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Property boom will follow year of market uncertainty
The Australian Source: Supplied AT some point this year buyers will start piling into real estate. First-home buyers, trade-up buyers and investors will collectively decide it's time to buy and start a fun run towards the market. The catalyst that will spook the … |
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First-homeowner grants dive in SA
Adelaide Now Real Estate Institute of South Australia president Greg Moulton, left, gives some advice to house hunter Paul Keldoulis. Source: AdelaideNow PAYMENTS of the first-homeowner grant have fallen 20 per cent in the past year as banks tighten lending. … |
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Mortgage belt's new wave of buyers
Adelaide Now "We keep explaining to buyers it's not a possible thing because Adelaide is in the gulf; we will never have a situation like tsunamis, but it's a mind thing." Harris Real Estate sales agent Tom Hector has sold at least six Rostrevor properties to … |
 NEWS.com.au |
Home price falls accelerate
Sydney Morning Herald The national prices falls, though, are being skewed by a retreat at the more expensive end of the market, said Charles Tarbey, owner of Century 21, a national real estate group. Century 21 has seen a spike in inquiries following the November cut in … Melbourne house prices decline by 5.4 per cent |
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Extra cash or car to drive house sales
Adelaide Now Developer Jason Cummings and real estate agent George Abbott with the house and car package they hope will help attract buyers to the Osborne property. Picture: Nigel Parsons Source: AdelaideNow POTENTIAL buyers are being offered incentives including … |
Like any form of investment, real estate has its risks. Buy on the market upturn and you can capitalise quickly, buy in a boom and you’ve got yourself a long term asset.
Then there’s the chance of a dodgy tenant, loss of rent, maintenance costs, interest rate rises plus an odd natural disaster, and it all starts sounding a lot harder than simply picking up the newest float on the stock exchange.
The upside is that while public companies may fold, and your invested shares with them, property remains a tangible asset which will always appreciate over time and can deliver some strong yields while you wait.
2010 is being hailed as the year of the investor which is no surprise when you look back at the two years we’ve had. During the global financial crisis many property investors took a huge hit on the stock exchange, forcing them to sell property in order to gain cash flow and remain buoyant.
With less properties available, the rental market momentarily tightened, until record low interest rates in hand with increased government grants saw huge numbers of tenants break lease to buy their first home.
At this time vacancy rates increased and investors began realigning rents.
Now the tables are turning. The First Home Buyer boost finished in December and grants have returned to normal levels. Interest rates are continuing to climb and those who failed to factor this in are now feeling the pinch – you have to wonder who provided their financial advice.
While some will be able to retain their asset, others will be forced to sell and go back to renting.
This is when investors will pick back up the properties they lost and as tenant demand increases, so will weekly rents, balancing out any rate rises for landlords.
Overseas and interstate investors are already circulating throughout our local market, focusing on student accommodation in preparation for when Uni heads back in late February.
As for Adelaide’s next real estate hot spot: While the crystal ball on my mantel piece isn’t telling all, I’d suggest keeping an eye on the inner north suburb of Collinswood. Bordered by Walkerville and Medindie Gardens, this boutique area of around 13 streets often flies under the investor radar.
Anthony Toop is managing director of Toop & Toop.
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Olympic Dam mine expansion a bonanza for South Australia
The Australian Commercial real estate agents are already taking inquiries. "We have had quite a few phone calls since the BHP and state government announcement about the extension of the Olympic Dam," Jones Lang LaSalle senior negotiator of industrial services Rocco … |
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Hot spots heat up a flat market
Adelaide Now "It is also fascinating that the traditional suburbs around Port Adelaide were not affected by the bad publicity surrounding the (falling prices in the) Newport Quays development." Mr Moulton said there were "always" pockets of real estate that did … |
RateCity, a financial comparison website, said this could be a real concern for borrowers and investors with properties in suburbs where real estate values have plummeted.
“Some borrowers looking to refinance this year could be in for a nasty shock,” RateCity CEO Damian Smith said in a statement on Wednesday.
Those who borrowed 95 per cent or more of a property’s value would be the hardest hit if they lived in suburban Adelaide, south east Queensland or Perth.
According to Australian Property Monitors data, median house prices around the country fell 3.5 per cent in the year to September compared to the previous year, with Brisbane recording the biggest fall – 6.7 per cent.
Mr Smith said the refinancing problem lay in the fact that in September last year the average Brisbane house cost around $460,000, so a borrower with a five per cent deposit of $23,000 would have taken out a loan of $437,000.
“That borrower might now find that their home is valued at $429,000,” he said.
After one year, this borrower would have repaid only $6000 of the principal – assuming a seven per cent interest rate and a 25-year loan term – meaning their mortgage would now be around $430,000 and more than 100 per cent of the value of the home.
“They would struggle to find a new lender willing to take their business,” Mr Smith said, adding they could not easily refinance to get a lower interest rate.
LVR (loan-for-value-ratio) mortgages of 100 per cent-plus have gone out of favour since the global financial crisis
Most home loans now require a minimum five per cent deposit.
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Falling home prices a pain for refinancing
Ninemsn RateCity, a financial comparison website, said this could be a real concern for borrowers and investors with properties in suburbs where real estate values have plummeted. "Some borrowers looking to refinance this year could be in for a nasty shock," … |