I was wondering if people who buy a house but don't live in it long (less than two years) and sell it, are they just unhappy with their purchase or would there be other reasons they would sell so soon after moving in?
Reasons why people sell their home a year or two after buying it?
![](https://files.ozbargain.com.au/u/49/180449-38.jpg?h=cea0a11a)
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How is this tax free ? any income or profile will be taxed isn't it ?
no capital gains tax on your primary place of residence.
..if you live there for 12 months or more I beleive?
@EightImmortals: i thought there is no time constrain? as long you only have 1 and live on it, you can sell anytime without incurring cgt?
@dragonindespair: PPR shouldn't have a time limit IIRC but you can only claim one at a time.
If you hold for at least a year you get a 50% deduction on your CGT, again IIRC.
These are houses in my street, no renovations done that I'm aware of although I do go on holidays occasionally so it's possible. It's not the best neighbourhood, but perhaps there are other explanations apart from not liking the place.
I'll look into flipping, another thought is perhaps people buy houses to live in short term. I've never bought a house so don't know if this is an easy or difficult process, or how much the ATO likes to extort.I would assume it's an involved process and people generally like to live in a house they've bought for a while, even if it's in a cheaper area. But maybe it's easier than I assume, and people often buy a house (without renovating it) with the intention of living there for a year or so.
Probably missed the window on flipping houses. About 10 years too late I reckon.
They found out they have the neighbours from hell.
Flipping it whilst the reno is still new is a valid one, if the pricing is going up quickly, but I wonder how cost effective this is given all the fees and taxes?
I recently heard of a builder who has been married for 21 years and lived in 22 houses with his wife. They buy, knock down, build. Wait for 12months so there is no capital gains, then move on. Current build (when complete) is in the $2.5-$3mill range. Have heard of others doing the same, climbing the ladder and always needing a 'project'.
Situations change too. Our last house we'd planned to be in until the biggest was in high-school then renovate or move. Would have been in the next year or three but our neighbour changed for the worst, we had an extra child and so ended up moving 2 1/2 years ago. Not planning on moving until retirement now, but who knows what is around the corner.
Last I heard if Ur doing it yearly it sounds more like your in the business of house flipping than a main residence, so should not be CGT exempt. But I’m sure there’s a tax grey area in every aspect of tax
Ethical dilemma with house sale + dog barking
https://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=2674107this is exactly what my partner and I do
This practice is called house flipping. Domain has an article on it
https://www.domain.com.au/advice/the-secrets-to-successful-h…
and is the reason why the TV show "The Block" exists.
Couples may double up by buying one property each, Reno and sell every six months.
If both have enough capital or affordable for loan to start.
They're getting out before the bubble bursts.
Aside from the above mentioned house flipping, there can also be a change of circumstances. Relationship breakdown, health issues, change of job/wanting to move closer to another area.
Just do your due diligence to make sure they aren't selling for a bad reason.
Was going to say the same thing. Could be any number of things.
Could also be renters?
We moved into a rental while we were building, the same real estate agent for the rental and the land, so the rental agreement was until the house was settled on. ~~14months
We then moved out of the house we built, job relocation, after 7 months
Now in a rental while we look for somewhere to buy/build (will be a short period again)
They might be climbing up the property ladder. Move in, give a fix up. Sell and rinse and repeat.
Tax free.