The turnaround in Melbourne apartment rents has started!!!
A headline in the AFR caught my eye yesterday. It read – “Rental markets post fastest growth in 14 years”. Wait…What? For owners and agents of Melbourne apartments, this headline feels like a world away from what we have seen over the last 12 months so naturally I read on. The story is about a core logic study of…Read More→
At the Auction neither the seller or buyer turned up! Panic???
At one of our auctions on Saturday neither the buyer nor seller turned up. Panic? Actually no worries. There were 4 bidders and it sold for a great price with the contract of sale signed by both parties and deposit paid immediately after the auction. How can this be? Well everything was signed and paid electronically…Read More→
CoreLogic – Early Market Indicators
For the week ending 11 April 2021, both the pre-listing activity and mortgage activity dropped over 20% period-on-period in Australia. However, comparing to the same period last year, the pre-listing activity jumped by over 150%, still a hint of a strong recovery from COVID. Both newly advertised rental and sales properties dipped Pop and MoM….Read More→
Supply and demand impact apartment values in more ways than one
We all understand the law of supply and demand and how it impacts prices in every market from coal to carrots. Supply and demand definitely applies to the real estate market and it is often talked about with regard to the relative supply of new apartments compared with the demand to buy or occupy apartments. I…Read More→
Tenant evictions and the new rental rules
Well the day has finally come. From yesterday tenants have now lost the Covid protection afforded to them about a year ago preventing owners (and their agents) from evicting tenants for falling behind in rent. Until yesterday tenants could not be issued with a notice to vacate for late rent payments. Not surprisingly the VCAT web site crashed…Read More→
Should I sell or hold?
Should I sell or hold? It’s a good question and one we are getting asked this a lot at the moment. As our face masks get pushed further down the back of the glove box and we feel like the worst of Covid is behind us, it is understandable that some people feel like de-risking…Read More→
Melbourne rental market on the world stage
Melbourne’s reputation on the world stage has grown over recent years and (in normal times) holds its own internationally in a multitude or areas from arts, to sporting events, food and entertainment, education, R & D innovation and many other disciplines. In the last 12 months Melbourne again matched international cities but in a less…Read More→
New Rental Laws in Victoria are here: Are you ready?
The rollout of changes to renting rules in Victoria has had about as much build up as the Covid vaccine roll out and just like the vaccine it is finally about to happen. (29th March) The details of the changes don’t make for exciting reading but our PM team are now fully trained on the…Read More→
OC rules are changing. Here is what you need to know
Do you sit on an owners corporation (OC) committee? … or maybe you have done so in the past. (OCs were formerly known as a body corporates in Vic) OC committees can run very smoothly and manage the operations of an apartment building effectively or they can be totally dysfunctional and break down requiring lawyers…Read More→
Is it a good or bad idea to borrow in your SMSF?
You may recall about a year ago (at the start of Covid), CBA produced a risk analysis with a worst case forecast of a fall in Australian houses prices of 30%. This week the same bank forecast house prices to rise by 16% in the next 2 years across Australia. That is a big shift! It just shows how…Read More→
Goodbye to the COVID Lease Rules 👋
At the risk of stirring memories you have tried desperately to bury, please cast your mind back to 24th April 2020 when Victoria was in Lockdown #1 and the Covid 19 Omnibus (Emergency Measures) Act was introduced which temporarily amended the Residential Tenancies Act. From that day to this (and until the end of March 2021)…Read More→
ACP Cladding in Melbourne: Here’s What You Need to Know
A bit like the corona virus, some damaging and unwanted issues seem to hang around far too long. Aluminium composite panels (ACP), otherwise known as combustible cladding is one such example. This week the Victorian Minister for Planning, Mr Richard Wynne announced this form of building cladding would be banned for all new muliti-storey (over 2 stories)…Read More→