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Australian property market bear Steve Keen of the University of Western Sydney has taken the decision to monetise some of his views on economics and the housing market via a new website, Debunking Economics, which launches today.
For around $25 a month, subscribers to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.debunkingeconomics.com">www.debunkingeconomics.com</a> will be able to pose questions directly to Keen, including asking him about his views on house prices.
Keen remains adamant that house prices will fall by 40% from their peak in June 2010 over the next 10 to 15 years and believes that the days of rising property values are over.
"The decision to monetise is because the voluntary approach has been ineffective on Debtwatch [his free blog, which he will continue to run but with fewer posts] – some money has been raised, but far less than I've put of my own money into maintaining it over the years, and doing the travel that I needed to do to – firstly raise the alarm about the crisis, and now to push the need for a complete revision of economic theory," he tells Property Observer.
The website is named after Keen's 2001 book of the same title, which took aim at current economic theory and claimed that much of the “cherished notions” of conventional economics are based on reasoning that is internally inconsistent.
A revised and updated edition of Debunking Economics was published last year.
Keen will charge subscribers US$25 a month or US$250 for a 12-month subscription to the website with the promise of “exclusive audio-visual presentations, discussions and interviews about the contemporary economic scene”.
The launch of Keen's pay site follows investment blog MacroBusiness launching a new paid investment advice newsletter on July1, Macro Investor, published every Monday morning with an annual subscription of $479.
MacroBusiness contributors include former Treasury economist Leith van Onselen and David Llewellyn-Smith, a former Business Spectator commentator.
Keen is targeting "at least a thousand subscribers, hopefully more – though that will come far more from US and UK subscribers rather than Australia".
"I've been told that my blog is very widely read in the hedge fund community, and I hope they are a large part of the paying audience," he says.
Aside from access to exclusive content and analysis, subscribers will also be able to log onto interactive Q&amp;A web seminars with Keen and put questions to him directly and in person.
The seminars will be held on a fortnightly basis.
Other exclusive content will include weekly video interviews on both topical and background issues with  journalist  and former Telstra.com group manager Phil Dobbie, weekly lectures on economics from Keen's "decidely non-orthodox perspective", a regular "Sandpit", where new economic models are developed and explained and a  "chartpack" providing access to Keen's analytic charts developed over the years, with the data updated automatically.
Subscribers will also get a free e-copy of Debunking Economics as part of their subscription.
Keen is known beyond Australian borders, having provided economic commentary this year on UK and Irish television, and will embark on New Zealand seminar tour in September.
Most recently he told Peter Switzer on Sky Business that Australian house prices have fallen 10% in real terms (including inflation) since their peak in June 2010.
Keen also took the opportunity to clarify his famous call of a 40% fall in house prices:
He said he made the call in an unscripted response to a question from the ABC’s Kerry O’Brien in November 2007 following a rate rise (up 0.25% to 6.75%) and as the first signs of a US sub-prime mortgage crisis emerged.
“I said [in the interview with Kerry O’Brien] property prices have fallen 40% in Japan in the 10% to 15% since their bubble burst, and I see no reason why we should avoid the same fate," Keen told Switzer.
Keen says the first-home stimulus that was introduced by the government in September 2008 – the doubling of the first-home owners’ grant, which he calls the "first-home venders boost" – pushed back the clock on property price falls, but he remains adamant that prices will fall by 40% over the 10 to 15 years starting from the June 2010 peak.
Keen launched the Debt Watch website in 2006. It includes much of his research, commentary and links to his media appearances.
The website is based around Keen’s view that accelerating mortgage debt fuelled the rise in Australian house prices and that house prices are now falling as mortgage growth slows.
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Property bear Steve Keen to launch $25 per month subscriber-only economics website with Q&A opportunity

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Consumer sentiment has shifted away from an expectation that mortgage rates will fall further over the next 12 months to expectations that they are just as likely to remain unchanged or rise over this time frame.
Less than a third of consumers (32.5%) who hold a view on mortgage rates expect them to fall over the next 12 months, according to the August Westpac-Melbourne Institute Consumer survey.
Two-thirds of consumers expect either rates to rise (32.7%) or rates to remain unchanged (34.7%), indicating a considerable lack of consensus on where mortgages rates are heading over the medium term.
The extra question on mortgage rates was included as part of the wider benchmark Westpac-Melbourne Institute Consumer Sentiment index in February and June.
The latest August results show a distinct shift away from expectations of future rate cuts in the June survey, when 52% of consumers expected rates to fall – an outright majority if a very slender one.
In the February survey – following the rate cuts in November and December – more respondents (around 40%) expected rates to rise than fall.
The graph below shows just how confused borrowers have become about the future direction of rates – a year ago, more than 70% of borrowers expected (incorrectly, it turns out) that rates would rise over the next 12 months.
Click to enlarge
<a title="Click to enlarge" rel="shadowbox" href="/images/stories/2012/08/westpacaug20.gif"><img src="/images/stories/2012/08/westpacaug20thumb.gif"></a>
According to Westpac senior economist Matthew Hassan, consumers lack of consensus on the rate outlook likely reflects several factors.
“The inflation backdrop looks benign ... consumers see little threat to the RBA’s 2% to 3% target.
“Meanwhile the picture on Australian growth remains mixed.
“Notwithstanding patchy consumer sentiment on the economic outlook, actual growth remains solidly positive. Similarly, despite intense job loss fears official unemployment rates are holding at low levels," Hassan says. 
Hassan says comments from RBA governor Glenn Stevens in recent speeches would likely have reinforced this mixed assessment.
“‘The glass half full' speech in early June and his Anika Foundation address on July 24, entitled 'The Lucky Country', both emphasised Australia’s positive economic prospects.
“Against this though the RBA’s recent decisions, accompanying statements and forecasts indicate the bank is in a 'wait and see' mode.
“Markets continue to favour additional official interest rate cuts with 50 basis points of easing by early 2013 still priced in," Hassan says.
“However, this measure is likely being skewed by investors seeking ‘safe-haven’ assets. Economists also favour rates moving lower with polls showing a median expectation of a 25 basis points reduction by Sep 2013.
“Westpac continues to anticipate 75-basis-point reduction over the same period."
Across the different sub-groups, home owners remain more dovish than those renting but showed a bigger swing since June, suggesting more positive house price news may have been a factor.
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Less than a third of consumers expect RBA rate cut in next 12 months: Westpac consumer survey

