ACCESS TO
PREVOCATIONAL
MATHS 2
Pearson Education Australia
A division of Pearson Australia Group Pty Ltd Level 9, 5 Queens Road
Melbourne 3004 Australia www.pearsoned.com.au
Offi ces in Sydney, Brisbane and Perth, and associated companies throughout the world. Copyright © Sue Thomson and Ian Forster 2007
First published 2007
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National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication data Thomson, Sue.
Access to prevocational maths. 2. For senior secondary school students. ISBN 9780733977299 (pbk.).
1. Mathematics – Textbooks. I. Forster, Ian. II. Title.
510
SUE THOMSON IAN FORSTER
ACCESS TO
PREVOCATIONAL
We would like to thank the following for permission to reproduce copyright material. Every effort has been made to trace and acknowledge copyright. However, if any infringement has occurred, the publishers tender their apologies and invite the copyright holders to contact them.
Acknowledgements
The following abbreviations are used in this list: b = bottom, t = top.
BlueScope Steel: p. 77t.
Corbis Australia Pty Ltd: pp. 92, 112.
Jupiterimages Corporation © 2007: pp. 13, 21t, 39, 67, 71, 106, 118, 148, 176t, 182–3, 185, 188–9, 198, 208–9. Thomson, Sue: pp. 2–4, 6–7, 10–12, 16–19, 21b, 22–4, 27, 31–2, 34–7, 48–9, 57, 62, 64, 66, 72, 75–6, 77b, 81–4, 87, 90, 107–8, 114–17, 119–20, 121t, 124–8, 134–8, 140–1, 147–9, 151, 153–4, 158, 160–1, 165–7, 169, 177t, 178–9, 180–1, 187, 191–2, 194–7, 200.
Tourism Queensland: p. 14.
Introduction
vii
1 Planning to leave home
2
Renting a property 4
Sharing accommodation 9
Other accommodation 12
Check your progress 14
Chapter problem solutions 16
2 Buying your first property
18
Housing deposits 20
Other costs 24
Types of loans 27
Finding your property 30
Check your progress 34
Chapter problem solutions 36
3 Travelling overseas
38
World locations 40
Calculating time 45
World distances 49
Flying overseas 51
Currency exchange 62
A Canadian holiday 64
Check your progress 68
Chapter problem solutions 70
4 Building a new house
72
Land sizes 74
House plans 79
Grant’s kit house 86
Check your progress 88
Chapter problem solutions 90
5 Investing your money
92
Earning interest 94
Simple interest 95
Compound interest 100
Investing in shares 102
Superannuation 105
Investing in real estate 107
Balancing a portfolio 109
Check your progress 110
Chapter problem solutions 112
6 Growing vegetables
114
Vegie patch design 116
Fertilisers and sprays 120
Planting and harvesting 122
Collecting water 125
Packaging 127
Check your progress 132
Chapter problem solutions 134
7 Renovating property
136
Circles 138
Triangles 143
Prisms and volume 144
Renovating a house 148
Interior decorating 158
Check your progress 164
Chapter problem solutions 166
8 Organising an event
168
Organising a function 170
Organising basketball 173
The charity ball 176
Back to Back Challenge 179
When someone dies 180
Check your progress 184
Chapter problem solutions 186
9 Starting a business
188
Starting up 190
Overheads and costs 194
Break-even analysis 195
Setting a price 198
Goods and Services Tax 200
Labour costs 202
Comp calculations 205
Check your progress 207
Chapter problem solutions 208
Welcome to the Access to Prevocational Maths series!
Access to Prevocational Maths has been written for the new course in Prevocational Maths for Queensland students. The series is designed to give flexibility to schools to provide courses in mathematics for students with a broad range of skills, and to provide engaging and accessible maths activities that occur in the workplace and everyday life.
The series covers the mathematics topics of number, data, location and time, measurement and finance. It includes the key competencies of analysing information, communicating ideas, organising activities, working in teams, using mathematical ideas, solving problems and using technology.
The complete package at each year level includes: a full-colour student coursebook
a Teacher’s Resource Pack—printout and CD a Companion Website.
How to use the coursebook
The coursebook includes the following features: Chapter opening pages introduce a problem to illustrate the applications of the skills covered in the chapter.
Chapter concepts are listed as dot points and examples of real world relevance are provided.
Chapter problem
solutions are provided at the end of each chapter.
Introduction
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Concise theory and clear worked examples are supported by plenty of well-graded exercises in each section. Each question is colour coded to show the level of difficulty; pale orange is regular and dark orange is more difficult.
Application and challenge
activities are scattered throughout each chapter and include
simulations, spreadsheet activities, class discussion questions and practical applications.
Icons refer to relevant activities in the Teacher’s Resource Pack and Companion Website.
Skills Practice Web Destinations
Practical Activity Drag and Drop
Spreadsheet Review Questions
Did you know? boxes provide interesting snippets of information for students.
Language boxes explain key terms.
Hint boxes help students to understand information and solve problems.
Remember boxes remind students of key points.
Error Alert! boxes remind students of common errors to avoid.
Caution! boxes warn students of dangers in the real world.
How to use the Teacher’s Resource Pack
Material in the Teacher’s Resource Pack is provided on CD and as a printout and includes:
a teaching program a syllabus correlation grid teaching and learning activities.
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About 15% of all complaints made to the Office of Fair Trading involve buying, selling or renting real estate.
LANGUAGE
A rotunda is a circular-style room. A house with a rotunda design is usually big, luxurious and
expensive.
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Hint
Use the fraction key on your calculator to simplify each fraction.
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RememberA speed of 6 knots is equivalent to 6 nautical miles per hour.
Error alert!
In the simple interest formula the time must be in years because the interest rate is per annum, orper year.
Caution!
Never start a business without obtaining financial and legal advice.
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A wide range of photocopiable activity sheets are provided, which include skills practice, revision, practical applications, cooperative group work and games for students. Some activities are supported by technology files such as interactive spreadsheets.
How to use the Companion Website
The Access to Prevocational Maths Companion Website contains a wealth of support material for both teachers and students. All areas of the website are freely available, except for the Teacher’s Resource Centre, which is password protected.
To access the live Companion Website, go to www.pearsoned.com.au/schools/.
From the Schools homepage, click on Secondary.
The menu bar on the left-hand side shows all activities in this chapter: Chapter Concepts
Quick Quiz Review Questons Drag and Drop Spreadsheets Web Destinations
Teacher’s Resource Centre The Teacher’s Resource Centre is password protected and contains:
a syllabus correlation grid
a teaching plan worksheets. From the Companion Websites homepage, scroll down and click on Access to Prevocational Maths 2.
