National
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Storage start-up Spacer raises $2.7 million and acquires Parkhound
The key pillar to Spacer’s strategy has been to source, utilise and commercialise unused ‘space’, typically from households and small businesses. The next phase of growth will focus on offering commercial inventory and car park sharing with the acquisition of Parkhound. “Following our most recent round of funding, the second phase of business growth is focused on tapping into Australia’s…
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REAPIT looking to global expansion following US lead acquisition
The investment partnership combines the deep domain experience and strong track record of Reapit’s existing management team with Accel-KKR’s strategic expertise working with high-growth technology companies. The supplied press release indicated the partnership will enable Reapit to accelerate its growth and innovation, enhance products and services, and expand its technology offering. The Reapit senior management team will continue to be…
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Century 21 franchisees still ‘sold on gold’
Charles Tarbey, Chairman and Owner of Century 21 Australasia, is delighted that the offices have chosen to continue their real estate journey bearing the Century 21 brand. “These offices are full of talented and committed real estate professionals and it has been wonderful to see them use our brand, systems and platforms to excel in the industry,” said Mr Tarbey.…
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Tradies have ditched their bad behaviour according to ServiceSeeking.com.au survey
Tradies have long had an “image” issue. Smokos, wolf whistles, messy footprints through the house, Four ’N’ Twenty pies and the builder’s crack to name a few. Apparently, Aussie tradies have shifted their attitudes though according to new ServiceSeeking.com.au survey. They’ve ditched their bad behaviour to become health conscious and courteous. According to a recent survey of 1,700 users of trade…
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REA Group partners with NAB to launch home loan service
On realestate.com.au Home Loans, buyers can instantly apply for online conditional approval for a home loan powered by NAB and have their finance information overlayed as they search. Or they can access a panel of more than 30 other lenders through realestate.com.au Home Loans. REA Group and NAB announced a strategic partnership in December 2016 with the aim to create an…
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Domain launches new online series, The Circle
Created by Felix Williamson, co-director, screenplay author and star of Domain’s INMA-award winning video series Avalon Now, and brought to life by producer, Hamish Roxburgh, The Circle follows two couples who decide to leave their poky apartments in Sydney and Melbourne for a new, more affordable life in Queensland’s beautiful, sub-tropical Sunshine Coast. One character from Bondi decides to become…
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Auction volumes return to normal after long weekend
National auction clearance results for the week ending 08/10/2017 courtesy of CoreLogic Auction activity across the combined capital cities increased this week after last week’s grand final and public holiday slowdown. 2,286 homes were taken to auction, returning a preliminary auction clearance rate of 68.1 percent. The preliminary clearance was up from the 66.3 percent last week when volumes dipped significantly across…
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Core Logic Property Pulse: household debt and asset wealth growing at the same time
Household debt and asset wealth is growing at the same time, according to RBA data analysed by CoreLogic. Household finance data released by the Reserve Bank (RBA) each quarter looks at the ratios of household debts and assets to disposable income. The latest RBA update shows that while households debt is growing, asset wealth is simultaneously increasing. According to the…
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Live-stream auction app Gavl secures $1.8 million in funding
Digital startup Gavl has secured $1.8 million in its Series A funding from Harris Capital, the investment office of Flight Centre founder Geoff Harris. Launched in December 2016, Gavl enables real-time bidding of live-streamed auctions from anywhere in the world. Founded by AFL player-turned-businessman Joel Smith with Leith Donaldson and Michael Artup, Gavl was launched with a $300,000 bootstrap from…
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RE/MAX named the leading real estate franchise by Franchise Times
The Denver-based global franchisor, founded by Dave and Gail Liniger 44 years ago, RE/MAX was once again ranked in the top 10 of all franchises. Franchise Times magazine has been the USA’s publication devoted exclusively to the global franchise community for almost two decades. RE/MAX Australia Managing Director Michael Davoren said that being ranked the top real estate franchise year after…
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Charles Tarbey honoured with REINSW’s top award
REINSW President John Cunningham paid tribute to Mr Tarbey as a true leader in the industry with incredible vision. “Charles has dedicated his life to the real estate industry and has been a great supporter of REINSW throughout his career,” Mr Cunningham said. “He is one of the greatest real estate visionaries, particularly where technology is concerned and has trained…
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Rentvestment hotspots in Australia for under $600,000