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Australian house prices are slightly less overvalued than they were four months ago but are still 36% above their fair value, according to The Economist magazine
In the magazine's August 2012 update of 21 residential-property markets around the world, the Australian housing market ranked 13th, with prices down 2.1% year-on-year.
In its previous update, The Economist reported Australian house prices as 38% overvalued.
The Economist defines “fair value” as “the long-run average ratio of house prices to disposable income and to rents”.
Australia is one of 12 housing markets where prices are falling, says The Economist, which says Austrlia is the best-performing market, with a 11% year-on-year gain.
However, the Australian market is not nearly as overvalued as Hong Kong (64% above fair value), Singapore (58%) or Canada (54%).
Over the past five years, Australian house prices are up just under 10% - modest in comparison to house price gains in Hong Kong (up 64%) and Austria (23%) and below comparable markets like Canada (18%).
The latest update shows Ireland to be the worst-performing housing market of the 21, with prices down 14.4% over the past year and nearly 50% over the last five years.
Spanish house prices decline 8.3% over the past year to July and are down 22.4% over the last five years.
The Economist says that following years of “dizzying ascents, a big dose of gravity has hit residential-property markets around the world”.
It says that many housing markets are returning “fair value” with eight countries now around or below this mark.
“But reaching this mark does not mean prices will stop falling. After dropping by a third from their 2006 peak, prices in America now stand at 19% below fair value,” says The Economist.
“The bottom of the market is close, however.”
It says that other markets like Ireland are “still in free fall”.
“Property prices in Ireland, at the foot of our table since April 2010, continue to plummet. They have now halved in value, after a fivefold rise between 1995 and their 2007 peak.
It warns that the pace of house price decline in Spain quickened in the second quarter of the year with the dire state of the Spanish economy suggesting that “prices will keep diving”.
Prices in Britain fell by 0.7% in July to be down 10.2% over the past five years.
<a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.economist.com/node/21560599">Click here</a> a full breakdown of how the 21 housing markets tracked by The Economist have performed.
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Australian house price down 2.1% over past year but still 36% overvalued: The Economist magazine

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Inala, a multicultural suburb 18 kilometres south west of the Brisbane CBD, had the cheapest median sale price of $277,000 over the June quarter, according to Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ) house price data.
Inala house prices increased by 1.8% over the June quarter, but are down 5.9% over the past 12 months, when the median price was $295,000.
It is one of 35 suburbs that recorded a median sale prices below the $500,000 median for Brisbane houses, according to REIQ:
The 35 suburbs are: 
<table width="340" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
<colgroup>
<col width="158">
<col width="69">
<col width="64">
<col width="49">
</colgroup>
<tbody>
<tr height="65">
<td width="158" height="65">Locality</td>
<td width="69">Median Sale Jun12</td>
<td width="64">Qtrly change</td>
<td width="49">1yr change</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">BRISBANE CITY (LGA)</td>
<td>$   500,000</td>
<td>-1.0%</td>
<td>-4.7%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">ACACIA RIDGE</td>
<td>$   315,000</td>
<td>3.3%</td>
<td>-2.8%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">ALGESTER</td>
<td>$   400,000</td>
<td>0.6%</td>
<td>-1.4%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">BALD HILLS ~</td>
<td>$   336,000</td>
<td>-9.8%</td>
<td>-9.3%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">BANYO</td>
<td>$   385,000</td>
<td>1.4%</td>
<td>-0.7%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">BOONDALL</td>
<td>$   405,000</td>
<td>-0.2%</td>
<td>-3.0%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">BRACKEN RIDGE ~</td>
<td>$   385,000</td>
<td>-11.2%</td>
<td>-0.4%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">BRIGHTON</td>
<td>$   385,000</td>
<td>2.1%</td>
<td>-1.9%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">CARINA</td>
<td>$   493,750</td>
<td>1.8%</td>
<td>-3.0%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">CHERMSIDE WEST</td>
<td>$   426,000</td>
<td>-1.5%</td>
<td>-5.4%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">COOPERS PLAINS</td>
<td>$   373,250</td>
<td>0.6%</td>
<td>-11.6%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">DARRA ~</td>
<td>$   324,000</td>
<td>-15.8%</td>
<td>0.0%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">DOOLANDELLA * ~</td>
<td>$   433,000</td>
<td>25.5%</td>
<td>-13.7%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">DREWVALE ~</td>
<td>$   432,500</td>
<td>-10.0%</td>
<td>-10.0%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">EVERTON PARK</td>
<td>$   450,000</td>
<td>2.7%</td>
<td>-6.8%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">FITZGIBBON</td>
<td>$   385,250</td>
<td>-1.7%</td>
<td>-6.1%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">FOREST LAKE</td>
<td>$   357,500</td>
<td>-2.1%</td>
<td>-3.7%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">GEEBUNG ~</td>
<td>$   404,000</td>
<td>-1.5%</td>
<td>-4.3%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">INALA</td>
<td>$   276,500</td>
<td>1.8%</td>
<td>-5.9%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">KEPERRA</td>
<td>$   392,500</td>
<td>-3.1%</td>
<td>-8.0%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">LOTA ~</td>
<td>$   424,000</td>
<td>-17.7%</td>
<td>8.0%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">MANSFIELD</td>
<td>$   476,250</td>
<td>7.6%</td>
<td>-9.6%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">MITCHELTON</td>
<td>$   460,000</td>
<td>0.0%</td>
<td>-9.1%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">MOOROOKA</td>
<td>$   469,250</td>
<td>-2.7%</td>
<td>-6.2%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">MOUNT GRAVATT EAST</td>
<td>$   454,000</td>
<td>3.4%</td>
<td>-3.3%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">OXLEY</td>
<td>$   379,000</td>
<td>-5.3%</td>
<td>-5.4%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">PARKINSON ~</td>
<td>$   455,000</td>
<td>-9.3%</td>
<td>-3.3%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">RUNCORN</td>
<td>$   440,500</td>
<td>7.4%</td>
<td>2.0%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">SALISBURY</td>
<td>$   390,000</td>
<td>-9.3%</td>
<td>-5.8%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">STAFFORD ~</td>
<td>$   465,500</td>
<td>7.0%</td>
<td>-6.4%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">STAFFORD HEIGHTS</td>
<td>$   437,000</td>
<td>2.8%</td>
<td>-5.8%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">SUNNYBANK HILLS ~</td>
<td>$   474,500</td>
<td>13.5%</td>
<td>-1.1%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">TINGALPA</td>
<td>$   422,000</td>
<td>2.9%</td>
<td>-4.2%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">UPPER MOUNT GRAVATT</td>
<td>$   460,000</td>
<td>2.3%</td>
<td>1.1%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">WAVELL HEIGHTS</td>
<td>$   486,000</td>
<td>-2.8%</td>
<td>-9.3%</td>
</tr>
<tr height="20">
<td height="20">WYNNUM WEST</td>
<td>$   415,000</td>
<td>1.6%</td>
<td>-4.4%</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Source: REIQ
For more on Brisbane, download our free eBook <a target="_blank" href="http://propertyobserver.com.au/ebooks/free-ebook-the-brisbane-inner-city-market">Brisbane's Inner-City Urban Renewal</a>
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Inala houses the cheapest among 35 suburbs priced under the $500,000 Brisbane median: REIQ