From the Access to Prevocational Maths 2 homepage, open the drop-down menu and select a chapter.
Don’t forget to click GO!
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P
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C H A P T E R
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Chapter concepts
Weekly, fortnightly, monthly and annual time conversions
Calculating rent costs Bonds and leases Using fractions in an accommodation context Researching information Budgeting
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Amna plans to rent an apartment in Brisbane for $290 per
week. How much will she have to pay before she can
move into the apartment?
Planning to
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Real World
Relevance
There is a lot of information you need to consider before you rent a property to live in.
A lease is a binding, legal document. Once you have signed a lease you are committed to renting the property and paying the rent for the whole period of the lease.
It is not just the rent that needs to be calculated. Renting involves other bills and
expenses.
In this chapter you will be looking at some of the calculations you will be using when you rent a property.
What is the maximum amount of bond that a landlord
can charge for a property rented for:
a
$210 per week?
The Residential Tenancies Act, which applies to properties rented in Queensland, specifies the rights and responsibilities of all landlords and tenants. One of the major responsibilities of tenants is to pay their rent on time. Rent can be paid by cash or cheque directly to the real estate agent managing the property, or it can be paid electronically by Bpay or direct debit.
If you pay rent by cheque or cash, make sure that you get a receipt and keep it in a safe place.
Mirella is renting a property that was advertised as $210 per week. How much is the rent:
a per fortnight? b annually?
Majid’s rent is $524 per fortnight. a How much is his weekly rent? b Calculate the annual rent. The monthly rent on a granny flat is $560.
a What is the annual rent? b Calculate the weekly rent. The annual rent on a home unit is $13 000.
a What is the weekly rent? b Calculate the monthly rent.
Renting a property
Calculating rent
Example 1
Justin is looking for a unit to rent. The rent for a two-bedroom studio in Brisbane is $240 per week, payable fortnightly in advance.
a Calculate the fortnightly rent.
b If Justin rents the property, how much will he pay annually in rent?
Solution 1
a There are 2 weeks in 1 fortnight. Fortnightly rent = 2 × weekly rent
= 2 × $240 = $480
b Annual rent means the rent for 1 year. There are 52 weeks in a year.
Annual rent = 52 × weekly rent = 52 × $240 = $12 480
Worksheet 1:1
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Hint
Weekly rent is NOT monthly rent divided by 4, because there are not exactly 4 weeks in a month. To calculate weekly rent, divide the annual rent by 52.
Caleb is trying to decide between two similar units. One unit is advertised as $275 per week and the other as $14 250 annually. Which unit is the cheaper and by how much?
A two-bedroom unit in a security block is being rented for $410 per week. Due to increased expenses the owner is increasing the rent by 15%. a By how much will the weekly rent increase?
b Calculate the new annual rent.
Anthony wants to rent a property close to the centre of town in Cleveland. The table summarises the properties advertised for rent in the local paper.
a Calculate the average rent per week of the properties available for rent in Cleveland.
b Anthony’s take-home pay is $465. If he rents the cheapest property available, how much will he have left from his pay after he pays his rent? c List three things, other than rent, that Anthony will have to pay for each
week from his take-home pay.
d Anthony doesn’t think that he can afford to rent any of the properties advertised for rent in Cleveland. Suggest some strategies he could use to obtain accommodation he can afford.
Group ICT activity
To complete this activity you will need to log onto the ‘Properties for rent’ weblink on the Companion Website.
What you have to do
Use the properties to rent menu to find properties available for rent in your local area.
What is the cheapest and the most expensive property available? Calculate the annual rent for the cheapest property available for rent in your local area.
Estimate the weekly take-home pay you would need to be able to afford to rent the cheapest property in your local area.
Property in Cleveland Rent per week
House: 4 bedrooms with pool $410
Split level house: 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms,
security system $540
Townhouse: 3 bedrooms, airconditioned $290
Older style house: centre of town, 3 bedrooms $260
Townhouse: 2 storeys, 3 bedrooms, lock-up garage,
airconditioned $270
Home unit: 2 bedrooms, lock-up garage $230
Modern unit: security building, 2 bedrooms, views
across harbour, airconditioned $350
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Landlords cannot increase the rent during a lease. If you sign a lease, the rent is fixed until the lease expires. The law limits rent increases to a maximum of one in every 12-month period. If the rent is going to be increased, the tenant must receive notification in writing at least 8 weeks before the rise is due to start. If the tenant thinks that the rent increase is unreasonable, they can apply to the Residential Tenancies Tribunal for a review of the case.
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When you rent a property, usually you will be required to pay a bond. The bond offers some security to the landlord in case you leave with rent owing or you damage the property.
Landlords are required to pay all bond money to the Office of Rental Bonds (ORB) within 2 weeks of receiving the bond. If you don’t receive a receipt from the ORB within a few weeks of paying the bond, you should contact them to check that they have received the bond. If the landlord hasn’t paid the bond to the ORB, contact the Residential Tenancies Tribunal, which will issue the landlord with a directive to pay the bond to the ORB.
The bond on each of these properties is the equivalent of 4 weeks’ rent. Calculate the bond for the following properties.
a A townhouse with weekly rent of $246 b An apartment with a weekly rent of $205 c A studio apartment rented for $185 per week
When David rented a small unit his bond was $648. The bond was equivalent to 4 weeks’ rent. How much is David’s weekly rent?
The landlord of an expensive waterfront property is planning to rent the property for $860 per week. The bond is $5160.
a How many weeks’ rent is the bond?
b Suggest some reasons why the landlord may have set a high bond.
Billy rented a unit for $235 per week and his bond was 4 weeks’ rent. When Billy left the unit he owed 1 week’s rent. He had damaged the carpet and left the place dirty. The landlord deducted the rent owing, $280 to fix the carpet and $136 for cleaning. How much of the bond did Billy receive?
Rental bonds
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The ‘Tenants’ rights’ website has more information about rental bonds.
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Landlords aren’t required to ask for a bond, but they usually do.
If the weekly rent on a property is $300 or less, the maximum bond is 4 times the weekly rent. If the rent is over $300 per week, there is no maximum bond limit.
Example 2
Faiz is going to rent a property for $295 per week. What is the maximum bond he can be required to pay?
Solution 2
The maximum bond is 4 times the weekly rent.
Maximum bond = 4 × $295 = $1180
Worksheet 1:2
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A lease is a formal, legal document that sets out the conditions of a rental agreement. You should never sign a blank lease form nor a form that contains something you don’t understand. When you sign a lease your rent is fixed for the term of the lease.
