First-homebuyers urged to take mortgage help on board

An innovative house and land finance package developed in Perth could help more first-homebuyers to secure a home loan reduce their loan repayments. 
  
Based on a four-bedroom, two-bathroom home using part of the home as a rental, therfore allowing first-homebuyers  to afford a buy, part of the home is sealed off from the rest, creating a rentable one-bedroom, one-bathroom home.
  
The rent is taken into account when assessing borrowing capacity and surplus income can be used for bigger mortgage repayments.
  
Housing Edge director Dennis Ward-Fay said the new approach would bring home ownership within the reach of many more first-homebuyers.    
  
“Every application has to be assessed on its own merits but as an example the top four banks would require a couple borrowing for a house and land package valued at $380,000 to be earning an average salary of $63,275. The same couple applying for a Housing Edge loan would require a combined salary of only $56,510.
  
“The home can easily be converted back to a standard four-bedroom, two-bathroom home at a later date if the owners wish,” he said.
 
Homeowners are advised to use a property manager to handle the rent collection and tenancy details.

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Budget ‘could spark multiple birth spike’

Fertility doctors are worried they will be under pressure to implant multiple embryos into women who cannot afford ongoing treatment due to new financial safety net caps, a leading IVF specialist says

Having two embryos implanted into the uterus instead of one raises a woman’s chance of having a multiple birth, says IVF Australia chairman Professor Michael Chapman.

As part of Medicare Safety Net restrictions unveiled in Tuesday’s budget, payments for IVF will be capped at different rates for each stage of treatment once a person reaches the safety net threshold for out-of-pocket medical expenses, which is $1,111.60, or $555.70 for those on low incomes.
This could hit women with an extra $1,500 to $2,000 of out-of-pocket costs per IVF cycle.

There are also caps on safety net payments in other areas including obstetrics, varicose vein and cataract surgery.                                                       

Under the changes, pregnant women who choose to see a private obstetrician will be out of pocket by $550 unless doctors lower their fees.

“That is why the government is urging women to question their doctors about their fees,” Health Minister Nicola Roxon said.

An average of $4.5 million of taxpayers’ money is paid to the top 10 per cent of IVF specialists each year.

But Prof Chapman said the government, which says it wants to crack down on specialists who charge exorbitant fees, was using the figures for political gain.

“For every doctor that gets money, there are 10 staff members, the scientists, counsellors and nurses, they get funded through the rebate,” he told AAP.

Prof Chapman said he accepted there had been a 40 per cent rise in IVF fees over the past five years but said that it was in line with general medical inflation.

Current Medicare rebates, which work out to about $4,200 per child, go towards employing about 2,000 people in private IVF clinics nationally and investing in research and facilities, Prof Chapman said.

He estimated out-of-pocket costs for patients would rise from $1,600 to between $3,000 and $3,500 when the safety net caps come into effect on July 1, 2010.

It can often take more than one IVF cycle for a woman to fall pregnant.

“Certainly, patients are going to be more out of pocket for IVF than they have been in the past,” Prof Chapman said.

He warned doctors would be under pressure to implant more than one embryo per cycle into women as a result of safety net restrictions, increasing the chance of multiple births.

“Over the last five years in Australia the twin rate has dropped dramatically because we have been able to put one embryo back,” he said.

“But if patients think they won’t be able to afford the next cycle they will put a lot of pressure on the doctor to put two embryos back.”

Ms Roxon said her department would work with medical professionals to restructure the system to better reflect stages in a treatment cycle.
www.sbs.com.au

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Builder first, then buy block

I WAS at the Mandurah City Soccer Club as a sponsor recently and, after a conversation with some members, it was apparent there is some confusion regarding building a new home, what is included, what to look for in selecting a block and the process.

With constant changes in the Building Codes of Australia (BCA), you cannot afford to take anything for granted.

I will try to shed some light on the process in future columns, to be published in the Mandurah Coastal Times.

I have extensive experience in the building industry. I started as an apprentice carpenter and sub-contractor. From there, I ran my own building firm and then went into sales and management for one of the largest building companies in WA.

My wife and I relocated to Mandurah six years ago. and I currently work for Danmar Homes as Peel regional manager.

I look forward to this column being of some assistance to all prospective new home buyers. Now for some quick tips:

Firstly, always select a builder before you purchase a block.

Ask if the builder builds to the standards of BCA. Their advice can save a lot of money and frustration.     

If you start right, the chances of problems down the track are limited.                                                                         

My next column will deal with the advantages of house-and-land packages.

To ask Barry a question, phone 9534 8844 or email barry.dye@danmar|homes.com

 

www.inmycommunity.com.au

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The Rudd Government to tighten rules for margin lending

THE Rudd Government will give the $21 billion margin lending industry three weeks to digest a proposed overhaul of the regulatory and legislative regime.
The Minister for Corporate Law Nick Sherry will today release a draft copy of the legislation with a view to introducing it into parliament next month.

The legislation includes new national laws to regulate margin lending under a standard national regime, reports The Australian.

Margin lending is not currently regulated in Australia and is considered to have been one of the main destroyers of investor wealth as the stockmarket collapsed last year.

It cost some investors their homes as their margin lending accounts blew up, triggering margin calls many couldn’t afford to pay.

Mr Sherry said yesterday taking out equity on a family home was a key area of interest to the Government.

“One area where we have had a high level of concern has been where people have been advised to take equity out of their family home and then to use this debt to leverage into buying shares through a margin loan.

“This double-debt trap, with a home as security, is of serious concern,” he said.

“Under our new responsible margin lending laws the lender will be required to assess a person’s true loan-to-value ratio

“This means the lender can no longer assume the money brought to the table is not itself debt, a major new improvement” that would reduce the risk of people losing their homes.

Properly geared margin lending, backed by full disclosure, had a place, but the Rudd Government would not tolerate ordinary Australians being misled into grossly inappropriate margin loans that could cost a family everything they owned, including their home, he said.

Under the new laws, lenders will be regulated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and be required to hold an Australian Financial Services Licence, be members of low-cost external dispute bodies, clearly disclose fees and commissions before lending, and lend under a tailored margin-lending-specific set of responsible lending obligations.

Between June last year and December 30, the number of margin calls received by 205,000 Australians with margin loans increased 458 per cent, as the share market dropped 40 per cent.

http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/money/story/0,26926,25441887-5015860,00.html

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