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Speculation persists that News Limited could look to mop up minority shareholders and acquire a 100% holding of the online real estate listing business REA Group, publisher of realestate.com.au.
News Limited has a 61.6% holding in REA Group and would have to pay between $910 million and $990 million to acquire the remaining 38.4% of the company.
Asked by the Australian Financial Review if News Limited was likely to acquire 100% of REA Group, Greg Ellis was reported today as saying: “You’d have to ask News about that.”
Minority shareholders of REA Group include fund manager Hyperion Asset Management, which upped its stake in REA Group from 9% to 10% in May.
In July News Limited and the REA Group announced a marketing alliance that sees the realestate.com.au brand integrated into the mastheads and property sections of News Limited metropolitan, community and regional newspapers.
Last week<a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/news/rea-group-says-market-contraction-to-blame-for-drop-in-realestatecomau-agent-numbers-as-profits-rise-29/2012081656077"> REA Group posted a</a><a href="https://www.afr.com/p/business/marketing_media/rea_reports_pc_profit_jump_sK50CeCzO76euVYulKkHCM" target="_blank"> </a><a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/news/rea-group-says-market-contraction-to-blame-for-drop-in-realestatecomau-agent-numbers-as-profits-rise-29/2012081656077">29% rise in net profit to $87 million</a> for the 2012 financial year ahead of analysts’ expectations, but real estate agent numbers fell by 5%.
In April, Hamish McLennan, executive vice president at News Corporation, was appointed chairman of the REA Group.
In January, Sam White, deputy chairman of the Ray White group, quit the board of the REA Group.
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Speculation surrounding News Ltd’s mooted 100% acquisition of REA Group 