Keiran, Matthew and Russell plan to rent a three-bedroom unit in Toowong for $396 per week. Before they sign a lease they decide to look carefully at the costs involved. This table shows the initial costs.
a Complete the missing values in the table.
b Determine the total amount the boys will have to pay before they can move in.
c How much of the initial costs will each of the boys have to pay if they share the costs equally?
d This table shows their estimated fortnightly expenses. Complete the table and determine their total fortnightly expenses.
e Calculate Keiran’s share of the fortnightly expenses. f Keiran’s take-home pay is $410 per week. How
much will he have left over each fortnight after he has paid his share of the expenses?
g What percentage of his fortnightly take-home pay will Keiran be paying on expenses?
h Do you think that Keiran can afford to move out of home to share the unit with his friends? Why or why not?
Item Cost
4 weeks’ rent in advance
Bond: 4 weeks’ rent
Agent’s letting fee $15
Cost to connect the telephone $120
Cost of turning the electricity on $55
Moving costs and the purchase of essential items $290
Item Cost
Rent
Food and miscellaneous items $220
Electricity $45
Phone $20
Organising a lease and moving in
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Real estate agents in Queensland have a database of poor or bad tenants. If your name is on this database, you will find it very difficult to rent a property in the future.
The law requires landlords to tell tenants if they are at risk of being put on the bad tenants database. However, you should try to solve all problems between you and your landlord to avoid being listed. If you think you are being treated unfairly, contact the Tenants’ Union of Queensland.
Worksheet 1:3
Jay, Michael, Andrew and James were students at Gympie State High School. After they finished Year 12 they spent a week in a holiday apartment in Cairns. They shared the costs equally and each boy paid $235 in rent and $250 for a bond.
a How much rent did the landlord collect from the boys for the week? b While they were staying in the apartment, Jay accidentally broke the arm
off the lounge chair. The repairs to the lounge cost $425. How much bond refund did each boy receive?
Group discussion question
Gisella is looking for some accommodation near her job in Chermside.
Which of these two places would suit Gisella best? Give reasons for your answer.
This is a copy of the electricity account Mary received for the unit she is renting.
Tenants are only required to pay for the electricity they use and the related GST. The landlord is responsible for all other electricity charges. a Calculate the value of the electricity Mary used, including the
4% discount.
b GST is charged at 10%. How much GST does Mary have to pay on the cost of her electricity?
c How much of the electricity account does the landlord have to pay? d The electricity account is for approximately 12 weeks. How much should
Mary include in her weekly budget to cover electricity?
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CHERMSIDE Fem to share semi-detached
house, quiet loc, near transport, furn room, $120 pw all inclusive. Phone 1234 5678
CHERMSIDE
Female non smoker w
anted to share 2br f/f unit in quiet st. 3 min w
alk to transport. $110 pw plus exp.
4321 8765
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Tenants can be required to pay for electricity and water usage only if there are separate metres for the services on the property. If, for example, all the units in a block share the same water metre, tenants are not required to pay for water usage.
Quarterly Electricity Tax Invoice
Location UNIT 3, 49 JESMOND STREET, TOOWONG
Total Amount Payable of your last bill dated 22 May 2007 $206.30
Payment Received $206.30
Electricity (23/05/2007 to 22/08/2007) $192.50 Electricity Discount: 4% (23/05/2007 to 22/08/2007) − $7.70 credit Reference SHEET 12515
Energy Fix Service Fee $60.00 Supply & Replace Water Heater Thermostat 11/05/2007 $53.00 Subtotal of Charges (before GST) $297.80 Total GST Payable 10% $29.78 Total Charges (including GST) $327.58
Total Amount Payable $327.58
If you can’t afford to rent a property on your own, one option is to share accommodation with others. However, sharing with someone you don’t know can be a risk. They may have habits you don’t like, they may not like to do their share of the work or provide a fair share of food, or they may not pay their bills. If you need to share accommodation, make sure that you negotiate who is going to be responsible for what and how much each person is going to contribute to costs.
Group ICT activity
To complete this activity you will need to access the weblinks ‘Shared accommodation’ and ‘Flatmate stories’ on the Companion Website.
What you have to do
Click on the shared accommodation menu at the top of the website when you access the ‘Shared accommodation’ weblink.
Locate some shared accommodation in Brisbane that costs less than $180 per week. Describe the location, the accommodation facilities and the type of flatmate the advertiser is looking for.
Use the ‘Flatmate stories’ weblink to read about some of the experiences others have had with flatmates.
Imagine that you are going to advertise for a flatmate.
■ In your group, discuss what characteristics you would like the flatmate to have.
■ Decide what expectations you have of the flatmate.
■ Write a four-line advertisement describing the accommodation you have to offer and the type of flatmate you require.
Sharing accommodation
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Low income earners can apply to the Queensland Department of Housing to get financial assistance with the cost of a bond for renting. However, they must apply before they sign a lease and they have to repay the money during the rental period.
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Often people who share accommodation don’t share the costs equally. Usually one bedroom is bigger than the others, or contains an ensuite bathroom, so the person with this bedroom pays a bigger share of the rent.
Often the shared rent is determined by a calculation involving the sizes of the bedroom floor areas.
Cameron and Thomas are renting a unit and sharing the costs depending on the sizes of their bedrooms. The floor area of Cameron’s bedroom is 15 m2 and the floor area of Thomas’s room is 12 m2.
a Calculate the total floor area of the two bedrooms in the unit. b What fraction of the total bedroom floor area is the floor area of
Cameron’s bedroom?
c The weekly rent is $243. Calculate Cameron’s share of the weekly rent. d How much rent will Thomas have to pay per week?
Rachel and Kerri are sharing a garden unit. Kerri’s bedroom has a floor area of 13 m2 and Rachel’s has a floor area of 12 m2. Their weekly rent is $225. How much do you recommend each girl should contribute to the rent?
Bundy and Guy rent a property for $240 per week. Bundy’s bedroom is twice as big as Guy’s. How much rent do you think Bundy should pay?
Calculating shared costs
Example 3
Three people are going to rent a house for $285 per week. They are going to share the rent based on the sizes of the bedrooms. The floor areas of the bedrooms are 12 m2, 10 m2 and 8 m2. Calculate each person’s share of the rent.
Solution 3
Total bedroom floor area = 12 + 10 + 8 m2 = 30 m2
The ‘fair’ shares of the rent are: × $285, × $285 and × $285 The rent for the biggest bedroom is $114 per week. The weekly rents for the smallest and middle size rooms are $76 and $95 respectively.
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When you rent a property you should insure the contents (your things). If you share the property with someone, make sure that your insurance company knows. If you have to claim on the policy and you haven’t notified the company of your sharing arrangement, it may not pay your claim.
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When Sylvia and Liz rented an apartment together, Sylvia took the small room with a separate bathroom and Liz took the big bedroom with the ensuite bathroom. This table shows the floor areas of the bedrooms and bathrooms.
