Apartment buyers in New South Wales are set to gain a decade of insurance-backed protection against major building defects, after the NSW Parliament passed the Fair Trading and Building Legislation Amendment Bill 2026.&nbsp;

The Bill establishes decennial defect insurance, known in the market as Latent Defects Insurance (LDI), as an alternative to the existing two-year strata building bond. It cleared the Legislative Council with amendments on Tuesday evening (August 4, 2026), with the Legislative Assembly agreeing to those amendments shortly after.

Under the reform, eligible developers can satisfy their statutory bond obligation by taking out an approved decennial-style policy that gives owners 10 years of cover for major structural defects from completion, claimable directly, without first having to pursue developers or builders through costly legal action.&nbsp;

The change forms the final tranche of amendments arising from the 2021 statutory review of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 and related legislation.

Resilience Insurance, which originated the cover in Australia and has delivered it in NSW since 2022, welcomed the passage and credited the NSW Government for delivering it.

“This is protection apartment buyers have needed for a long time, and the credit for delivering it belongs to the NSW Government,”&nbsp;said Corey Nugent, CEO of Resilience Insurance.

“Minister Chanthivong and his team have shown real leadership in replacing an outdated two-year bond with cover that matches the lifespan of the buildings people are buying into. Reform like this is what good, evidence-based regulation looks like.”

Resilience has delivered LDI in NSW since 2022, protecting thousands of apartments, giving the State, and now the country, real-world evidence of how decade-long, no-fault protection works in practice.

The reform also places NSW within a wider national shift.

NSW is the third jurisdiction to put decennial cover into law. The ACT legislated for it in 2024, with the scheme taking effect in late 2025, and Victoria passed its own framework on 17 June. Between them, the three cover the majority of Australia's apartment market.

The reform commences once the legislation is proclaimed, which is expected in the coming weeks. From that point, developers of Class 2 residential apartment buildings can meet their statutory obligation with an approved decennial policy in place of the bond.

Buyers who purchased into projects that took out the cover early are among the first in the country to take keys to apartments carrying decade-long structural protection.

“With the legislation passed, the focus now turns to making it work for buyers,”&nbsp;Nugent said.

“There are already thousands of apartments in NSW covered by this insurance, bought by developers who moved early. The question every buyer should be asking in a display suite is a simple one: does this building come with 10-year defect cover, and who stands behind it?&nbsp;

“We look forward to working with the Government and the Building Commission in coming weeks as the framework moves to implementation, and to sharing what we have learned over the past four years so the protection reaches owners as smoothly and quickly as possible.”

Other states are working through their own reform programs. Western Australia has indicated that decennial cover is within consideration a later stage of its reform sequence, and Queensland has been examining the settings as it looks at the development pipeline ahead of the 2032 Olympics.

Resilience Insurance acknowledges the NSW Government’s continued focus on strengthening consumer protection while supporting housing delivery across the State.

Fast Facts: What the reform means

<ul style="color:#222222; font-family:Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:small; font-style:normal; font-variant-ligatures:normal; font-weight:400; text-align:start; white-space:normal; background-color:#ffffff; text-decoration-thickness:initial; text-decoration-style:initial; text-decoration-color:initial">
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Proven at scale:&nbsp;Decennial cover has operated in NSW since 2022, protecting thousand of apartments.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">10 years of cover:&nbsp;Protection for major structural defects runs for a decade from completion, claimable directly and with no legal action required.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">An alternative to the bond:&nbsp;Eligible developers can meet their statutory obligation with an approved decennial-style policy in place of the 2% strata building bond.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Part of a national shift:&nbsp;The ACT has had decennial provisions in force since 2025 and Victoria passed its framework in June. NSW now joins them.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">No-fault, first resort:&nbsp;Owners corporations claim directly from the insurer without first having to establish who is liable for the defect.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Cost-competitive:&nbsp;At approximately 1.8% of build cost, LDI is typically priced below the 2% bond while offering broader, longer protection.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Market position:&nbsp;Resilience originated LDI in Australia and has delivered it in NSW since 2022.</li>
</ul>

Fast Facts: What is Resilience LDI?