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Interim results for the Westfield Retail Trust reveal that Westfield Sydney, the group’s flagship Australian store, is the most valuable, worth $1.34 billion, but it is two of its smallest centres that are delivering the strongest returns.
Westfield Retail Trust is Australia’s largest real estate investment trust (REIT) comprising Westfield’s portfolio of Australian and New Zealand shopping centres.
The trust recorded half-year profits after-tax for the six months to June 30 of $417 million, with 1,400 leasing transactions recorded across the portfolio of 52 malls in Australian and New Zealand.
Westfield Figtree at 19 Princess Highway in West Wollongong, which is valued at $75 million, and Westfield North Rocks in Sydney’s outer west (valued at $59 million) are both returning an estimated yield of 7.5% as of June 30 this year.
Westfield Figtree recorded $9,048 per square metre in retail speciality sales, while North Rocks managed $6,914.
Westfield Figtree has 22,000 square metres of retail space with 94 stores, while  North Rocks measures 23,000 square metres with 92 stores.
In comparison, Westfield Chermside in Brisbane – the largest store – has 146,000 square metres of retail space and 415 stores.
Both stores are strongly outperforming the total Australian Westfield portfolio, worth just over $12 billion, which has an estimated yield of 5.9%.
Westfield Sydney (40,000 square metres of retail space) has an estimated retail yield of 5.13% while the next most valuable shopping centre, Westfield Bondi Junction (129,000 square metres), valued at just over $1 billion has an estimated yield of $5.25%.
Here’s a breakdown of Westfield top ten performing centres based on their yield estimates as of June 30:
<img src="/images/stories/2012/08/7point5percent.gif">
The estimated yield at Westfield Figtree (valued at $75 million)
The estimated yield at Westfield North Rocks (valued at $59 million)
<img src="/images/stories/2012/08/7point25percent.gif">
The estimated yield at Westfield Strathpine in Queensland (valued at $140.5 million)
<img src="/images/stories/2012/08/7percent1.gif">
The estimated yield at Westfield Airport West in Victoria (valued at $140.5 million)
The estimated yield at Westfield Hurstville in NSW (valued at $147.5 million)
The estimated yield at Westfield Innaloo in WA (valued at $133.5 million)
The estimated yield at Westfield Mt Druitt in NSW (valued at $115 million)
<img src="/images/stories/2012/08/6point75percent.gif">
The estimated yield at Westfield Whitford City in WA (valued at $149.5 million)
<img src="/images/stories/2012/08/6point5percent.gif">
The estimated yield at Westfield Helensvale in Queensland (valued at $93.8 million)
The estimated yield at Westfield Plenty Valley in Victoria (valued at $73.7 million)
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Westfield Sydney group's most valuable but Wollongong and North Rocks suburban malls delivering highest returns

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The trendy riverside suburb of Bulimba has joined an exclusive group of just three Brisbane suburbs with a median house price of over $1 million, according to June quarter data from the Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ).
Bulimba recorded a median price of $1.07 million, a rise of 33.8% over the June quarter, helped by the sale of a number of prestige waterfront properties.
Figures compiled by RP Data show 45 sales over the quarter, with just 11 of these priced over $1 million.
The top sale of the quarter was a six-bedroom Harry Poulos-designed home (pictured below) on 2,026 square metres of prime riverfront land sold by Judy Goodger Prestige Realty for $5.1 million and described as the “epitome of vibrant riverfront living”.
<img src="/images/stories/2012/08/bulimba.jpg">
The property last sold for $2.85 million in April 2007.
Another prestige sale was a six bedroom house at 33 Coutts Street, which sold for $1.72 million in April having previously sold for $1.375 million in 2006.
Brisbane’s other million-dollar suburbs (based on annual data to June 2012) are New Farm, directly opposite Bulimba on the other side of the Brisbane River, with a median price over the past 12 months of $1.175 million (up 6.8% over the past year), and Pullenvale, which has a median price of $1.05 million, down 2.8% over the past 12 months.
Less well known than its inner-city $1 million rivals, Pullenvale is situated around 15 kilometres south-west of the Brisbane CBD, a semi-rural affluent suburb where the median weekly income ($2,350) is almost double that for Queensland ($1,240). A third of residents earn over $3,000 a week, according to census 2011 data.
Current Pullenvale real estate listings show a number of homesteads on large land holdings for sale.
They include this grand <a href="https://www.realestate.com.au/property-house-qld-pullenvale-111219491" target="_blank">five-bedroom country homestead</a> on 4.2 hectares, offering space for horses, a few cattle or goats. The listing is held by Prue Greenwood from RE/MAX Property Centre Toowong &amp; Kenmore.
Two prominent Brisbane riverside suburbs have dropped off the million-dollar list.
House prices in Hamilton on the northern banks of the Brisbane River, next door to New Farm, have plunged 28.2% over the year to June from a median of $1.065 million for the 12 months to June 2011 to $765,000 for the 12 months to June 2012.
St Lucia, four kilometres southwest of the Brisbane CBD near the University of Queensland, has also fallen off the list of million-dollar suburbs, with a current median value of $940,000 compared with $1,04 million as of June 2011 – a fall of 13.8%.
Overall, the REIQ figures show that Brisbane house prices declined by 1% over the quarter to a median of $500,000.
The top-performing major region over the June quarter was Moreton Bay, which recorded median house price growth of 5.3 per cent to $379,000.
Moreton Bay, which is part of greater Brisbane, has a variety of more affordable suburbs that are still within commuting distance of the CBD. Its location and supply of affordable housing is therefore attractive to first home buyers and investors
A number of more affordable Brisbane’s suburbs performed well over the June quarter.
Runcorn’s median house price increased 7.4% to $440,500 and was up 2% over the year.
Runcorn is about 19 kilometres from the Brisbane CBD and is a popular suburb with young and established families, according to the REIQ. Housing in the local area remains predominantly single-detached dwellings with chamferboard and brick and tile houses the most common architectural styles.
Another suburb to record healthy median house price growth was Mansfield, with a median price increase of 7.6% to $476,250.
According to reiq.com.au, Mansfield is characterised by low-set weatherboard houses with traditional Australian backyards and is about 13 kilometres south-east of the CBD. The majority of the dwellings, constructed in the 1940s, 50s and 60s, are made of traditional weatherboard.
REIQ chief executive Anton Kardash says there was a noticeable slowdown in activity from May to June.
“The state government introduced legislation into parliament in mid-May to reinstate the principal place of residence concession on stamp duty from 1 July this year,” he says.
“The return of the concession meant home buyers, who were not first-timers or investors, could save up to $7,000 from 1 July, so it is little wonder that many decided to delay their purchases until after that date.
“Even though sales activity was lower in the month of June in particular, our June quarter data found no significant variations on median prices which means our market is still holding up well. The four rate cuts since November are also starting to have a positive effect on the market.”
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Bulimba joins Brisbane’s exclusive million-dollar suburb club, helped by prestige waterfront sales: REIQ

