Latest News & Blog

This article was first published by Cut+ Paste September 20, 2016 via professionalplanner.com.au   Most Australians will struggle to save enough for a comfortable retirement or even to meet their aged care costs, landmark new research has found.   The research was commissioned by the Committee for Sustainable Retirement Incomes (CSRI) and carried out by Phil Gallagher of Industry Super Australia, formerly the retirement income modeler at Federal Treasury for 21 years.   “These results are a wake-up call to policymakers,” said CSRI founder and managing director Patricia...

 This article was first published by Kirsten Robb on the 19th Sept 2016 via domian.com.au | Image: Like many first-home buyers, Dayle Memery and Nick Weir did not want to live on the fringe or in an apartment tower. Photo: Frasers Property   When Dayle Memery and partner Nick Weir started looking for their first home, they found themselves stuck with the familiar predicament of young buyers: move to Melbourne’s fringe or live in a small apartment.   Ms Memery, 26, was already sick of commuting three hours a day from her family home outside Bacchus Marsh to her job at St Vincent’s Hospital...

This article was first published by Dr Andrew Wilson on 18th Sept 2016 via domain.com.au | Image: Auctioneer Russell Cambridge of Biggin and Scott Real Estate in action on a weekend that saw a 79.5 per cent clearance rate across Melbourne. Photo: Paul Jeffers   The early-spring home auction market continues to rise in Melbourne, producing yet another strong result for sellers at the weekend.   Melbourne recorded a clearance rate of 79.5 per cent on Saturday, which was ahead of the 78.4 per cent reported over the previous weekend and well up on the 74.5 per cent recorded over the same...

This article was first published by Matt Holden on the 11th Sept 2016 via domain.com.au | Image: Senior project manager of the Far East Consortium Aaron Parfitt and owner of new cafe Higher Ground Nathan Toleman. Higher Ground is built in the old power station and forms the base of the building. Photo: Penny Stephens     On a Sunday morning, a queue forms outside the former powerhouse at the bottom of Little Bourke Street. “About 20 minutes,” says the waitperson adding names to a lengthening list. An espresso machine brews coffee to sip while patrons wait, a gas heater spreads a...

This article was first published by Andrew Wilson on 11th Sept 2016 via domain.com.au | Image: The Melbourne auction market recorded its highest result for a month on the weekend.Photo: Luis Ascui   Buyer momentum continues to build in the already strong early spring Melbourne home auction market, which recorded month-high results at the weekend.   Melbourne recorded a clearance rate of 78.4 per cent on Saturday, which was ahead of the 77.5 per cent reported over the previous weekend and well up on the 75.7 per cent recorded over the same weekend last year.   The weekend result...

This article was first published by Duncan Hughes on the 9th Sept 2016 via afr.com.au | Image: An apartment in Pyrmont sold for $2.15 million five days after being announced for sale.Harold Cazneaux   Houses in coveted Sydney postcodes are selling in a few hours compared to more than six months for properties on suburban outskirts. That means buyers competing for the hottest properties are under increasing pressure to be ready to seal a deal quickly with a knock-out offer that catches competitors by surprise, say real estate and buyer's agents.    Agents claim properties in...

This article was first published by DAVID SCUTT on SEP 9, 2016 | Image: iStock   Australian home loan lending — whether measured in dollar terms or number — fell modestly in July, partially reflecting fewer property transactions taking place despite recent house price gains.   According to data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics earlier today, the value of housing finance dipped by 1.8% to $31.788 billion in July in seasonally adjusted terms, leaving it down 2.4% on the levels of a year earlier.   By type of borrower, the value of loans to owner-occupiers fell...

This article was first published by SAMANTHA LANDY, Property reporter, News Corp Australia Network on September 9, 2016   MELBOURNE’S auction market notched its highest clearance rate of the year last week, as buyers caught spring fever.   Last week’s 830 auctions produced a 79.3 per cent clearance rate, according to CoreLogic — up from 77.4 per cent recorded from Melbourne’s 1060 auctions the week before.   CoreLogic auction market spokesman Kevin Brogan partially attributed last week’s strong clearance rate to the fact auction levels dipped in Melbourne, despite...

This article was first published by Christina Zhou on Sep 7, 2016 via domain.com.au | Image: House prices in Melbourne’s Hawthorn and Lilydale grew faster than anticipated. Photo: Alistair Walsh   It’s no secret that house price growth has slowed in most capital cities over the past year, but there is a clutch of stand-out performers that may surprise both buyers and sellers.   These suburbs defied city expectations or have bucked the trend by growing as house prices across cities fell.   While the median house price in Melbourne’s outer east dropped 0.2 per cent over the first...

This article was first published By Marc Howe on 7th Sept 2016 via sourceable.net   The Melbourne Metro Rail project is paving the way for a three decade urban renewal project in the region to the immediate north of the established CBD.   The Victorian government plans to invest $7 billion on the transformation of a large part of North Melbourne into a thriving commercial and residential precinct that will capitalise upon the improved transit opportunities created by the Metro Rail project.   The draft plan for the Arden Urban Renewal Precinct just released by the Victorian...