<ul style="color:#222222; font-family:Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:small; font-style:normal; font-variant-ligatures:normal; font-weight:400; text-align:start; white-space:normal; background-color:#ffffff; text-decoration-thickness:initial; text-decoration-style:initial; text-decoration-color:initial">
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Resilience Latent Defects Insurance (LDI):&nbsp;Covers major structural defects for 10 years from completion.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Consumer-first:&nbsp;Direct claim access, no need for lengthy legal action.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Cost advantage:&nbsp;At approximately 1.8% of build cost, LDI is typically priced below the traditional 2% Strata Bond while offering broader protection.</li>
	<li style="margin-left:15px; font-family:Aptos, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:12pt; color:#000000">Market leader:&nbsp;&nbsp;Resilience Insurance originated LDI in Australia and is the national market leader.</li>
</ul>

Joel Robinson

NSW parliament passes 10-year defect insurance laws for new apartment buyers

Builder-developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/mcnab-developments">McNab</a> has wasted little time reshaping one of South Brisbane's most significant undeveloped apartment sites after acquiring the property earlier this year.&nbsp;

McNab has lodged plans to scrap an existing approval for two 30-storey towers and instead deliver a single 28-storey residential building, preserving part of the site for a future development opportunity.

The proposal, lodged over <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/64-peel-street-south-brisbane-qld-4101">64 Peel Street and 9 Cordelia Street</a>, is for a residential-led mixed-use development comprising 124 apartments above a landscaped podium, alongside a boundary realignment that preserves part of the land for a future residential project.

<img alt="First look: McNab resets decade-old South Brisbane approval with 124-apartment tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="743bf564-3f8f-45fc-b8d3-bbf18f5b628f" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/mcnab%20Peel%20st%20podium.png?VersionId=EhCxGrVn_VFH3qTbKnI4WppGwaMnOn0t" />

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/hayball">Hayball</a>, the development will deliver 119 two-bedroom and five three-bedroom apartments across 23 residential levels. A five-level podium will accommodate 135 car spaces, while the ground floor will include a 66 sqm commercial tenancy, an activated residential lobby with work-from-home spaces, and a publicly accessible landscaped plaza linking Cordelia and Peel streets.&nbsp;

Communal amenities will span Level 6 and the rooftop, including indoor and outdoor recreation spaces, a swimming pool, barbecue facilities, kitchen and dining areas, lawn space, sauna, steam room and yoga facilities.

The application also proposes a boundary realignment to create a standalone 1,290 sqm development lot while retaining an adjacent parcel for future redevelopment, allowing the balance of the site to contribute additional housing over time.

Hayball said the architecture has been shaped by the site's elevated corner position at the intersection of Peel and Cordelia streets and Brisbane's subtropical climate.

The design incorporates generous landscaped setbacks, a masonry podium wrapped with planting, large north-facing balconies, and a slender tower profile intended to maximise natural light, cross ventilation and long-range views. The rooftop has been conceived as a wellness-focused retreat overlooking Brisbane, with amenities positioned to capture views towards Mount Coot-tha and the CBD.

<img alt="First look: McNab resets decade-old South Brisbane approval with 124-apartment tower" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="c5f99e84-6ad8-4a87-82d1-869685b754d2" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/mcnab%20tower%20perspective.png?VersionId=Gw0IuJaSAlk.tvGBxInhZOcQAdIB..2b" />

The planning submission positions the proposal as a response to both changing market conditions and Brisbane's Kurilpa Sustainable Growth Precinct planning reforms.

McNab acquired the site after the previous approval was granted, with the existing scheme no longer reflecting current residential market demands, economic conditions, construction challenges, construction efficiencies or the quality of development outcome now being pursued, the planning report noted.

McNab continues to expand its residential development pipeline across Brisbane and the Gold Coast. The developer recently launched The Tannery in West End, securing more than 60 per cent of apartments before the project's public release. It is also delivering Elements Budds Beach in Surfers Paradise and Lucia Highgate Hill, an eight-apartment boutique development overlooking the Brisbane River.

