National
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Home loan cash backs heat up, but are they worth it?
More than a dozen lenders are offering cash incentives for home owners willing to move their business to a new lender, with Suncorp Bank, Reduce Home Loans and 86 400 the latest to put cash offers on the table. Suncorp Bank is now offering up to $3,000 to refinancers, plus an additional $1,000 for people working in essential services roles, such as doctors, nurses, teachers and police…
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Safe Work Australia updates guidelines for return to work
With many people beginning to return to work in big office buildings, Safe Work Australia (SWA) has released new guidelines on the ‘COVIDSafe’ use of lifts. The guideline was updated overnight to say: “there is no requirement to provide 4 square metres of space per person in lifts, however you must still ensure, as far as you reasonably can, that…
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Landlords offered incentives to negotiate on rent or tenants able to opt-out early
NSW landlords are being offered incentives to negotiate reduced rental rates for tenants facing financial difficulties as a result of coronavirus, and tenants whose landlords don’t come to the negotiating table may be able to end their tenancy early. As part of the NSW Government’s $440 million land tax relief scheme, landlords can now apply for land tax relief of…
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Console Cloud launches landlord satisfaction scoring feature
This quarter Console Cloud will launch its landlord satisfaction scoring tool, and with natural rent roll attrition hovering around 17 per cent per annum, it’s a feature many will welcome. The new landlord satisfaction scoring feature is set to enable property managers to find out which clients are disgruntled and who their biggest fans are. The tool will give property…
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Top accolades for RE/MAX performers
RE/MAX Australia has announced its first quarter high achievers at a virtual event entitled RE/MAX Evolve. Held on May 19, the event celebrated sales associates, sales teams and offices, who were ranked on performance each quarter in categories of commission generated and number of sales transactions. For the first time, the most recent event divided the network into 10 regions.…
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Australian property market: Decade in review
It commenced under the shadow of the GFC and with widespread floods around the country. It ended on the dawn of Covid-19 with some of the biggest bushfires in Australian history. Propertyology’s ‘Decade in Review [2010-2019] Report’ describes it as a decade of contrasts in many ways. Over the 10-year period, median house prices had increased from $530,000 to $972,000…
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On-site auctions resume but numbers still low
The number of homes scheduled for auction continues to trend lower, despite most states having lifted the ban on on-site auctions and inspections. Only 365 auctions are scheduled this week, lower than the 480 auctions last week – and it’s likely to be a few weeks before there’s an uplift in scheduled volumes due to agents generally running four-week marketing…
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Auction clearance rate jumps – is this the start of recovery?
Auction clearance rates have hit 59.9 per cent on the back of on-site auctions resuming in New South Wales last week – the highest clearance rate result since strict social distancing measures were rolled out across Australia. According to CoreLogic, the clearance rate for the week ending 10 May was up from 47.5 per cent the previous week and a…
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Navigating the PropTech minefield in a current and post COVID-19 World
If PropTech wasn’t on your radar before, the impact of COVID-19 has definitely steered our industry to look to technology for client engagement and to ensure the industry can continue to operate through this unprecedented time. But we often hear clients saying: “This company and that company do similar functions,” or “but this company integrates with that program but not…
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Ninety days to spring
Since the outset of the pandemic, RE/MAX Australia director Joel Davoren has led a weekly, or more frequent, on-line session with up to 200 participants from across Australia and New Zealand. He’s heard week-on-week agent comments about inquiry rates, which have remained encouragingly ‘better’ or ‘same’ as opposed to ‘worse’; and has also witnessed positive outcomes such as three sales…
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Openn Negotiation announce new integration with realestate.com.au
Following significant adoption of the Openn Negotiation selling method, realestate.com.au have launched an integration between the platforms, designed to provide a better experience for buyers. The REA Group released the online auction feature in response to the national ban on in-person auctions. The integration allows buyers to navigate directly to the Openn Negotiation listing and become qualified to participate in…
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Property Tree to feature Direct Connect integration
Cloud-based property management software Property Tree is set to feature a Direct Connect integration as the two proptech players look to further cement their longstanding relationship. Announcing the new integration, Direct Connect explained their relationship with Property Tree creator Rockend (now known as MRI software) had been longstanding and loyal. “Direct Connect have been exclusively partnered with Rest Professional for…
