Bridging Finance - Find Out How It Can Benefit You

 

If you need to obtain financing, you may be concerned that it's going to take you forever to get it. When you apply for a standard form of financing, not only do you have to deal with piles and piles of paperwork, but the processing period can take an extremely long-time. While this may simply be an inconvenience in some cases, in others it can ruin your purpose for obtaining financing in the first place. For example, if you identify an appealing property that is currently being offered at a reduced price, you need to obtain financing as soon as possible. Otherwise, someone else is going to get to pick up that great deal before you.

 

Fortunately, there is an option that can allow you to obtain financing in a much shorter period of time. This option is called bridging finance. If you haven't heard of this option before, you'll be interested to know that there are quite a few benefits to it. The first is that it can be used for a wide range of purposes. While many financing options have a narrow list of uses, bridging finance can be customized to your needs. As previously mentioned, this type of financing can be used if you identify an underpriced property. The same goes for a property that you find at an auction. You can also use bridging finance if you're interested in purchasing a commercial development. If you've decided that you want to upgrade your home or another property that you own, that's another potential use of this type of short-term finance. It's also possible to obtain bridging finance against the value of a property as a type of general loan that you can use.

 

As its name implies, another appealing feature is that bridging finance is a short-term option. Unlike many other options, you can choose the financing duration that is the best fit for your needs. Whether it's four months or twelve months, this is yet another factor you can control for this type of financing. Given the amount of flexibility that has already been discussed, it shouldn't come as a surprise that the actual process of obtaining this option is much simpler than other financing routes. It's because of this simplicity that you can obtain this financing option in a matter of days.

 

If you've had bad experiences with other forms of financing in the past, it's time for you to discover how much easier things can be when you choose short term Bridging finance. One of the biggest differences you will notice if you decide to pursue this type of financing is that the lender will actually work with you instead of seeming to work against you. This is evident in everything from how valuations are calculated to the flexibility that is provided for the terms of your financing. Regardless of your specific goals, there is a strong chance that bridging finance can help you reach them in a shorter amount of time.

For more information about SMSF Finance visit GCC.

 

How can you buy commercial property using SMSF?

 

Investing in commercial property can be a daunting process, and with so many funding options in Australia, it can be hard to know where to begin. If you really want to make this new venture work for you, it’s important you do it the right way. Using an SMSF (self-managed superfund) to buy a premises offers you lots of benefits, here’s why:

No landlords
It can be disheartening to pay out a significant amount of money each month to a third party. However, with an SMSF, you can effectively pay rent to yourself, as your funds will go towards your super fund and not into another person’s pocket, as is the case when using private lenders. This means you’ll be able to grow your investment more quickly. This rent can also be claimed as an expense when filling out tax returns as per normal commercial regulations. Within the SMSF, the rent is subjected to just a 15% tax, but deductibles on the lease are capped at 46.5%.

Additional tax benefits
If your property is held by the SMSF for over a year, when it’s sold, capital gains are only taxed at 10%. If you’re receiving a pension when you’re selling your property in the future, you won’t have to pay capital gains tax on the sale.

What’s the process of buying a commercial property using SMSF?
You’ll need to have the commercial property you wish to purchase valued by someone who is independent of your SMSF as well as qualified to do so. The selling price of the premises must also reflect the others currently on the market, as it’s important for the lease to be competitive in a commercial sense. Once purchased, rent payments will have to be made on time, despite being paid back into the SMSF, and will always need to meet the full amount. It’s important that the premises is used only for commercial purposes and is valued regularly following the sale. Ultimately, the property must continually offer benefits to all members of the SMSF for it to comply with its original purpose.

Are there any risks to consider?
As with any type of investment, there’s always potential downfalls. Because the property will be limited to commercial use, it may be more difficult to find a buyer for this market should it be more viable to sell the property than maintain it. Owners could also struggle with covering the costs of maintenance and insurance, which they will be liable for, as these can quickly mount up and put a strain on their finances.

However, one of the main things to consider is whether the investment will offer long term returns. Although it’s ideal for those wishing to run a business, the property may struggle to meet the requirements it set out to in the beginning. A large part of using an SMSF to invest in commercial property is the retirement gains members can benefit from, so if large amounts of the fund are focussed in this single asset, it can be a difficult goal to realise.

What you must understand about the SMSF Loans

Gone are the days when an SMSF could not borrow fund and invest in assets. However, several rules related to taxes were relaxed in 2007. The rules associated with SMSF loans have been reversed in recent years. The most current regulations provide for the following certain rules and restrictions.

The best part is that the Federal government has kept its promise by not making any major change in the SMSF loan rules. The treasurer in his Budget speech did not touch the limited recourse borrowing arrangements (LBRAs). However, he surely made a pre-budget commentary and said that the government may improve on the Financial System Inquiry’s using a part of the budget.

Now, there are several reasons for SMSF borrowing.

ü  SMSF borrowing provides that funds can be invested in assets where they do not have sufficient cash allowing for purchase.  The SMSF loans also provide for tax deductibility on franking credits, interest payments within the funds. The fund can be used to diversify various kinds of investments and help in improving income and growth. 

ü  The different types of investments covered by SMSF loans include residential and commercial property, shares, land, factories, machinery and also the farms. The restrictions applied to the SMSF loans are stringent. However, in some cases, they are subject to interpretation.

ü  The ease of borrowing makes the SMSF loans the preferred option. The lender in the case of SMSF loans should not necessarily be a bank or a financial institution, but it can be a family member, business partner or even a fund member. Repayments must be made from investment earnings or superannuation contributions.

Challenges associated with borrowing the SMSF

Complex rules are linked with the superannuation loans. For example, SMSF borrowing of the assets are just under limited resources borrowing arrangement (LRBA). This states that only one asset can be acquired from the collection of identical assets under a single borrowing arrangement. The single asset becomes the security for the loan. It is held in the holding trust till the repayment of the loan. Assets cannot be replaced or improved on except in certain exceptional cases.  The assets can be repaired but many times the difference between repairs and improvement may not be clear cut. However, the difference is understood in this example. Renovation of an older home may be required and it is allowed. However, adding an extension is clearly not permitted, at least not from the borrowed fund.

You can get more clarity on using the SMSF loans and see a home you can leverage their various benefits reaching out to the experts at Global Capital.