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Most of the low-doc loans banks provided to borrowers would have been rejected if they had made a "simple phone call to the borrowers”, banking consumer advocate Denise Brailey has testified before a Senate inquiry into behaviour of the banking sector post-GFC.
But she says banks chose “in a corporate decision” not to make this phone call to ascertain the true financial circumstances of the borrower.
Brailey, who runs the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bfcsa.com.au/">Banking and Consumers Finance Support Association (BCFSA)</a>, brought with her to the inquiry a “small bundle” of 4,000 “falsified loan applications", which she said includes applications to every bank in Australia.
“The four majors are in there.
“They are all responsible, through a series of emails from banks to brokers, instructing the brokers how to get their deals across the line — 'make the deal fit' was their usual interpretation."
Brailey’s views are shared by former Mortgage Miracles mortgage broker Kate Thompson, who told the ABC’s 7.30 report that she was earning $5 million a year through low-doc lending, but all based on a “lie”.
“I do not think there was a bank or non-bank lender that wasn't doing it. I — from my files alone, I am certain I could evidence every single bank,” said Thompson, who was WA mortgage broker of the year in 2007 and is now facing fraud charges.
In her August 2012 Senate testimony, Brailey said lenders targeted older people, carers, people on parenting allowance and the aged pension.
According to Brailey, any lender who approved a loan without verifying the loan application data with the borrower was “imprudent, negligent and in many cases just plain reckless”.
In the case of the 25 Australian Bankers' Association (ABA) members, she claims they are "also in breach of their contract with the borrower to assess the borrower's ability to repay the loan, as provided for in article 25 of the Code of Banking Practice".
"No lender, and no holder of loan securities, including the government, should be allowed to maintain any loan which the lender would not have given had it applied the simplest of lending criteria tools—namely, verifying the loan application details with the borrower.
“And that simply was not done,” she said.
During her testimony Brailey described how low-doc lending was facilitated.
“The banks provided commissions for mortgage managers, mortgage originators and mortgage introducers that came down in a chain to employing brokers.”
Brailey also pointed the finger of blame at business development manager (BDMs), who were employed by the banks and who worked with mortgage brokers to get mortgage deals approved.
She says BDMs would teach brokers how to use an online loan servicing calculator and “put in certain parameters such that the calculator, belonging to the bank — engineered by the bank — would actually bring out a figure that was highly inflated, based on a possible rental from a property.
“There is just no truth in the document at all." 
Brailey says  the paperwork suggests brokers were merely following policy changes that were both rapid and carried massive risk, which was to be borne by the consumer.
“We have the loan application forms from over 400 people in the last six weeks. During that time, not one of them is a clean document—each one has been fraudulently dealt with.
“But the brokers will get the blame that they put the figures on, but the figures that they have written in the original loan application form are calculated by the banks' calculator through the system, as taught by the BDMs.
“This structure needs to be looked at before we can even start to work out whether we have a problem here in Australia.
“My evidence shows that we have a massive problem here in Australia with these low-doc loans," she said.
"I want to know what we are going to do about them, because the government has purchased around $20 billion worth of them.”
Brailey was referring to the program instigated by the government's Australian Office of Financial Management (AOFM) to buy mortgage-backed securities from lenders to keep the securitisation market afloat after foreign buyers of these mortgage bundles disappeared in the wake of the GFC.
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Banks 'negligent and reckless' with low-doc loans: Denise Brailey in Senate testimony

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Australia’s biggest apartment developer, Meriton, has been obliged to join<a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/developments/incentives-on-offer-as-waterloo-developers-battle-government-timelines-to-entice-buyers/2012080955910" target="_blank"> </a>a spate of other NSW apartment developers<a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/developments/incentives-on-offer-as-waterloo-developers-battle-government-timelines-to-entice-buyers/2012080955910" target="_blank"> </a>by offering incentives to encourage off-the-plan investors in its apartment projects.
Meriton is currently offering to refund stamp duty on six of its NSW apartment projects following changes announced in June to state government housing incentives. <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/developments/incentives-on-offer-as-waterloo-developers-battle-government-timelines-to-entice-buyers/2012080955910">Other builders have also come up with their own incentives to encourage sales.</a>
A spokesperson declined to comment on the launch of the incentives.
Meriton boss Harry Triguboff was a vocal critic of the changes to NSW government handouts announced in the June budget, which resulted in investors losing out on generous stamp duty savings, while first-home buyers must wait until October 1 for a more generous scheme if they are buying a new home.
<a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/residential/nsw-budgets-needlessly-complex-artificial-deadlines-have-short-term-and-long-term-consequences-for-residential-property/2012061455119">At the time these changes were introduced Triguboff lamented</a> that they would kill off investors “while still not giving birth to the first-home buyers [until October 1]”.
Up until June 30 anyone, including investors, could save as much as $22,490 under the NSW Home Builders' Bonus, which provided a full stamp duty exemption for new homes up to a value of $600,000.
This has been replaced with a $5,000 government handout for investors and non-first-home buyers for new homes up to a value of $650,000.
First-home buyers can still access handouts worth $27,240 ($7,000 first-home owners grant plus up to $20,240 under the First Home – New Home scheme).
However, under the June budget changes, they will get an extra $8,000 from October 1 with the doubling of the first-home owners’ grant to $15,000, but only if they buy a new house or apartment.
Meriton's stamp-duty refund campaign comes as Meriton continues to acquire sites in Sydney and build its pipeline of future apartment projects.
Meriton has acquired five sites since the start of the year with capacity for over 2,000 units and an end value of $1.3 billion. The most recent purchase was on McEvoy Street in Waterloo, with plans for 220 apartments.
Meriton built 1,438 apartments last year and is expecting to build 1,570 this year, The Australian reported. Triguboff says a high proportion of the apartments will be held as serviced apartments. By the end of the year Meriton will have nearly 6,000 serviced apartments in its portfolio.
Meriton is considering buying a Brookfield's site on the corner of Pitt Street and Bathurst Street in the Sydney CBD, which is proposed as the site for Sydney's tallest residential tower, rising to 65 storeys.
<a target="_blank" href="https://www.meriton.com.au/properties/oceanvale-apartments-warriewood/">Meriton is currently offering a stamp duty refund on its Warriewood development </a>on Sydney’s northern beaches.
Prices start from $330,000 on a studio apartment and $470,000 for a one-bedroom apartment.
Stamp duty payable would be $10,340 on the studio apartment and $16,640 on the one-bedroom apartment, with investors also eligible for the $5,000 state government handout.
The five other projects Meriton is offering stamp duty refunds are:
<ul>
<li>Rhodes Peninsula, apartments prices under $650,000</li>
<li>Epping Park, apartments prices under $650,000</li>
<li>Macquarie, apartments priced under $700,000</li>
<li>Fusion, Arncliffe, apartments prices under $650,000</li>
<li>Alcove, St Ives, apartments prices under $650,000</li>
</ul>
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Meriton looking to encourage off-the-plan buyers with stamp duty savings