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Clearance rate lifts as on-site auctions ready for return
As auctions prepare to welcome back the public on-site, the clearance rate has enjoyed a boost. CoreLogic notes this week’s preliminary clearance bounced back to 64.5 per cent, marking the first time it has exceeded 60 per cent since late March. Volumes on the other hand, remain subdued. The past weekend saw 473 auctions scheduled, which was down on the…
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How property markets are responding to COVID-19 according to Herron Todd White
The COVID-19 crisis has thrown the national economy into turmoil, while property markets are still clearly trying to digest what it all means. Leading valuers Herron Todd White (HTW) have tabled their thoughts on what each state is facing and what might lie ahead for the nation’s residential property markets. NSWSydney has been at the forefront of the battle against…
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Tide turning on Chinese investor slump
Chinese investment in Australian real estate has hit its lowest level in six years, but experts say in the last few months Chinese buyers have been returning to the market. The Foreign Investment Review Board’s (FIRB) annual report for the 2018-19 financial year revealed foreign investors from around the globe spent a total of $88.5 billion on Australian commercial and…
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Report reveals lead indicators for property market’s return to form
A long-term study by MCG Quantity Surveyors is helping define investor trends which will flag the property market’s bounce back after COVID-19. MCG’s 1000 Assets report is a progressive, four-year analysis of investor direction and sentiment between January 2016 and December 2019. The report also took a pre-COVID snapshot of ‘normal market’ trends in place prior to the crisis. MCG Managing Director Mike Mortlock…
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Auction volumes still down but comeback on the way
Low sentiment, tough selling conditions and regulations preventing open homes and on-site auctions continue to push the number of scheduled auctions down this week – but an uplift could be coming sooner than expected. CoreLogic reports 424 capital city homes are scheduled for auction, down on the 612 homes auctioned last week. But with news the NSW and WA state…
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Auction withdrawals hit all-time high as vendors and agents adapt to COVID-19 regulations
Auction withdrawal has spiked to about eight times the usual rate and the clearance rate for the combined capital cities has reached record lows since on-site auctions and property inspections were banned in response to the COVID-19 crisis. CoreLogic reports from the week ending 29 March to the week ending 3 May, the portion of scheduled auction events withdrawn averaged…
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Prop20 to be reimagined as digital experience
REA Group’s industry event series Prop20 is being transformed into a digital experience that can be accessed by thousands of property professionals across the country. The new Prop20 virtual experience will deliver property industry insights, education and training online. The reimagining of Prop20 followed government COVID-19 restrictions which introduced a ban on events and social distancing measures. Prop20 offers property…
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New standard to transform Australian homes
An ambitious new standard for Australian homes will help drive the transformation of the housing market to ensure new homes are built to a higher standard which is focused on health, resilience and net zero energy. As part of a webinar on future homes, the Green Building Council of Australia (GBCA) has released the report Green Star for Homes: A strategy for…
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RBA keeps interest rates at record-low 0.25 per cent
With the Australian economy still feeling the full impact of social distancing measures, the RBA has made the decision to leave interest at a record-low 0.25 per cent. The RBA made two rate cuts in March, including an emergency cut that saw the official cash rate fall to its lowest level on record. It was widely expected that the RBA…
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Construction sector devastated by impact of COVID-19
Up to 43,000 new homes will not be built in the next 12 months as a result of COVID-19, according to new economic modelling released today. Denita Wawn, CEO of Master Builders Australia said new modelling conducted by Master Builders Australia showed the devastating impact that lockdown was having on the building industry, the economy and the community. “In the…
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The Real Estate Institutes respond to COVID-19 impact on Australian property
As the far-reaching impacts of COVID-19 continue to be felt, the heads of the nation’s Real Estate Institutes have had their say on how they expect it will impact the Australian property industry. Responding to Ripehouse Advisory’s Whitepaper COVID-19 vs Australian Property, most industry heads are on the same page, remaining cautiously optimistic. Across the board, the consensus has been…
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Five reasons now might be the perfect time to go out on your own
