Beach property will make strong gains throughout 2010

Beach property with coastal areas along the nation’s Eastern Seaboard experienced strong price recoveries in 2009 and will see further strong gains throughout 2010. According to an analysis of REX data, house prices gains in major coastal areas such as the Sunshine Coast, Gold Coast, Tweed and Port Macquarie are accelerating. “There are more buyers than stock …

Strongest annual house prices growth since 2003

The medium-to-long-term outlook for property prices remains strong as the population grows, incomes rise and demand for houses outstrips new supply, says an Australian Property Monitors’ report. Despite a sluggish start, 2009 ended with the biggest price growth since 2003 on a rise in activity at the top end of the market, the APM 2009 …

How big four banks will change their home loan interest rates in 2010?

Banks will not pass on the full interest rate increases which are forecasted at 1% in 2010, according to Australia’s top macroeconomist Chris Richardson. He said that increasing competition for new customers and lower funding costs would cause major lenders to absorb about 30 basis points of Reserve Bank increases during the second half of 2010. …

Australia housing affordability reached a new low point

Australia has the most unaffordable housing market according to the Sixth Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey published in 2010 (see the housing affordability index by country and housing affordability index scales below). The survey looks at 272 metropolitan markets in Australia, the US, the UK, Canada, Ireland and New Zealand. Housing affordability is measured by using the …

Google shows in 2009 more and more Australians are interested in buying investment property

A research done using Google Insights shows that in 2009 the “investment property” search volume trended up for the first time since 2004. Here is the chart since 2004 and the prejection for 2010 (click on the chart to see the full size image). As you can see that since 2004 the search volume of …

2010 will be a good year for rental property investors

With residential property prices around the country on the rise, some real-estate investors are wondering if they have missed the boat. “I have been considering investing in a unit for about 12 months,” writes Kate, “but I thought prices would fall significantly due to the global economic crisis, and they didn’t. Then I expected prices …

Westpac lowered its loan-to-valuation ratios (LVR)

Westpac Banking Corporation has tightened its mortgage loan criteria by lowering its loan-to-valuation ratios (LVR) for new full-documentation mortgage customers on Wednesday from 92 per cent to 87 per cent including two per cent for lenders’ mortgage insurance. The LVR for new low-documentation customers has been lowered by Westpac to 80 per cent including LMI. The …

Investment property rents likely to rise up to 11% in 2010

Rents are set to soar by as much as 11 percent this year, as landlords seek to cover rising costs amid a strengthening economy. Rents for homes across Australia increased nationally by a mere two per cent in 2009 – the weakest annual increase since 2002, the Australian Property Monitors’ Quarterly Rental Report says. Matthew Bell, …

End of the First Home Buyer Grant Boost will NOT Hurt NSW and ACT Property

Angus Raine, CEO of Raine & Horne is optimistic for the residential property markets in NSW & ACT in 2010. “There is some concern the end of the First Home Owners Boost (FHOB) will hurt the market,” says Mr Raine. “I don’t agree with this assessment. The Federal Government was smart to extend the FHOB …