Peter and Carlos are going to share a flat for $180 per week. The rent covers equal size bedrooms but only one garage. The real estate agent told them that having a garage adds $45 to the rent. Carlos is going to park his car in the garage. What would be a fair way for the boys to divide the rent? Give a reason for your answer.
Roberto is a keen gardener. When he and Melissa decided to share a garden villa, Roberto agreed to take care of all the lawns and gardens and share all the other tasks equally. In return, Melissa agreed to pay of the rent. The rent is $280 per week. How much rent does Roberto pay?
Carol, her husband Andrew, and their two friends Alison and Wayne, are going to rent a three-bedroom, one-bathroom house for $325 per week. Their weekly food bill is $180 and they save $25 per week to cover electricity and water. They plan to share the rent based on the floor areas of their bedrooms and share all other expenses equally. The floor areas of the bedrooms are given in the table.
Determine the total amount each person will have to pay each week for rent, food and other expenses.
Room Floor area
Bedroom 1 13 m2
Bedroom 2 10 m2
Ensuite bathroom 4 m2
Separate bathroom 9 m2
Bedroom Size
Main bedroom (Carol and Andrew’s room) 14 m2
Bedroom 2 (Alison’s room) 11 m2
Bedroom 3 (Wayne’s room) 10 m2
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When you rent a property the landlord is required to give you a copy of a ‘Condition report’. Sometimes this report is called an inventory. This form records the landlord’s opinion of the condition of the property before you moved in. It is very important that you check this document carefully and record anything dirty or damaged on the form, then return it to the landlord within 2 weeks.
Remember to keep a copy of the report. It will stop the landlord from charging you for damage that was done before you moved into the property. The weekly rent for the
apartment is $396. How much do you think each girl should pay towards the rent each week? Give a reason for your answer.
If you don’t want to share an apartment and you can’t afford to rent your own, there are other options. Some of the options include:
■ staying in a boarding house ■ getting a job with
accommodation provided ■ renting a room in a private
house
■ living in a cabin or a van in a caravan park.
Sometimes staying at home can become much more attractive, when you consider the cost of an alternative!
Darryl has a job as a maintenance man in a motel. He is paid $16.10 per hour for a 40-hour week. In addition he is provided with a small flat at the motel to live in for the cost of $25 per week.
a How much does Darryl earn per week?
b Darryl has the cost of his accommodation and another $170 for tax deducted from his weekly pay. Calculate his take-home pay.
c A similar flat to the one Darryl has at the motel is rented for $155 per week. What percentage discount is Darryl receiving on his rent?
Brian lives in a cabin he rents in a caravan park near the beach. He pays $10 per day for the cabin. He also pays $8 per fortnight for electricity. a Calculate the fortnightly cost of Brian’s accommodation and electricity. b Brian receives a disability pension of $480 per fortnight after tax. How
much does he have left each week from his pension after he has paid for his rent and electricity?
Marcia is trying to save money for the deposit on her own unit. She was paying $210 per week on rent and $80 per week on food when she saw an advertisement looking for someone to live in a school boarding house. There is no pay for living in the boarding house, but all accommodation and food are provided in return for supervising students doing their homework at night.
a How much money will Marcia be able to save in 1 year as a result of living in the school boarding house?
b How long will she need to stay in the boarding house to save the $35 000 she needs for the deposit for her unit?
Other accommodation
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TAFEs, universities and community shopping centres often have noticeboards displaying suitable accommodation for people who have just left home.
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There are two types of tenancies for people living in caravan parks. A short term tenancy lasts for only 42 days and can be renewed only once.
The alternative is a long term tenancy. If you want to rent in a caravan park for more than 84 days, make sure that you sign a long tenancy lease, not a short tenancy one.
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Terry is a university student from overseas who has come to Australia to improve his English. He has arranged to rent a room in a family home so that he can practise his conversational skills with the family members. Terry pays his host family $12 per day for rent, $60 per week for food and $45 per fortnight to have his laundry and ironing done.
a Calculate Terry’s weekly cost for rent, food, laundry and ironing.
b Terry rents the room for 42 weeks per year. He spends the remainder of the year with his family in China. How much does he pay his host family per year?
Group ICT activity
Imagine that you live in a small countrytown and you want to try living in a large centre on the coast. You have $5000 which you can use to pay for somewhere to live and to buy the essential items you will need.
What you have to do
Discuss possible locations and decide where you plan to live.
Find a suitable job in the area you have selected and record the weekly pay. The ‘Find a job’ weblink on the Companion Website could help you to locate the right job.
Research accommodation possibilities in the location of your choice. The ‘Properties for rent’ and ‘Shared accommodation’ weblinks on the
Companion Website could be useful for finding suitable accommodation. Remember that your weekly take-home pay will need to be at least 2 times your weekly rent to allow for food, clothing and other essentials.
Determine the amount you will have to pay before you move in, assuming that you will need to pay a bond of 4 weeks’ rent as well as 4 weeks’ rent in advance. Include an allowance of $150 for electricity and water bonds.
Calculate the amount you will have left from your $5000 to spend on essential items and to have some money spare for emergencies.
Determine what items you will need to buy. If the accommodation is furnished, you won’t need a bed or refrigerator; but if it is unfurnished, you will need to get quite a few things. Remember, you will need items like plates, knives and forks, towels, sheets and blankets too.
Prepare a budget showing how much you can afford to spend on items to set up your new residence. Devise a strategy to follow to gradually purchase the items you need but can’t afford at the moment.
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Hint
Some charity shops like St Vincent de Paul and the Salvation Army shop have a good range of quality second-hand items for sale at very reasonable prices. 6
Wendy’s rent is $560 per fortnight.
a How much is Wendy’s weekly rent?
b Calculate Wendy’s annual rent.
c Each week Wendy’s take-home pay is $700. What percentage of her take-home pay does she pay in rent?
Bruce’s annual rent is $14 560.
a How much is Bruce’s weekly rent?
b Calculate Bruce’s monthly rent.
Dagma is going to rent an apartment on the Brisbane River for $460 per week. Which alternative, A, B, C or D, represents the most likely amount of bond she will have to pay?
A No bond required
B $460
C $1840
D $3000
Anna is looking for a cheap place to rent. Her weekly take-home pay is $350. She see a one-bedroom unit advertised on a community
noticeboard. This table shows her initial costs.
a What is the missing value in the table?
b How much is the weekly rent?
c Anna’s total weekly expenses for rent, food, electricity, phone and small miscellaneous items are $255. How much money does she have left from her weekly pay after all her weekly expenses?
d What percentage of her weekly take-home pay does Anna spend on her weekly expenses?
e Do you think that Anna can afford to rent this unit? Explain your answer.