McNab resets decade-old South Brisbane approval with 124-apartment tower

A steeply sloping Bellevue Hill site is set to accommodate a new mid-rise apartment development, with plans lodged for 20 homes that respond to the site's dramatic topography.

The proposal for the consolidated land at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/138a-140-bellevue-road-bellevue-hill-nsw-2023">138A-140 Bellevue Road</a> has been designed by Sydney architecture practice Common Office, which has used the site’s substantial fall to distribute the building’s scale and unlock 20 apartments without presenting the full height to the street.&nbsp;

“The unique design strategy leverages the site’s substantial topographical fall to facilitate increased density, presenting a seven-storey profile to Bellevue Road while rising to 10 storeys at the rear,” Common Office said in its architectural design report.

The apartment mix spans one, two, three- and four-bedroom residences. Four two-bedroom apartments are designated as affordable housing, while the plans also include two adaptable dwellings. The mix is majority three-beds, with the typical three-bed apartment offering around 144 sqm internally, with balconies of around 15 sqm.

The affordable housing component represents 15 per cent of the residential floor area and allows the project to access additional height and floor space under the NSW Government’s in-fill affordable housing provisions. The site also falls within the inner area of the Low and Mid-Rise Housing Policy because it is within 400 metres walking distance of Double Bay Town Centre.

<img alt="First Look: Plans lodged for topography-led affordable housing project in Bellevue Hill" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b1230d0f-3bfa-4a11-abaf-0928c66ef345" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Bellevue%20da.png?VersionId=dZeMK3P.OutGjN8ycjsxm8uNsj_QFWQv" />

Common Office has arranged the building around a masonry podium and a lighter upper volume, drawing on two recurring elements of Bellevue Hill’s established architecture: sandstone bases and the vertical proportions of local Inter-war Art Deco apartment buildings.

“The proposal is governed by a holistic design language that reconciles the solid horizontal masonry of the neighbourhood’s podiums with the elegant verticality of its Art Deco heritage,” the architect said.

“The building maintains a consistent rhythmic logic utilising deep recesses and a sophisticated material transition to break down the 10-storey scale into a series of articulated, human-scale volumes.”

<img alt="First Look: Plans lodged for topography-led affordable housing project in Bellevue Hill" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="0147f503-1af1-4d51-97fb-c2f1cba63a9d" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Bellevue%20bldg.png?VersionId=GoW7q3NlK67OpnePXhk7zvklrlKb72Qc" />

Large-format sandstone tiles will define the lower levels, establishing a robust base that negotiates the change in elevation from Bellevue Road. Above, red-tinted precast concrete frames, recessed balconies, anodised aluminium screens and expanded metal details will create a more vertically expressed façade. Integrated planter beds will introduce greenery across balcony edges and recessed sections of the building.

The elongated northern façade has been divided into three recessed vertical masses to reduce its perceived length. Triangular window elements and metal privacy screens reference the geometry of nearby Art Deco buildings while controlling overlooking toward surrounding homes. The southern elevation will incorporate further privacy screening, landscaped edges and deep balconies to maintain light and ventilation.

<img alt="First Look: Plans lodged for topography-led affordable housing project in Bellevue Hill" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="e8679cf1-18bc-4447-8a0f-0052b94ab83c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Bellevue%20da%20rooftop.png?VersionId=5SQqQqRFf76rvE2p1TbxJSweMN70AIbc" />

Private and communal landscaping is distributed throughout the development. A landscaped garden apartment is positioned within the lower portion of the site, while a communal terrace on Level 5 will include a central timber deck, barbecue facilities, resident planting plots and areas for outdoor dining and informal gatherings.

Common Office described the terrace as an elevated sanctuary designed to capture district views and sunlight. Its planting strategy incorporates endemic species associated with the Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub, extending the landscape vertically through the building and providing habitat for local flora and fauna.

A second communal outdoor area is proposed at roof level, with built-in seating, paved gathering areas and perimeter planting.