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A private investor has snapped up the distinctive Mitre Tavern in the Melbourne CBD for $6.25 million.
The thriving English-style pub with a Queen Anne feel dating back to its 1910s makeover was passed in at auction last week for $6.05 million.
It had pre-auction hopes of $6.5 million, with selling agents Kristian Peatling and Warwick Bramich saying its current net annual income is $430,000 plus GST.
<a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/news/pints-on-offer-but-few-punters-as-melbourne-watering-hole-the-mitre-tavern-passed-in-at-%24605-million/2012081055960">The August 10 auction drew a large crowd</a> – many from the property industry – but received just two bids
The highest bidder had first right to negotiate with the vendor to purchase the tavern.
The selling agents have not disclosed the identity of the buyer.
Set on Bank Place, between Collins and Little Collins streets, the pub last traded at $6.3 million in 2008 when bought by Toorak investor Ian Hicks from the hotelier Robertson family. There was a $4.6 million transfer in 2006 and a $5.75 million transfer in 2004.
Classified as being of historical and social significance to Victoria, the Mitre claims to hold one of the oldest continuous pub licences, granted in 1868 when a two-storey private dwelling was converted to a drinking house.
The bluestone coaching house Mac's Hotel in Franklin Street has been operating since 1853.
It's being offered with a long-term lease.
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Mitre Tavern sells for $6.25 million to private investor

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developments/broadbeach-qld-4218">Broadbeach</a> offers plenty of reasons to live vertically, but moving from a substantial family home into an apartment can expose the compromises of high-density living. Privacy, room for guests and usable living space tend to matter more when an apartment is intended as a permanent home rather than an occasional coastal base.

A typical residential floor at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/the-eveleigh-broadbeach-7-9-surf-parade-broadbeach-qld-4218">The Eveleigh</a>, on Surf Parade,&nbsp;contains just four apartments. The 94-residence development by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/hirsch-faigen">Hirsch &amp; Faigen</a> is predominantly made up of expansive three-bedroom homes, with a limited collection of half-floor penthouses above.

Across the apartment floors, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/rothelowman">Rothelowman</a> has used the relatively limited number of residences to give each home greater access to natural light and outlook. Living spaces extend towards full-height glazing, while a series of bay windows frame selected views across the Pacific Ocean, city and hinterland rather than treating the building edge as a continuous wall of glass.

&nbsp;

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“The apartment floors deliver a collection of homes that embrace controlled outlook via a series of bay windows deliberately framing moments of view,” Rothelowman Director Kim Lowman said.

From outside, those projecting forms contribute to the tower’s faceted profile. Strong horizontal and vertical elements establish its proportions, while the changing position of the sun alters the light, shadow and reflection across the façade throughout the day.

The same attention moves inside the apartments, where the material palette combines warm timber, natural stone, metallic detailing and softer curved forms. Kitchens sit within the main living zone, with stone island benches, integrated joinery and European appliances, before the living areas extend towards the glazing and the outlook.

&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360981]

Three genuine bedrooms provide room to accommodate family and guests, while two secure car spaces and storage address some of the practical considerations that can become more noticeable when moving from a larger home. Feedback from the display suite has centred on the warmth and restraint of the interiors, with buyers commenting that the residences feel like homes rather than conventional coastal apartments.

A limited collection of half-floor penthouses occupies the upper levels, increasing the scale of the living spaces and adding private balconies and elevated finishes. From this position, the outlook extends between the ocean and hinterland.

Outside the private residences, The Eveleigh separates its shared spaces between the podium and rooftop. The podium is centred on wellness, with subtropical landscaping surrounding a swimming pool and pool terrace, yoga garden, private gymnasium, sauna and hot and cold plunge facilities. Landscaped retreats and pavilions provide additional places to sit away from the main recreation areas.

&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360966]

Higher in the building, a rooftop pavilion and private dining suite sit alongside resident lounge, barbecue and outdoor dining areas, opening towards panoramic views across the ocean, city and hinterland.

“Buyers are no longer just looking for an apartment, but a lifestyle where they can relax, reset, and enjoy a balanced way of living,” Hirsch &amp; Faigen Director of Sales Matt George said.