Item Cost
4 weeks’ rent in advance
Bond: 4 weeks’ rent $700
Agent’s letting fee $15
Phone and power connection $175
Check your progress
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Judy works as a nurse in a retirement village. In return for being available for 24 hours a day for emergencies, she has a small unit to live in, in the village. She pays only $30 per week for the unit and her meals are provided free of charge in the village dining room.
a Calculate the annual amount Judy pays for her unit.
b The full rent for a unit similar to Judy’s unit is $320 per fortnight. How much does Judy save per fortnight on rent by being available for emergencies, for 24 hours a day?
Anthony and Bruce are renting a small, two-bedroom townhouse. Each man’s share of the rent is based on the floor area of his bedroom. The floor area of Anthony’s bedroom is 12 m2 and the floor area of Bruce’s bedroom is 9 m2.
a What fraction of the total bedroom floor area is the floor area of Anthony’s room?
b The weekly rent for the townhouse is $175. What is Anthony’s share of the rent?
Anita, Barbara and Cathy are going to rent a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house for $900 per fortnight. Bedroom 1 has an ensuite bathroom, and the girls with bedrooms 2 and 3 will share the main bathroom. They are going to share the rent based on the size of their bedrooms and bathrooms.
This table shows bedroom and bathroom floor areas in the house.
a What is the total area of the three bedrooms and two bathrooms?
b Explain why Barbara will pay of the rent.
c Calculate the amount of rent each girl should pay each fortnight. Linda earns $14.55 per hour after tax. Her weekly rent is $168. How many hours does Linda have to work each week just to cover the cost of her rent?
Kevin saves $36 per month for his electricity bill. Last week Kevin received an electricity bill for 98 days. The bill was for $120. Will Kevin have saved enough to pay the bill? Explain your answer.
Ben is trying to decide between two very similar flats to rent. One flat is advertised at $165 per week and the annual rent for the other is $8500. Which flat do you think he should rent? Use a calculation to justify your answer.
Room Floor area
Bedroom 1 (Anita) 14 m2
Ensuite bathroom 6 m2
Bedroom 2 (Barbara) 12 m2
Bedroom 3 (Cathy) 10 m2
Main bathroom 8 m2
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Amna can expect to pay 4 weeks’
rent in advance, a bond equivalent
to 4 weeks’ rent, a connection fee for
electricity and a bond for electricity.
Rent in advance
=
4
×
$290
=
$1160
Rental bond
=
4
×
$290
=
$1160
Electricity connection
=
$110
Electricity bond
=
$100
Total
=
$1160
+
$1160
+
$110
+
$100
=
$2530
When Amna leaves the property she
will receive the rental bond and
electricity bond back, provided she
has paid her electricity account and
she leaves the apartment in an
acceptable condition.
The Residential Tenancies Authority
(RTA) administers Queensland’s
renting laws. The law states that the
maximum bond allowed for rental
properties with a weekly rent up to
$300 is 4 times the weekly rent.
For properties rented for more than
$300 per week there is no maximum
bond limit.
a
When the rent is $210 per week
the maximum bond is
4
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$210, or $840.
b
When the rent is $370 per week
there is no maximum limit to the
bond.
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What is the maximum amount of bond
that a landlord can charge for a
property rented for:
a
$210 per week?
b
$370 per week?
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Buying your
first property
C H A P T E R
2
Chapter concepts
Regular savings Borrowing money House-buying costs First-home buyer’s entitlements
Types of housing loans Repaying a mortgage Reading and
understanding real estate advertisements
Using the Internet to obtain information
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Grant is saving money for the deposit for his first house.
Currently he has saved $8000 and he is saving $620
each fortnight in an Internet-based account that pays
5·2% p.a. interest.
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Real World
Relevance
For most Australians, property is the most expensive item they ever buy.
Buying your first property is an exciting experience. However, unscrupulous agents can rush first-time buyers into paying more than they can afford, or into signing up for expensive finance. Knowledge about the processes of
financing and buying property can assist purchasers to pay no more than is necessary.
Grant plans to buy a property to the value of $230 000.
He will need to borrow $210 000 to pay for the house,
which he plans to live in.
a
What government assistance is available to assist
first-home buyers?
b
What expenses, in addition to the value of the house,
Real estate is expensive, and very few first-home buyers have sufficient money to pay for their first property. Just about everyone needs to borrow money when they buy their first home. While some financial institutions offer loans that cover the whole price of a property, this can be expensive. Most financial institutions offer loans less than the full price, and the borrower must make up the rest of the price up-front as a deposit.
Savings and investment accounts pay investors interest, and most bank websites contain savings calculators to help you plan your savings. You may be surprised at how quickly savings can accumulate and the dream of having a house deposit can eventuate.
Log onto the ‘Savings’ weblink on the Companion Website as you work through Example 1 and answer the questions in Worksheet 2 : 1.
Housing deposits
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If you borrow money to buy a property and you repay the loan over 30 years, you end up repaying the lender nearly three times the amount
you borrowed.
Regular savings
Example 1
Haley is saving for the deposit for a property. Her special purpose savings account pays 5·1% p.a. interest.
At the moment she has $500 and she is saving $120 per week.
a How much will Haley have in her savings account in 4 years time?
b How long will it take for Haley to have $35 000 in her account?
Solution 1
Open the ‘Savings’ weblink.
a Select ‘What will my savings accumulate to?’ and select the reason for saving. Click on Continue.
Enter the interest rate, 5·1, the initial deposit, 500, and the regular savings amount, 120. Make sure that the frequency is weekly. Enter 4 in the years space. Click on Calculate.
Haley will have $28 292·81 in her savings account at the end of 4 years.
b Click on ‘Start over’. Select ‘How long will it take me to reach my goal?’ and select the reason for saving. Click on Continue.
Enter the interest rate, 5·1, initial deposit, 500, and regular savings amount, 120. Check that the frequency is weekly. Enter the final savings balance, 35 000. Click on Calculate.
It will take Haley 4 years and 11 months to save $35 000.
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You will need access to the ‘Savings’ weblink to complete this worksheet.
Jacob is saving for the deposit for a unit. He has $400 and each week he saves another $90. The account pays 4% p.a. interest.
a How much will Jacob have in 5 years time? b How long will it take for Jacob to save $25 000? Dagma has $725 in her account, which pays 4·9% p.a. interest. Each month she saves another $310.
a How long will it take Dagma to save $13 500? b How much interest will be paid into her account? Samantha wants to buy a unit but she doesn’t have any savings to use as a deposit. She needs $18 000. How long will it take her to save the deposit if she puts $135 per week into an account that pays 5·5% p.a. interest?
