Claiming for tax purposes - repair & maintenance, vs capital works

Thanks, @shimmy - I had read this this, too (and was left quite disheartened………typical, when it comes to tax………..).

It's a bit of a vicious cycle - if we leave the place look dodgy or with things that don't work, then we won't be able to rent it (and earn an income). So, we really need to find a tenant who is willing to sign up to live in an ugly, non-working place, then get the work done while they're living in it. Yeah, I can see that would work ………..)

 

I see the logic in defining 'repairs' as fixing damage done to a property while the tax payer was renting it out. Theoretically, if a property has problems upon purchase, this is reflected in the purchase price.
But putting that aside, consider what would happen if the ATO let the rectification of existing damage be claimed as a repair. People would push that envelope and buy fire damaged homes, throw $100K at them, and claim that as an immediate deduction. People would start running seminars around the strategy. I can hear them now: 'Here's a thought, buy the worst house in the suburb, spend a heap of tax deductible money fixing it up, rent it out for a year and flog it for a huge profit.'