Interest to date has come from established owner-occupiers and interstate lifestyle purchasers, including buyers planning a future move to the Gold Coast. Many are coming from larger homes and want to reduce ongoing maintenance without giving up space for family and guests, privacy, two car spaces or the ability to entertain at home.

&nbsp;

[smartcode_project:default project_id=149670 project_image_fid=360969]

Much of that daily life can also take place beyond the building without requiring a drive. Kurrawa Beach and Pratten Park are an easy walk from Surf Parade, while Pacific Fair, Oracle Boulevard, The Oasis, restaurants, cafés, entertainment and public transport are also within walking distance.

The Eveleigh is Hirsch &amp; Faigen's fourth Gold Coast development since entering the market in 2021, following The Hemingway at Palm Beach, The Emerson at Kirra and Yves at Mermaid Beach. Each of the preceding projects sold out before completion.

“Broadbeach had been on our radar throughout our time operating on the Gold Coast,” the developer said. “Following our projects in Palm Beach, Kirra and Mermaid Beach, Broadbeach represented the natural next step for the business.”

The Surf Parade site brought together proximity to the beach, protected coastal outlooks and walkability to dining, shopping and recreation. Hirsch &amp; Faigen also identified the street as an emerging premium residential address, with enough separation from Broadbeach's busier destinations to retain a quieter environment at home.

The Eveleigh is now under construction by Maxcon, with completion forecast for mid-2028. Three-bedroom residences are currently available from $2.87 million.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=149670]

Joel Robinson

The Eveleigh brings house-like apartments to Broadbeach

A long-stalled Campbelltown development site is back in play, with new plans for 139 apartments set to supersede a mixed-use scheme approved almost a decade ago but never built.

The new proposal for 28 Cordeaux Street would deliver 116 market and 23 affordable apartments in a part 14-storey building, bringing a substantial new project into a Campbelltown market where new apartment supply remains limited.

Plans have been filed over the 3,092 sqm corner site at Moore-Oxley Street, around 600 metres from Campbelltown Railway Station and the city-centre retail core.

The site already carries a mixed-use residential approval dating to 2016. Doroch Architects has now been engaged on a larger replacement scheme, which is progressing as a State Significant Development Application following a Housing Delivery Authority determination in August 2025.

The apartment mix comprises 39 one-bedroom, 72 two-bedroom and 28 three-bedroom residences. Two-bedroom apartments make up just over half of the project, while three-bedroom homes account for 20 per cent.

<img alt="First look: New 139-apartment plans revive long-stalled Campbelltown city centre site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="136dd5b9-3791-4da6-9e31-76f533f5b4de" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Campbelltown%20da2.png?VersionId=LgOSy9nwf5u.MGswBBwaGGxuX8QpHSl_" />

Of the 139 apartments, 23 will be delivered as affordable housing under the in-fill affordable housing provisions of the Housing SEPP. The affordable component represents 15 per cent of the residential gross floor area and will be managed by a registered Community Housing Provider.

Doroch has sought to break the scale of the building into two distinct elements, with a masonry podium of around four storeys establishing the street edge before the residential tower steps back above.

The corner position has shaped that approach. Cordeaux Street faces toward the commercial and civic centre, while Moore-Oxley Street leads into the lower-scale residential neighbourhood to the south, and the design verification report describes the site as "bridging the commercial core to the north and established residential areas to the south."

The podium will be expressed predominantly in face brick, while the upper levels shift to brushed and grooved concrete cladding with darker metal detailing. Recessed sections, deep balcony edges and landscaping break down the upper form, with an approximately 11.8-metre setback to the northern boundary addressing the adjoining St Peters Anglican School.

<img alt="First look: New 139-apartment plans revive long-stalled Campbelltown city centre site" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="c8b3d2d3-c561-4bfc-a5d9-a68c0c10dac1" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Campbelltown%20da1.png?VersionId=AeAEyJU02Gk2k5noUj2StziCvdQ7fW4B" />

Campbelltown has been starved of new residential developments in the last decade.

The only other notable development set to come to market this year is ALAND's Queen Square, a mixed-use precinct on over two hectares that will comprise apartments above a vibrant ground-level retail and hospitality dining precinct.

First look: New 139-apartment plans revive long-stalled Campbelltown city centre site

First Look: Sherlock Construction pitches apartments for low-rise Deception Bay

Queensland builder-developer MAYD has revealed the first look at its major North Kirra beachfront development, lodging amended plans that reduce the number of apartments and increase the proportion of larger residences.

The project is planned across a substantial 4,742 sqm amalgamated site spanning seven lots at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/2-6-pacific-parade-bilinga-qld-4225">2-6 Pacific Parade</a> and 27-33 Golden Four Drive in Bilin​ga, directly opposite Nor​th Kirra Beach.

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/mayd-group">MAYD</a> secured the site for $32.5 million in 2025, in what was one of the Gold Coast's largest property transactions of the year.

The development will be delivered across two stages, with the first stage carrying an estimated gross realisation value of around $360 million.

The latest amendments seek to reduce the overall apartment count and shift the project further toward the owner-occupier market, with larger residences designed for buyers wanting considerably more space than traditionally offered in a beachfront apartment.

The residential mix will include townhomes, oversized two-bedroom apartments, substantial three-bedroom residences and four-bedroom homes.

MAYD has appointed Cera Stribley to lead the architecture and interiors, with the Melbourne-based design practice drawing on the beachfront setting through a series of ocean-facing terraces and heavily landscaped balconies.

Strong horizontal forms and curved balconies will define the exterior, with subtropical landscaping integrated throughout the building to soften the built form and increase the connection between the residences and the beachfront.