Pierres needs to save $12 000 in 2 years for a deposit on an apartment. At present he has only $200 in his savings account. How much will he need to save per week, at 5% p.a. interest, to reach $12 000 in 2 years time?
Zada plans to save $220 per week.
a How long will it take her to save $18 000 if the interest rate is 4% p.a.? b How much quicker can she save $18 000 if the interest rate is 6·5% p.a.?
a How much does David need to save per week to save $18 600 in 2 years if the interest rate is 5·5% p.a.?
b How much extra does he need to save per week if the interest rate falls to 4% p.a.?
Group discussion question
Imagine that you want to save a $20 000 deposit for your first property.
a How could you obtain money to save? b Realistically, how much could you
save each week?
c What interest rate could you get on a special purpose savings account? d How long would it take you to save
the deposit?
e If you had a partner who could save the same amount as you, how much quicker could you both save the deposit?
If interest rates fall, what will happen to the size of the regular amount you have to save per week to reach a savings goal in 3 years time?
Worksheet 2:1
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Financial institutions won’t necessarily lend you all the money you want. They will only lend you an amount that they believe you are able to repay. In general, the more you earn and the bigger the deposit you have, the more institutions are prepared to lend you.
You will need to access the ‘Home loans’ weblink on the Companion Website as you work through Example 2 and the questions in Worksheet 2 : 2.
You will need to access the ‘Home loans’ weblink to answer these questions.
Complete the missing values in this table.
Net fortnightly
income
Other monthly payments
Interest rate p.a.
as %
Loan term (years)
Amount you can borrow
Monthly repayments
$1350 $160 6·85 30 a b
$1440 $210 6·5 25 c d
$2100 $65 7·1 24 e f
How much can I borrow?
Example 2
Guy finished his apprenticeship last year and now his fortnightly take-home pay is $1500. He has finished paying off his car and his only monthly payment is $100 for health and dental insurance.
How much can Guy borrow for a home at 6·75% p.a. interest over 25 years?
Solution 2
Open the ‘Home loans’ weblink site, and access the ‘Home loan calculator’ menu at the top right. Select ‘How much can I borrow?’
Make sure that Fortnightly is showing next to Net salary. Delete the amount to the right of Fortnightly and type in 1500. Enter 100 next to Other
payments and check Monthly.
Use the left and right arrows to adjust the Interest rate to 6·75 and the Loan term to 25·0 years.
Guy can borrow up to $217 000 and his monthly repayments will be $1499.28.
Worksheet 2:2
How does the interest rate affect the amount you are able to borrow? Complete this table to help you decide.
How does the term of the loan affect the amount you can borrow? Complete a table of values similar to the one in question 2, with income and the interest rate the same, to help you decide.
Calib’s take-home pay is $3100 per month. His monthly car repayments are $410 but he has no other monthly payments.
a What is the maximum home loan he can borrow at 7·2% p.a. interest? b Over what loan term will he need to take the loan to get this amount?
Net fortnightly
income
Other monthly payments
Loan term (years)
Interest rate p.a.
as %
Amount you can borrow
Monthly repayments
$1450 $120 25 5 a b
$1450 $120 25 6 c d
$1450 $120 25 7 e f
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Leaking showers are one of the most common house problems. A leaking shower can cause floorboards to rot, and this can be very expensive to fix. If you are buying a property, make sure that you ask a builder to check it for faults like leaking showers. 3
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Anika and Kim want to buy a house together. Kim’s fortnightly net pay is $1325 and he doesn’t make any other payments. Anika doesn’t work at the moment as she is finishing a TAFE course.
a How much can they borrow over 25 years at 7·25% p.a. interest if only Kim is working and Anika is a dependent?
b You need to check the joint income box on the website for this
question.
5
If Anika gets a job when she finishes TAFE and her fortnightly net pay is $1000, how much more will they be able to borrow over 25 years at 7·25% p.a.? (Remember, if Anika gets a job they have no dependents.)
a How does the number of your dependents affect the amount you are able to borrow?
b Why do you think this is the case?
Use ‘more’ or ‘less’ to complete each of these statements. In general:
a The more you earn, the you can borrow.
b The lower the interest rate, the you can borrow. c The shorter the loan term, the you can borrow.
d The more dependents you have, the you can borrow.
e The smaller your monthly car payments and other payments, the you can borrow.
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Many first-home buyers are surprised and disappointed to learn of all the additional costs they need to pay when they buy a property. Usually the additional costs can be several thousand dollars. Some of the costs are: ■ $300 to $500 for a pest and building inspection. These inspections are to
check that the building isn’t being eaten by white ants or borers and to make sure that the building is structurally sound.
■ $300 to $1000 for a survey. A surveyor checks that the house is on the right block of land and that the fences are in the correct positions.
■ $250 to $1000 for a solicitor’s or a conveyancing firm’s fees. They will check the legal side of your purchase. Among other things, these checks include making sure that the person who is selling the property is the owner of the property, that there are no outstanding taxes or other amounts of money owing on the property and that the land is suitable for your intended use. ■ Government stamp duty on the property, which can be $50 000 or more. The
duty is determined by the value of the land.
■ Costs associated with borrowing money to buy the property. These include a government mortgage registration fee and stamp duty on the loan. ■ A government fee to transfer the title of the property.
You will need to access the ‘Stamp duty’ weblink on the Companion Website for Example 3 and Worksheet 2:3.
Other costs
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Stamp duty is a state tax. The rate of duty differs between states. Victoria has the highest stamp duty; Queensland has by far the cheapest. For the same-priced property, the stamp duty in Queensland is less than half the stamp duty in any other state.
Example 3
Nabil has sold the house he is living in and he is buying another property in Queensland to live in. The property is valued at $240 000 and he is borrowing $165 000 to pay for it. How much will Nabil have to pay in state government fees and stamp duty?
Solution 3
Open the ‘Stamp duty’ weblink, select QLD, then use the right and left arrows to enter the values $240 000 and $165 000. Select ‘to live in’ and ‘no’ for first-home buyer. Click on Calculate.
Mortgage registration fee: $111.30 Transfer fee: $253.50 Stamp duty on property: $2400.00
You will need to access the ‘Stamp duty’ weblink on the Companion Website to complete this worksheet.
Brock is buying a property in Queensland that is valued at $220 000. He is borrowing $145 000, and the remainder of the money is coming from the sale of his current house.
a Calculate the amount he will pay for: i mortgage registration fee
ii transfer fee
iii stamp duty on property iv stamp duty on loan.
b What is the total value of his state government fees and stamp duty? c If Brock was a first-home buyer, how much less would his state
government fees be?