This recent COVID-19 crisis has imparted a level of disruption that our generation of real estate professionals has not seen before, requiring us to be adaptive and respond to change very quickly. It sees us in the midst of a paradigm shift, as the impact and status of the current COVID-19 pandemic evolves daily. Our industry has fast-tracked technologies and…
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Finder survey says…cash rate hold and international borders to remain closed
The cash rate is anticipated to remain on hold and Australia is projected to lose $25 billion in foreign spending, according to a recent survey by Finder. In this month’s Finder RBA Cash Rate Survey – the largest of its kind in Australia – 42 experts and economists weighed in on future cash rate moves and other issues related to the state…
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Time for change: Body language experts’ prediction for new global greeting
The traditional handshake – we do it because our parents taught us and their parents taught them to do it. Its origins are in Roman Military greetings 2000 years ago, and Westerners and Europeans accept it as ‘normal’. But in places like Asia and Japan it’s still a relatively new concept that many people in those countries have only seen…
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Rental Heroes introduces AI-chatbot ‘Alex’
Rental Heroes has introduced an AI-chatbot named “Alex” who is designed to help property managers by communicating directly with tenants to handle everyday requests and issues, including maintenance. The Melbourne-based proptech co rolled Alex out recently and explains the technology allows every property manager to have their very own property assistant. Rental Heroes has a focus on helping property managers…
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House prices remain steady as transactions slow
Despite the nation-wide shutdown that has made life tough-going for most real estate agents, house prices have remained stable throughout April. According to the latest data from CoreLogic, house prices nationwide ticked higher, up 0.3 per cent. House prices in Sydney increased by 0.4 per cent, however, values did ease in Melbourne, with prices down -0.3 per cent over the…
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Auction volumes to remain low for foreseeable future
Auction volumes are likely to continue at a lower rate for the foreseeable future, according to CoreLogic, with just 590 properties scheduled for auction across the capitals this weekend resulting in a clearance rate of 59.6 per cent. Volumes were up slightly on the week prior when 413 homes were scheduled for auction and a final clearance rate of 41.1…
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Which rental markets are most impacted by COVID-19?
COVID-19 is having varied impacts on residential property, but arguably the biggest impact could be in the rental space. According to CoreLogic, prior to COVID-19, the Australian rental market was already weak and with new challenges like Australian borders remaining closed to tourists and government policies restricting short-term rental arrangements, some Airbnb rentals are converting to long-term rental supply. CoreLogic…
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Console Cloud announces integration with Maintenance Manager
An integration between cloud-based property management software platform Console Cloud and Maintenance Manager is set to give agencies a faster turnaround on maintenance tasks and save double-handling of data. Managing maintenance has typically required property managers to coordinate activities between tenants, landlords and tradies, causing headaches and games of phone tag for all involved. In an effort to streamline the…
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Six changes Australia could implement to improve liveability during lockdown
There is no doubt Australians’ mental health and quality of life are suffering during the nationwide shutdown as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. If Australia’s existing ‘shutdown’ turned into a ‘lockdown’ in localities where a spike in the growth of COVID-19 infections occurs, our ability to cope could be seriously diminished. Italy, Spain, France, Germany, Poland, the United Kingdom,…
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Property searches on the up: REA
Online property searches are proving a popular pandemic pastime according to realestate.com.au, with their latest data revealing both buy and rent searches have increased significantly on this time a year ago. According to their latest figures, search activity for properties to buy is up 5.3 per cent in the past week and is now 37 per cent higher than it…
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New records for Rent.com.au
Rent.com.au has released its quarterly results for the period ending March 31, noting new records have been set for visits to its website and apps. CEO Greg Bader said the March quarter was typically when Rent.com.au sees the greatest number of renters moving home, and the March quarter proved no different, with increased visits to the website and apps, as…
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Auction activity slows for Anzac Day
A combination of Anzac Day commemorations and ongoing on-site auction restrictions saw just 431 properties go to auction across the capitals this week, with results only available for 223 of the properties as of Monday. CoreLogic results indicate volume was down on the 1,922 properties auctioned the previous week as the nation stopped to remember the Anzacs on Saturday and…
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