Rentvesting now accounts for one third of all Australian property investments, accounting for $202 billion on loan. With Australian property prices rising by 618% over the past 30 years and national incomes failing to keep up, the rentvestment trend is gaining traction according to Mozo property expert Steve Jovcevski. “The Australian housing market has undergone a period of dramatic change.…
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The Harcourts Foundation reaches $5 Million milestone
The Foundation is funded through Harcourts employee salary sacrifice, ‘off the top’ contributions from sales commissions, and through organised fundraisers. “The money raised is significant, but what truly is impressive is how Harcourts people are impacting our communities, from supporting programs to end violence against women, and aiding underprivileged families to creating a network of financial support for hospice care,”…
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Property investors reminded that tax deadline is looming
Bradley Beer, the CEO of BMT Tax Depreciation, said that while depreciation deductions provide a valuable opportunity for investors to maximise their cash flow, this could be reduced if they incur penalties from the ATO for failing to lodge their tax returns on time. “Earlier in the year, the government proposed changes to rules surrounding plant and equipment deductions and…
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REA Group accredited as a White Ribbon Workplace
To become accredited, workplaces must spend 18 months demonstrating their commitment to gender equality, increasing awareness within their organisation of the issue, and leading by example within their industry. Over this period REA has implemented many changes to further foster a culture of equity, antiviolence and mutual respect for all its people. It has introduced a training program to help…
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Auction activity makes way for the footy and long weekend
National auction clearance results for the week ending 01/10/2017 courtesy of CoreLogic Despite lower auction volumes, clearance rates held firm, returning a preliminary result of 69.4 percent, rising from the 66.2 percent last week when final results saw volumes reach their highest level since May this year (2,782). Melbourne was the main driver of the strong clearance, with a preliminary result just…
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The wealth effect of housing: Core Logic Property Pulse
Mr Lawless said, “The strong capital gains evident across the Sydney and Melbourne housing markets have created a significant boost in wealth for home owners who were fortunate enough to own a property through the latest growth cycles. However, the rate of capital gain has been remarkably lower across other markets with home owners outside of Sydney and Melbourne now…
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Are Golden Week holidays still as lucrative as they were in the past?
Golden Week holidays are important but less than they were in the past, suggests Carrie Law, the CEO of Juwai.com. The Chinese international real estate website said Golden Week has an impact on Chinese international real estate buying, but it is overstated by marketers. Golden Week is a week of public holiday in China during the first week of October…
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Home loans more affordable than they were a year ago: PRDnationwide
New South Wales New South Wales’ home loan affordability has increased by 3.7% over the past 12 months, to 27.7 index points. Although still the lowest index reading compared to the rest of Australia, its affordability growth is on par with Queensland (3.6%). A key finding for New South Wales is in relation to potential future demand for residential real…
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Australian property investors remain confident about the benefits of residential real estate: PIPA survey
The national survey, which gathered insights from 742 property investors, shows that more than 70 per cent of respondents think now is a good time to invest in property, with 61 per cent looking to purchase a property in the next six to 12 months (up from 58 per cent last year). However, concerns over changes to investor lending policies…
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Microsoft Ignite 2017: Tech giant announces focusing on AI and quantum computing
The tech giant, led by CEO Satya Nadella, revealed details about its efforts to use artificial intelligence (AI), data and cloud tech to help customers create the future of business and innovate for the future. In his opening address, Nadella asked the question “How are we going to empower people?”. He went on to say that every piece of technology…
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ABS reveals more people living in apartments than 25 years ago
The 2016 Census of Population and Housing found that 10 per cent of all people in Australia spent Census night in an apartment. There is now around one occupied apartment for every five occupied separate houses in Australia – compared with one to every seven, back in 1991. The growth in apartment living is primarily an urban phenomenon, concentrated within Australia’s…
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McGrath announces new social advertising strategy focusing on Facebook and Instagram
“For the past 12 months, we have been actively working with our network to maximise their social advertising results through various partners. We are now in a position to take our brand and property social advertising to the next level, through the implementation of our own in-house digital marketing platform. “Further, we are thrilled to announce that McGrath will become…
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New e-conveyancing platform Titlexchange tackling inefficiency
