+ SHOW US YOUR PAD/ FLAT/ CAVE/ PENT-HOUSE/ CARDBOARD BOX/… +
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@Snowy will confirm that Sydney's property market is insane. For example, a burnt-out, two-bedroom terrace on a 49 m2 (500 square foot) plot sold for $911,000 in May.
The problems are down to:
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Sydney's geography makes it hard to expand the city. It's wedged in between the sea to the east, and national parks to the north and south. The Aussie proclivity for urban sprawl, and poor transport infrastructure add to this.
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If you think "buy to let" is big in the UK, then it's nothing compared to Australia. About 50% of all property bought in Sydney is by investors, it was over 60% last year.
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If the rent from an investment property doesn't cover the mortgage, then that loss can be deducted from your salary. So a $10K shortfall on a $100K income, would mean only $90K is taxed. This is called negative gearing, and it became a major campaign issue in the recent election.
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Meanwhile, any capital gains are taxed at half the rate of income, provided you hold the asset for over a year. So property investment is all about prices increasing, because the rent won't cover the mortgage, and this helps bid up prices.
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During the financial crisis, the government brought in very generous grants to first time buyers to support the market. This had the effect of propping up prices, when a correction might have otherwise happened.
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There's an awful lot of money coming into Australia from overseas, particularly China. A lot of this is looking for a safe home, in case of trouble at home, and finds its way into real estate.
I've been convinced it's not going to end well for the last six or seven years, but, like London, it's gone way past the point of being merely bonkers, and shows no sign of slowing down.
As an illustration of the madness, at the peak of the Tokyo property bubble in 1989, the average, new apartment sold for about eighteen times median income. I think that second hand places were about thirteen or fourteen times salary.
The median Australian income is about $60K. The median house in Sydney is just over a million dollars, about seventeen times salary, whilst the median apartment is $720K, about twelve times.
OK, it's not as crazy as Vancouver is right now, but…
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I'm in Melbourne, which is 25% to 30% cheaper. I've been tempted by Sydney (and I do want this house), but have been scared off by the living costs.
Going back to the "Show Us Your Pad" theme, here's my living room. The Chesterfield sofa is a new addition, and it's a restored / rebuilt 1835 piece. In purple.
It was supplied by The Original Sofa Company, and is fully hand-tacked (which is rare). The leather is thick, not in an Aero FQHH jacket way, but getting there, and hand dyed, so it should get a tea-core effect over time.
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@Giles, pretty sure you need to buy this place for @Madame Buttonfly…
There's even a room for @Alex if he ever needed to move back home
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Johnny Depp has put his five penthouses on the market. The asking price is $12.8 million.
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New to me vintage Thomet bent wood stool. It came out of a science lab here in St Louis and has a great patina. Shown next to an Eames arm chair.
Coffee, Vitra Yanagi Elephant stool, and Ekornes.
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Love the bentwood
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Figured since we might not be in this house much longer, I would at least share what we did to it over the last year or so.
Pretty Much a standard Southern Board and Batten Front and brick siding.
We opted for a bright blue door. One of my favorite features haha - I always planned to replace the columns with more substantial ones, but alas…
the Dining area - My wife found this awesome mirror that an antique shop had fashioned out of siding that came off an old french barn. It weighs nearly 85lbs.. not sure how my hanging skills have managed to keep it attached for this long.
My Office Space + Dog room.
Living area:
Kitchen - One style I detest from modern styling is the Over the Range microwave with recirculation vents. Horrible for anyone that actually enjoys cooking. I will not miss this feature once we leave
Breakfast area we had made for the space.
Outdoor entertaining space. Usually used to simply hold beers or wine while Im grilling.
Bonus area that we never did much with. Usually just acts as a storage room for large kids gear.
Twins room:
Hopefully within the next few months Ill have a new project to share!
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Those are cool Seul, where from?
Just added a Nelson cigar lamp and Eames table to the front room and am pretty happy with it all.
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New original Knoll Bertoia added to the bedroom
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LIKE!
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Working on our foyer adding a Herman Miller Hang It All, a Max Bill Ulm stool, and a Magis Puppy for Amelia [emoji1]
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