Bellevue Hill is enjoying renewed momentum in the new apartment market, with several boutique developments recently launched and currently under construction. Positive Investment Enterprise is delivering the 16-apartment Kew Palm House on Birriga Road, while Chanine Developments is also under construction at Florian, a 36-apartment project on Banksia Road.

&nbsp;

Bellevue Hill is enjoying renewed momentum in the new apartment market, with several boutique developments recently launched and currently under construction.

First Look: Apartment development pitched for Bellevue Hill, Double Bay fringe

South Brisbane's apartment pipeline continues to build momentum, with <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/trk-property-group">TRK Property Group</a> lodging plans for a 161-apartment tower on Montague Road as developers accelerate investment across the Kurilpa Sustainable Growth Precinct.

The proposal for 176–186 Montague Road would replace an existing office building with a 20-storey residential tower designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/cox-architecture">COX Architecture</a>, adding to a growing pipeline of high-density projects reshaping one of Brisbane's fastest-evolving inner-city precincts.

The project has been conceived as a "living building", featuring a flowing tower form, extensive vertical landscaping, and generous communal spaces that respond to the evolving Kurilpa Sustainable Growth Precinct.

TRK Property Group Development Director Matt Kan said the project reflected the confidence developers have in South Brisbane's long-term future.

"South Brisbane is entering an incredibly exciting period, and we see Montague Road sitting right at the heart of that evolution," Kan said.

"With the former Visy site directly opposite us and significant investment planned throughout the broader Kurilpa precinct, there is a real sense of momentum around this part of the city and what it will become over the coming years.

"For TRK, this is an opportunity to be part of that next chapter and deliver a project that responds to where the precinct is heading, while contributing to the continued evolution of Brisbane's river edge."

<img alt="First look: TRK Property joins South Brisbane apartment surge with Montague Road tower plans" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="590fe1ad-f892-4446-a679-80e33a16d029" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/TRK%20tower%20facade.png?VersionId=uOJStrcKpyHFcPE1w6_9SMAFzVMCcZll" />

The scheme includes a mix of one, two, three and four-bedroom apartments, incorporating multi-purpose rooms in selected residences to provide additional flexibility for home offices or expanded living areas. The proposed mix comprises 15 one-bedroom, 13 one-bedroom plus MPR, 73 two-bedroom, 26 two-bedroom plus MPR, 30 three-bedroom, and four four-bedroom apartments.

Rather than adopting a conventional rectilinear tower, COX Architecture has developed a sculpted form inspired by the movement of the Brisbane River.

"The proposal has been designed by COX Architecture as a 'living building' that responds to the site's riverine setting, floodplain history and evolving urban context within the Kurilpa Sustainable Growth Precinct," the planning report states.

"The architectural form draws from the fluid nature of the Brisbane River, with a curved and undulating tower form that creates a varied architectural edge and avoids a conventional rectilinear tower expression."

The podium has also been designed as an architectural feature rather than a conventional parking structure, with cascading planting, screening and natural-toned materials softening its appearance. Resident parking is elevated above ground level to address the site's flood constraints, while habitable apartments sit above flood planning levels. Upper-level communal facilities are designed to accommodate shelter-in-place arrangements during major flood events.

<img alt="First look: TRK Property joins South Brisbane apartment surge with Montague Road tower plans" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="01fa15d0-90df-46c7-9555-7941fc45373c" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/TRK%20podium.png?VersionId=mHyua.w1pHGBt9qEdWzrlsv.leztUCwO" />

Communal amenity is a major focus of the proposal. Around 1,815 sqm of shared resident space is proposed across the ground floor, level 19 and the rooftop, including co-working areas, indoor and outdoor recreation spaces, wellness facilities, dining and gathering areas, lawn spaces, a rooftop pool and spa, and extensive landscaping. At street level, a landscaped forecourt and approximately 345 sqm of publicly accessible open space along Montague Road are intended to improve the pedestrian experience while activating the building's frontage.