The platform digitally automates parts of the conveyancing transaction, and it facilitates completion of the rest of the process by matching property buyers and sellers with a local conveyancer. It also enables stakeholders to the transaction to check the progress of the transaction and communicate directly with their conveyancer. Partnerships with broker platforms including HashChing and eChoice means more than…
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RE/MAX reveals refreshed branding with digital in mind
The bold new presentation of logos, wordmarks, international signs and the iconic RE/MAX Balloon was released at the San Francisco Broker Owner Convention in August; and the same month, delegates at the RE/MAX Asia Pacific Convention on the Gold Coast, Queensland got to sample the refreshed brand for themselves. Since then, RE/MAX Australia and RE/MAX New Zealand have focused efforts…
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First National Real Estate wins Canstar Blue’s customer satisfaction award for second year in a row
Canstar Blue surveyed 1000 people to find out if real estate agents are living up to expectation across customer service, communication and value for money. The survey found that more than two-thirds of customers surveyed (67 percent) experienced poor communications from an estate agent, while only 61 per cent would recommend their agent to a friend. 31 per cent of…
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Century 21 expands corporate team with new appointments and focus on digital
Century 21’s marketing team will now be under the direction of two new national marketing managers – Nic Atkinson and Bianca Anton. Nic Atkinson has over 15 years’ experience as an advertising copywriter, eight years as a franchise owner and four years as a real estate agent. He has amassed a suite of communication skills well suited to a real…
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National award for RE/MAX recognises expansion and support
RE/MAX Australia’s Joel Davoren this week announced the real estate franchise’s inclusion in the 2017 Topfranchise Awards as listed by SEEK Business and 10 THOUSAND FEET. “We are rated in the top ten winners for expansion and support, which is affirmation that we are on track with our core business values and beliefs. “Growth is one of the five RE/MAX…
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The Hills, Sydney, welcomes RE/MAX
RE/MAX Australia continues its commitment to New South Wales expansion, and the Sydney market in particular, with the launch this week of RE/MAX Hills Lifestyle in Baulkham Hills. Experienced local agent Joe Scavera has rebranded his agency, Chelsea Real Estate, partnering his team’s local market experience and expertise with the strength of a global real estate brand. According to Mr…
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Spring Selling auction volumes continue to rise across the combined capital cities
National auction clearance results for the week ending 24/09/2017 courtesy of CoreLogic Auction volumes have increased across all but one of the capital cities this week with a total of 2,759 homes taken to auction, making it the busiest week for auctions since the end of May. So far, 2,226 results have been reported to CoreLogic, returning a preliminary clearance rate of…
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High income households more likely to be over-indebted than lower income households: CoreLogic Property Pulse
High income households are less likely to be debt free and are more likely to be over-indebted than lower income households. This is the main insight from the 2015-16 household income and wealth survey conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). The results, which includes household debt and over-indebtedness, considers a household to be over indebted if their debt…
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Uber: Over it?
With the mandatory deadlines for complete electronic settlement on the horizon in 2019, there is a lot of distance to cover between the milestones of paper – less paper – and ultimately, paperless transactions. The time and profit created by going paperless is a compelling benefit to real estate agents and business owners, yet according to an industry survey (commissioned…
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Probuild revealed as the nation’s most active construction company during 2016/17
The Housing Industry Association (HIA) Construction 100 report presents in-depth analysis of the engineering construction, non-residential building, and apartment sectors and ranks the largest 100 companies operating in these sectors. Victoria-based Probuild has made the most of the apartment boom in Melbourne and Sydney as well as the demand for construction of mixed-used developments including luxury hotels to jump from…
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Metricon Homes revealed as the nation’s number one residential builder
The HIA Housing 100 report shows Metricon Homes reported a total of 4,367 starts – two more than last year – across Victoria, Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia. This included 3,876 detached houses and 491 semi-detached dwellings. The number of new houses commenced in Australia has fallen over the last year, but the bar for entry into the…
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Melbourne may be the new hotspot for Chinese Investment: Juwai.com
Chinese buyer demand for Australian property by might be down from the boom period of the last two years but by no means will it taper off, according to Jon Ellis, CEO of Investorist. Mr Ellis, CEO of Investorist, says that buyer demand from Chinese investors is down in 2017, but needs to be seen in context. “Yes the…
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