The project will also include an extensive collection of resident wellness and lifestyle facilities, continuing the broader shift across the Gold Coast's luxury apartment market toward larger homes supported by resort-style amenity.

<img alt="MAYD" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="d1bcbb05-e659-4b47-8bd4-1e595315e2ad" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-08-27%20at%202.05.03%E2%80%AFPM.png?VersionId=jj0XEud1X1DuLt7_KyElhjMdZGOXmLHP" />

MAYD Founder Todd Mould said North Kirra was increasingly appealing to buyers attracted to the more established, lower-density character of the southern Gold Coast.

"North Kirra presents one of the most compelling luxury residential opportunities currently emerging in Australia, combining absolute beachfront with the character and authenticity that buyers are increasingly seeking, and the same sense of tight-knit community that defined Burleigh and Currumbin perhaps 10 or 15 years ago," Mould said.

"With Gold Coast Airport on its doorstep, it also offers a level of accessibility that broadens its appeal across almost every market demographic."

The project comes as the southern Gold Coast continues to attract an increasing share of high-end apartment development and buyer activity.

Kirra in particular has emerged as one of the region's more tightly held beachfront markets, with its relatively low-density character, established surf and hospitality scene and proximity to Gold Coast Airport differentiating it from the higher-density markets further north.

Mould said those characteristics had informed the approach MAYD and Cera Stribley had taken to the project.

"We've worked closely with Cera Stribley to create a vision that is deeply connected to its surroundings," he said.

"Inspired by the coastline itself, the architecture has been shaped around space, privacy and resort-style living, creating a collection of homes that reflects the next generation of luxury on the southern Gold Coast."

MOTIV Managing Director Carly Cottam, who has been appointed to market the project, said buyer attention had continued to move south along the Gold Coast.

"Purchasers who may once have defaulted to Broadbeach, Main Beach or Surfers Paradise are increasingly recognising the value of a genuine beachfront location that offers lower density, strong amenity and a more established sense of community," Cottam said.

"Kirra has a powerful combination of growing demand and genuine scarcity. Beachfront supply is inherently constrained, the area remains relatively low density, and buyers are increasingly placing a premium on locations that feel established, uncrowded and authentic rather than heavily developed."

Cottam said the proximity to Gold Coast Airport was also proving increasingly important for interstate and second-home buyers.

"Being minutes from Gold Coast Airport makes it particularly compelling for interstate buyers, frequent travellers and second-home purchasers who can access an authentic coastal lifestyle almost immediately after stepping off a flight."

The acquisition takes MAYD's active development portfolio to more than $500 million, with the North Kirra project representing one of its largest undertakings to date.

MAYD is targeting an early 2027 launch.

First look at MAYD's North Kirra mixed-use precinct

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Castle Hill, the longtime hub of the Hills District, has been one of the major beneficiaries of Sydney's Metro expansion, with improved connectivity helping drive continued population growth, development and buyer demand across the Hills District.

But despite that growth, the suburb has seen relatively few major new apartment projects brought to market over the past 18 months.

Hills District developer Reve Group is looking to fill that gap with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/nova-r-ve-castle-hill-2-garthowen-crescent-castle-hill-nsw-2154">Nova Rêve</a>, a major new mixed-use precinct on the corner of Garthowen Crescent and Old Castle Hill Road, a short walk from Castle Hill Metro Station and Castle Towers.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377679]

The project will comprise three residential towers alongside a hotel, restaurants, cafes and a skybar, more than 1,600 sqm of ground-floor retail and almost an acre of landscaped gardens.

It represents the largest project undertaken by Reve Group, the development arm of the Kassis family, which has been building across the Hills District for more than 30 years through Kassis Homes.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377675]

Nova Rêve also represents a significant step up from the family's first apartment development, Grand Rêve, which was delivered nearby on Garthowen Crescent.

Grand Rêve introduced larger, house-like apartment layouts and premium inclusions including Wolf and Sub-Zero appliances to the Castle Hill market.

Nova Rêve takes that approach to a precinct scale, combining the residential component with hospitality, retail and substantial public and resident landscaping.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377685]

Reve Group Managing Director Sam Kassis said the project reflected the family's three decades of building in the Hills, which has evolved from trophy homes on quarter-acre blocks to larger-scale apartment development.

"Grand Rêve was our first apartment project here and it showed us what this pocket of Castle Hill could be. Nova Rêve is the refinement of that idea: not just apartments, but a place the whole suburb can use," Kassis said.

A key part of that approach is the hotel, which has been designed to operate as an amenity for the wider Castle Hill community rather than solely hotel guests.

It will include restaurants, cafes, skybars and all-day dining, alongside conference and event facilities catering to business functions, community groups and private events.

At ground level, more than 1,600 sqm of shops and cafes will open onto the surrounding streets and landscaped areas.

Almost an acre of gardens designed by Land and Form Studios will run through the precinct, incorporating pathways, seating, barbecue areas and children's play spaces.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=152737 project_image_fid=377680]

Reve Group's Romio Georges said creating an active ground plane had been central to the planning of Nova Rêve.

"There are gardens with pathways, barbecues, seating and play areas, shops and cafes opening onto the street, and a hotel with restaurants and a skybar that anyone in Castle Hill can walk into," Georges said.

The project's elevated position on one of Sydney's highest ridgelines will also provide apartments with outlooks toward the Sydney skyline, surrounding parkland and the Blue Mountains.

More than 80 per cent of the apartments will occupy corner positions, with Turner responsible for both the architecture and interiors.

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Larry Schlesinger

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