What concessions in state government fees and stamp duties do first-home buyers in Queensland receive?
Mia has never owned any property. She is thinking about buying a unit and renting it for a few years before she moves in. The unit is valued at $160 000 and she will need a $100 000 mortgage.
a What is the total amount of state government fees and stamp duty she will pay if she buys the unit and doesn’t live in it?
b How much less will the fees and stamp duty be if she buys the unit and lives in it straight away?
c Why may Mia be thinking of buying the unit and renting it, even though she will pay a lot more in government fees and stamp duty?
a Complete the missing values for property purchased in Queensland by non-first-home buyers.
b Complete the missing words.
When you buy property in Queensland, the stamp duty is much i if you buy the property as an investment. As the price of a property increases, the amount of stamp duty payable ii . First-home buyers are exempt from stamp duty if they buy the property
iii and the property is worth less than $250 000.
Value of the property
Mortgage amount
Stamp duty if you live in the
property
Stamp duty if the property is
an investment
$100 000 $100 000 i ii
$200 000 $100 000 iii iv
$300 000 $100 000 v vi
$400 000 $100 000 vii viii
$800 000 $100 000 ix x
Worksheet 2:3
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Stamp duty on houses that will be owner occupied is only 1% of the value of the property if the property is worth less than $300 000. But for properties worth between $300 000 and $500 000, stamp duty is $3000 plus 3·5% of the value over $300 000. 2
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Calculations involving percentages are very common in real estate and finance. Real estate agents usually charge a percentage commission, and percentages are used to calculate the amount of deposit required. Percentages are even used to calculate the size of any fine you may be charged if you are late paying government charges!
Calculate the following percentage amounts.
a 5% of $160 000 b 8% of $145 000
c 3% of $240 000 d 6% of $500 000
This table shows the deposit paid and the full price of three properties. In each case, calculate what percentage the deposit is of the value of the property.
Minka is buying a unit. She needs an 8% deposit to obtain the loan she wants. The unit is valued at $146 000. How much deposit does Minka need?
The Queensland Office of State Revenue charges a penalty for late payment of stamp duty. The charge is 3% of the amount of the stamp duty for the first month, then an additional 2% for every month after that. Hamish has owed the Office of State Revenue $8520 for 3 months. What penalty will he be charged?
Value of the property Deposit paid Percentage deposit
$180 000 $9 000 a
$160 000 $16 000 b
$240 000 $12 000 c
Percentages review
Example 4
Find 5% of $56 000.
Solution 4
5% of $56 000 = × $56 000
= $2800 On the calculator:
5 100 56 000 5 100
---÷ × =
Example 5
David borrowed $120 000 towards the cost of a $150 000 property. What percentage of the value of the property did he borrow?
Solution 5
Percentage borrowed = × 100%
= 80% On the calculator:
120 000 150 000 100
120 000 150 000
---÷ × =
Worksheet 2:4
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You must inform the Office of State Revenue that you have purchased property within 1 month of the completion of the sale. If you are late notifying, you will be charged a fine. If you use a solicitor to complete the legal part of your purchase, the solicitor will usually notify the Office of State Revenue on your behalf.
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You’ve heard the expression ‘Wise purchasers shop around to get the best deal’. This common expression is very relevant to purchasing a mortgage for your home. Even slight differences in interest rates and fees can make a huge difference to the final amount you repay on the loan.
Group ICT activity
To complete this group activity you will need to access the ‘First-home buyer loans’ weblink on the Companion Website. Use the information on the weblink to answer the following questions. When you have completed the questions, prepare a presentation for students in another class to inform them of the loan options for first-home buyers. In your presentation, also include some
information about the First Home Owners Grant. What is a 106% loan?
What size deposit (genuine savings) do you need to qualify for a 97/3 loan? What are genuine savings?
Group discussion question
■ What is mortgage insurance?
■ Why do you think banks charge a fee for mortgage insurance?
■ Does everyone need to pay mortgage insurance?
■ What percentage deposit is required to avoid mortgage insurance? What is a Family Equity Loan? What risk could your family face if they helped you with a Family Equity Loan?
Explain the statement ‘We have a 105% home loan that reverts to 6·95% when you have 5% equity in the property’. What does this statement imply about the interest rate before you have 5% equity?
Types of loans
First-home buyer loans
LANGUAGE
Your ‘equity’ in a property is the part of the value of the property that you own. If,say, the market value of your
property is $200 000 and your mortgage is
$160 000, you have $40 000
equity.
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You will need to access the ‘Mortgage repayments’ weblink on the Companion Website for Example 6 and Worksheet 2:5.
You will need to access the ‘Mortgage repayments’ weblink to answer the questions in this worksheet.
Omar borrowed $175 000 at 8·25% p.a. interest over 30 years. a How much will his monthly repayments be?
b Calculate the total amount Omar will repay the bank. c How much interest will Omar pay as he repays the loan?
Suresh borrowed $195 000 at 7·75% p.a. interest over 20 years. Calculate the total amount he will repay the bank.
Chad borrowed $210 000 at 7·5% p.a. interest for 30 years. Explain how you know that Chad will repay the bank more than 2 times the $210 000 that he borrowed.
Gemma borrowed $150 000 at 7·25% p.a. interest for 15 years. a How much will she have to repay the bank each month?
b How much extra will she have to repay the bank each month if interest rates go up to 8·25% p.a.?
Repaying a mortgage: long term cost
Example 6
Marco borrowed $200 000 over 30 years at 8% p.a. interest to buy a house and land package.
a How much will Marco repay the bank during the 30 years?
b How much interest will Marco pay the bank?
Solution 6
Log onto the ‘Mortgage repayments’ weblink and use the right and left arrows to enter an amount of $200 000, interest of 8% and a loan term of 30 years.
a Marco will repay $1467.53 every month.
Total repaid = $1467.53 × 30 years × 12 payments per year = $528 310.80
Marco will pay the bank $528 310.80 to repay his $200 000 loan.
b Interest = $528 310.80 − $200 000 = $328 310.80
Worksheet 2:5
Caution!
Make sure that you calculate the total cost of a loan before you sign on the dotted line!If you borrow money over a long time period, it can cost you a very large amount of
interest.
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a Complete this table of values.
b Write a paragraph to explain what happens to the monthly repayments and the total amount repaid as the term of the loan increases.
a Construct a table similar to the table in question 5, with the amount borrowed and the term of the loan constant. Investigate what happens to the size of the monthly repayments and the total amount repaid as the interest rate increases.
b Suggest some reasons why governments don’t like interest rates to rise. Use the ‘Extra payments’ weblink to answer this question.