The development will provide 163 car spaces, including 152 resident bays and 11 visitor spaces, together with 144 bicycle spaces incorporating resident storage, visitor parking, bicycle maintenance facilities and e-mobility charging infrastructure.

The site sits within one of Brisbane's fastest-changing inner-city precincts, less than two kilometres from the CBD and within easy reach of South Bank, West End, the Queensland Cultural Centre and extensive public transport connections. The Kurilpa Sustainable Growth Precinct planning framework is encouraging higher-density residential development to help meet Brisbane's housing supply targets while supporting walkable, transit-oriented neighbourhoods.

TRK Property joins South Brisbane apartment surge with Montague Road tower plans

Article summary

<ul data-end="785" data-start="311">
	<li data-end="459" data-section-id="5hbcyr" data-start="311">Pikos Group has released the five-penthouse collection at Skye Kangaroo Point, headlined by a two-storey sky home spanning more than 1,000 sqm.</li>
	<li data-end="561" data-section-id="1p7lq8n" data-start="460">Early buyer interest suggests the residences could set a new Queensland apartment price record.</li>
	<li data-end="667" data-section-id="1y70z0l" data-start="562">The collection includes four move-in ready penthouses and the highly customised Skye One residence.</li>
	<li data-end="785" data-section-id="yvm0y1" data-start="668">The release caps one of Bri​sbane's most ambitious luxury apartment developments overlooking the Brisbane River.</li>
</ul>

<hr data-end="790" data-start="787" />
Pikos Group has released the five-penthouse collection at its <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/buildings/skye-residences-by-pikos-kangaroo-point-8-river-terrace-kangaroo-point-qld-4169">Skye by Pikos</a> development in Kangaroo Point, with early buyer interest indicating the flagship residences could eclipse every apartment sale previously recorded in Queensland.

The collection crowns the luxury riverfront development with five residences, including four completed penthouses and Skye One, a two-level sky home spanning more than 1,000 sqm that will be tailored to its eventual owner.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=90059 project_image_fid=374075]

Wanting to offer a fully customisable home, Pikos is offering Skye One as a blank canvas, allowing the buyer to work alongside the developer's design team to customise the home's layout, finishes and internal spaces.

The residence will feature a 247 sqm private rooftop terrace with its own swimming pool, sauna, steam room, outdoor kitchen and multiple entertaining areas overlooking the Brisbane River and CBD skyline.

The remaining four penthouses have been completed and are ready for immediate occupation, each offering four bedrooms, expansive open-plan living areas, soaring ceilings and private lift access.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=90059 project_image_fid=374059]

One of the defining features throughout the project is its use of Roman Classic Travertine, with more than 20,000 sqm of the natural stone imported from Italy after being personally selected by Pikos Group Founder and Executive Director Pedro Pikos, interior designer Julie Williamson and third-generation stone specialist Mario Caucci.

Pikos said the penthouse collection represented the culmination of the company's long-term vision for Skye.

"True legacy isn't measured by what we build today, but by what endures tomorrow," Pikos said.

"Our ambition is to create places that become more valuable with time, enrich the lives of generations, and stand as timeless landmarks long after we've stepped away."

[smartcode_project:default project_id=90059 project_image_fid=374060]

Williamson said the interiors were inspired by the natural character of Kangaroo Point and the Brisbane River rather than international design trends.

"Materiality tells the story of a place," Williamson said.

"We looked to the movement of the Brisbane River, the texture of the cliff face and the warmth of the surrounding landscape to create interiors that feel understated, enduring and unmistakably Brisbane."

Positioned above the Kangaroo Point cliffs, Skye places residents within walking distance of Howard Smith Wharves, South Bank and James Street while offering uninterrupted river and city views.

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=90059]

Brisbane's next apartment price record? Pikos unveils Skye's exclusive penthouse collection

Prominent New Zealand apartment and hotel operator, <a href="/developers/safari-group">Safari Group</a>, is offering up a prime investment opportunity for Australians to purchase off the plan in one of the world’s most popular ski destinations.

