Saturday, May 9th, 20091. Do not list property in your name. This is extremely important when buying a personal residence. When holding title, make sure you don’t use your name. Again, try to use a company or trust. At least use initials. The title document goes straight to the county hall of records and is available to the [...]
Leases Premises - Do You Know the Pitfalls?
Thursday, May 7th, 2009This will interest you if you buy or start a business in rented premises.
A lease is a legal contract and once you are in the premises you are bound by it. If you treat your lease as a mere boring formality, it may cost you a great deal of money later when you find you [...]
Find your dream house from perfect sources of properties
Tuesday, May 5th, 20091. Estate agents
In discussing the typical sequence of events in a purchase, the above example deals with a property advertised through an estate agent. The premises would have been offered for sale at a fixed rate, around which offers would be based. Although you may have got to know more about property generally by your [...]
Buying the Property for Sale
Monday, May 4th, 2009Once you have decided that the house is a viable proposition for your purposes and have satisfied yourself by carrying out preliminary enquiries, you should put in an offer on the most suitable property available. You are still relatively uncommitted to anything at this stage.
Property Restoration: Improving security
Thursday, April 9th, 2009Many people feel the need to make their homes more secure these days, and replacing doors and windows which have reached the end of their useful life enables the installation of new period-style units which can be obtained ready-fitted with anti-burglar locks.
How Does One Value a Business Property?
Friday, April 3rd, 2009There is no such thing as an exact valuation which holds for all purposes or in all circumstances. It depends on so many different factors. If you compare two apparently similar businesses, one may have serious flaws which make it expensive, compared to the other. Here are some of the points which affect the value.
Freehold [...]
The new Finished Property Saleable Points Vol 3
Friday, April 3rd, 2009It is surprising how little imagination the average homebuyers have in this and other areas of decor—they instantly know what they don’t like when they see it, but are less sure about how they would have done it themselves. If you are unfortunate enough to have the more demanding kind of viewer looking at your [...]
The best way of Marketing and Selling Property continued
Friday, April 3rd, 2009Methods of selling Property
As mentioned earlier, in the case of conversion into flats it is sometimes possible to finish one flat in advance of the others and sell it, even though the rest of the flats are far from finished. A prospective buyer may exchange contracts subject to completion, which will normally entitle you to [...]
What happens if the owner does not keep up his bond repayments or an intermediary seller does not pay the owner?
Wednesday, February 25th, 2009Here it is up to you to keep an eye on the situation. You already know who owes what from the certificate you were issued at the time of signing the contract so you can check with the bond holders from time to time that payments are being met. The building societies will assist to [...]
What happens if you inadvertantly or intentionally buy property which is not proclaimed, not subdivided, not saleable on sectional title or for any reason cannot be registered in your name by the time your Deed of Sale says you must take transfer?
Wednesday, February 25th, 2009It is illegal to sell land on instalments (that is, property which is paid for in more than two payments over a period exceeding a year) without the explicit specification by the seller in the contract or Deed of Sale of the date or event after which the seller will give transfer to the purchaser. [...]
Secrets you never learned about home building Labor, Materials, and Tools continued
Sunday, February 22nd, 2009MATERIALS
Buy the best! Ten years later, living in the house, you will never say, “I wish we had put in a cheaper door there,” but you may say the opposite. The best will not always be the most expensive, but it often will be.
There is one way you may be able to use less expensive [...]
Secrets you never learned about home building Labor, Materials, and Tools
Sunday, February 22nd, 2009In the course of construction you will discover what every contractor knows: Materials are cheap; labor is expensive. By doing most of the work yourself, you will be saving a great deal of money on labor; put at least some of it into good-quality tools and materials.
Property Buying for Home Renovation continued
Friday, December 5th, 2008But whatever you do, don’t underestimate the cost of renovation. It is a labour intensive business and labour costs money. A lot of work has to be undone before any repair work can start. Old paint and plaster has to be stripped away, old joinery removed. Structural changes mean piles of rubble to be taken [...]
Property Buying for Home Renovation
Friday, December 5th, 2008The second quarter of the twentieth century brought a new lifestyle to western city dwellers. The motor car, no longer a luxury or a rich man’s toy, was not only here to stay but also created the need for freeways, highways and networks of roads which shortened distances and enabled the affluent and middle classes [...]
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