When Danielle and Mark borrowed $250 000 at 7·25% p.a. interest for 15 years, their monthly repayments were $2282.10. Two and a half years after they started repaying the loan, Danielle got a pay rise and they decided that they could afford to increase their repayments by $700 per month.
a How many years quicker will they repay their loan by increasing their repayments by $700 per month?
b How much interest will they save?
c What advice about repaying more than the minimum monthly amount would you give to people who have a mortgage?
Use the ‘Lump sum payment’ weblink to answer this question.
Three years ago, Kate and Jon borrowed $180 000 at 8% p.a. interest over 15 years. Kate has just received a $12 000 work bonus.
a If Kate uses the bonus to make an additional lump sum payment on the loan, what effect will the payment have on the term of the loan and on the total amount of interest they will pay?
b What advice would you give to Kate?
Nelson wants to buy a townhouse, but he knows that he will only just be able to make the mortgage repayments on his own. He has saved a 25% deposit but he still needs to borrow $145 000. He can borrow the money at 7·75% p.a. interest over 15 years.
Nelson decides to buy the townhouse and rent it out. After he pays all the rental fees and charges he will have an additional $1100 per month that he will be able to pay off the mortgage. How many years will it take Nelson to repay the mortgage on his townhouse using his rental strategy?
Amount borrowed
Interest rate p.a. as %
Loan term (years)
Monthly repayment
Total amount repaid
$160 000 7·75% 10 i ii
$160 000 7·75% 15 iii iv
$160 000 7·75% 20 v vi
$160 000 7·75% 25 vii viii
$160 000 7·75% 30 ix x
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The best way to make a good deal in the property market is to buy below market value. Before you start looking for the right property to buy there are a few things you can do that will save you money and worry in the future.
■ Save as big a deposit as you can. A big deposit makes it easier to get finance and the finance can be cheaper. With a big deposit you won’t have to pay mortgage insurance. ■ Work out how much you can afford to spend and, if
possible, arrange to have ‘pre-approved finance’. When you have pre-approved finance it is easier to get the person selling the property you want to accept your offer. Pre-approved finance will also help your financial
institution to process your final approval more quickly than an approval starting from scratch.
■ Take your time and look at a lot of properties. After you know the market, choose about four you like and make a cheap offer on each of them. You never know which vendor needs to sell quickly and you could get a bargain.
Real estate agents advertise in many different places. Newspapers and local papers regularly include a ‘Real Estate Guide’, and letterbox ads are common. However, the Internet is rapidly becoming the most popular way to advertise real estate.
When you read an advertisement for property, then look at the property, often you can wonder whether the advertisement was for the property you saw! Very few real estate advertisements will list, or even mention, any poor or undesirable features. Most highlight any good features and try to make the property sound as attractive as possible.
Real estate agents have a language all of their own. They talk about ‘WCs’ when they mean toilets, use ‘SLUG’ for a ‘single lock-up garage’ and advertise ‘lake glimpses’ even if you can only see the lake when standing on your toes on the upstairs balcony.
Group practical activity
To complete this activity, each group will need a set of the cards ‘Can you speak “real estate”?’, available on the teacher’s resource CD. In your group, match the real estate expressions with what they probably mean. Often more than one of the expressions will have the same probable meaning.
Finding your property
Reading advertisements and
looking at property
Write a sentence to explain what each of these expressions, used in real estate advertisements, really means.
a 2 bdr and 1 bth b Separate WC
c In need of TLC d Ocean glimpses
e Renovate or detonate f Double size bedrooms
g Close to shops and public transport
A real estate advertisement said that a property was brick/hard/tile. What does the expression ‘brick/hard/tile’ mean?
Match each of the abbreviations in a to g with its meaning in A to G.
a WC A built-in robe (wardrobe)
b WIR B reverse cycle airconditioning
c BIW C ensuite (a small bathroom off a bedroom)
d B/ins D 5 minutes to the central business district
e R/C air con E built-ins (e.g. wardrobes, cupboards, bar)
f 5 min to CBD F toilet
g ens G walk-in robe (wardrobe you can walk inside)
Example 7
What does this advertisement mean?
Solution 7
This is a property that boasts potential. Only 150 m from the freeway makes it ideal for commuting to work in the city.
Features include 3 bdr, 2 bths, large lounge, renovatedkitchen
and plenty of off-street parking. Great first home.
This is a property that boasts
potential. Only 150 m from the
freeway makes it ideal for
commuting to work in the city.
Features include 3 bdr, 2 bths,
large lounge, renovated kitchen,
and plenty of off-street parking.
Great first home.
The house needs lots of things done to it
Traffic noise could be a problem There could be high
unemployment in the area 3 bedrooms 2 bathrooms
The kitchen is renovated but it probably has old
bathrooms Cheap
Worksheet 2:6
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Seated toilets with drainage were in use before 2500 BC, but their use went out of fashion until the 18th century. In New Dehli, India, there is an international toilet museum. You can take a virtual tour of this museum with the ‘Toilet museum’ weblink. 2
Before you start question 4 your group should complete the card-matching activity ‘Real estate terms’ on the teacher’s resource CD.
In your group, write a description of each of the following properties. Describe any special features in detail.
a Renovator’s delight. This cosy 3-bedroom cottage has raked ceilings, an open plan and is in need of some TLC and interior decorating. The property is fully fenced and has a tandem garage.
b Paint the walls, rip up the carpets, polish the floorboards and you’ll have a house that’s different from everyone else. This home has cathedral ceilings and lots of windows and is just waiting for your own decorating style. First-home buyer’s special!
c This RC airconditioned, timber/tile, 3 bedroom home with separate WC and enclosed verandah has many extras, including a new state-of-the-art kitchen. Well-established, private block with SLUG and workshop. Handy to the freeway and transport.
d The owners just didn’t have time to finish the job. This is your best opportunity to buy a home with lake glimpses in this sought-after location. Perfect as the handyman’s next project, this property offers the potential of becoming the house of your dreams.
e Easy-care, modern 3-bedroom home on small level block, main with ensuite. All bedrooms have built-ins. Three-way bathroom and lovely sunny kitchen with plenty of cupboard space. Remote double garage and dual street frontage. Deceased estate, must be sold.
Group challenge!
Imagine that you are a real estate agent. In your group, write an
advertisement for each property below. Include real estate language and make the property sound as good as possible, but you have to be truthful.
a b
c d
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Real estate agents do more than sell residential houses. They lease or rent out properties and manage them, value properties, and organise the purchase and/or sale of commercial and rural properties. If you want to be employed in the real estate industry in Queensland, you must complete a 5-day registration course and be registered with the Office of Fair Trading. To learn more about a career in real estate, use the ‘Real estate careers’ weblink on the Companion Website.