They recently took to market Mountain Oak Queenstown Apartments, in the growing precinct of Remarkables Park in Frankton, near the airport and at the foot of The Remarkables - the mountain range the locals like to call “The Remarks”.&nbsp;

Sydney investors have shown interest in the one, two and three-bedroom apartments that secure high-season occupancy six months over the year, primarily over summer and winter months.

They average 90 per cent occupancy across their portfolio over January, February, March, August, November and December, while shoulder season months of April, July, September and October are still occupied 70 per cent of the time, with the growing appeal of Queenstown becoming not just a hotspot for the snow, but a lifestyle destination.

Even in the low seasons of May and June, occupancy levels reach around 40 per cent.

<img alt="Safari Group’s Mountain Oak Apartments brings new investment potential to Queenstown" data-entity-type="" data-entity-uuid="" src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/f_auto,c_limit,w_1440,q_auto/https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/field/image/Ext_Cam15_Sunny.jpg?VersionId=SJAROUM_1s.Tr5ciMk4EEj5oAt_Vewmv" />

Safari’s Safari Hotels arm can also manage the holiday letting for an investor, from the listing on holiday accommodation websites such as Airbnb and Booking.com to the cleaning and maintenance of the investment. They’ve been in the short stay management business for 15 years and offer 24/7 support for investors, an important convenience benefit for any overseas investor

Another major drawcard for Australians is that New Zealand doesn’t have a stamp duty policy - so the entry price of NZ$639,000 (AU$586,000), is all that is payable on completion.

<img alt="Safari Group’s Mountain Oak Apartments brings new investment potential to Queenstown" data-entity-type="" data-entity-uuid="" src="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/c_scale,w_580,dpr_2.0,q_auto:good/https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/313_Livingv2_WEB.jpg?VersionId=nV229fM0ZeYpoxOrX372HyGjfwY_LR8c" />

Safari is starting construction of the 141 apartments in Q2 this year, with a two-year build estimated to complete in mid-to-late 2027.<img alt="" data-entity-type="" data-entity-uuid="" height="15" src="https://lh7-rt.googleusercontent.com/docsz/AD_4nXczFpFAb7WuA6f4f9TtKWcqXyNwR8qqtakWv352ERkpqNlP3KwIo8YKxw67jZNHfpjEGIZGv5MQTbnvLZwNt8iu9IVdOrswOjCvBZ4zhSoOOLrpt6etVEZTN1gkBho0r_R72zdHNA?key=yq3daOanqHSb88QFd8jGYKdb" title="Click and drag to move" width="15" />​

The apartments will feature modern amenities and contemporary designs with expansive windows capturing sweeping views of The Remarkables mountain range.&nbsp;

Interiors are equipped with modern finishes, premium appliances, and secure electronic key-locked doors, ensuring a comfortable living experience for residents and guests alike.

With its strategic location near Coronet Peak and Cardrona Alpine Resort, as well as key retail and dining precincts such as Market Street, Five Mile Shopping Centre, and Remarkables Market, Mountain Oak offers a strong proposition for investors seeking high rental yields and capital appreciation in one of New Zealand’s most sought-after locations.&nbsp;

Queenstown’s sustained demand for visitor accommodation and rental properties is underpinned by a shortage of housing options, attracting both local and international buyers.

Safari Group offers low-touch investment proposition in Queenstown’s popular ski fields district

<html><body>
 The City of Melbourne, Southbank and Docklands will continue to be the epicentre of high-density urban renewal projects in Melbourne until 2014, according to a new report compiled for the Property Council of Australia by consultants Charter Keck Kramer (CKC). 
However beyond 2014, CKC anticipates that there will be an increased provision of medium-density projects, “particularly across the established middle region, as well as continuing supply of smaller apartment projects”. 
The apartment push into the suburbs is already occurring in established middle-region suburbs like Dandenong, 30 kilometres from the CBD, where 43% of construction activity is currently for apartment projects. 
Apartment projects account for more than a third (34%) of construction activity in Box Hill, 28% of activity in Footscray and 22% of activity in Sandringham. 
CKC says it can be confidently predicted that residential urban renewal supply will slow considerably after 2014, “given the heavy influence of apartments within the urban renewal concept”. 
“The evident slowing in the established housing market since 2010, and the more pronounced reduction in off-the-plan apartment sales activity at the same time will translate through to lower future completion levels,” says CKC.
The report anticipates that 421 major residential urban renewal projects (including several multiple stage developments) will be completed between 2012 and 2014. 
Click to enlarge
<a href="/images/stories/ckcmay29.gif" rel="shadowbox" title="Click to enlarge"><img src="/images/stories/ckcmay29thumb.gif"></a>
The projects are expected to deliver 34,440 dwellings, with 82% of these being apartments, with the higher concentration of supply in larger projects of more than 100 dwellings. 
Over this period, about 42% of new apartment buildings will have more than 10 levels, compared with 31% in the construction period from 2005 to 2011. 
High-rise apartments will remain concentrated within the established inner-city municipalities. 
The report notes that pattern of major residential urban renewal concentrated in the City of Melbourne (including parts of the St Kilda Road precinct), Southbank and will continue to prevail. 
However, it notes that though the City of Melbourne will account for a lesser concentration (29%) of overall activity than it has over the recent past. 
Stonnington and Yarra local government areas account for the greatest increases in relative supply between the recent past and forthcoming periods. Their shares of overall metropolitan activity will increase by 3 percentage points to 9% each. 
The CKC report ranks the City of Melbourne as the top urban renewal LGA from 2005 to 2011 (6,651 apartments) followed by Southbank (2,718 apartments); Docklands (1, 956 apartments, 2026 total dwellings); South Yarra (1,352 apartments) and Port Melbourne (1,070 apartments, 1,183 total dwellings). 
In total CKC identified 607 individual major urban renewal projects (including several multiple stage developments) that have been completed between 2005 and 2011, containing 39,355 new dwellings.
The report, Making the Numbers Stack Up, was released in response to Victorian government projections that over the 40 years to 2051, Victoria’s population will increase by 3.2 million to 8.7 million. 
Over the same period, Melbourne’s population is expected to grow to 6.5 million, while regional Victoria is projected to grow to 2.3 million. 
The report concludes that there is currently “strong alignment between policy and market preferences for supply into locations offering high amenity and transport connectivity”. 
“Metropolitan policy should reinforce this nexus and seek to minimise constraints to new development where such preconditions exist so as to optimise supply opportunities and maximise community benefits associated with urban renewal. 
“Locations that currently do not exhibit the necessary preconditions to support higher density outcomes must undergo a period of progressive step changes in market conditions and density before apartments can be supported. 
“Not every centre, nor every suburb, can be expected to accommodate higher-density urban renewal but those suburbs which have the necessary preconditions (transport, amenity and supportive house price structures) should be expected to provide opportunities for appropriate urban renewal to occur,” says the PCA.
Photograph courtesy of <a href="https://www.flickr.com/" target="_blank">Flickr</a>.
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Melbourne urban renewal to slow and spread to the suburbs from 2014: Charter Keck Cramer

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The nearing end of Victoria’s $13,000 first home bonus has helped national new home sales mount a partial recovery in April following a very weak end to the first quarter of 2012, the Housing Industry Association has reported.
The HIA - JELD-WEN new home sales report, based on a survey of Australia’s 100 largest builders, showed a 6.9% rise in total seasonally adjusted new home sales in April.
Detached house sales rose by 6.4%, while multi-unit sales were up by 10.3%.
New detached house sales increased by 17.2% in Victoria, ahead of the removal of the first-home bonus, the HIA noted.
Detached house sales also increased in Western Australia by 9.8% and New South Wales by 1.8%.
However, detached house sales fell by 5.9% in South Australia and by 5.5% in Queensland.
The increase in Victorian home sales was the first gain in five months, the CommSec chief economist, Craig James noted.
"The good news is that Victorian house sales soared.
"The bad news is that the upcoming expiry of the First Home Bonus probably had a lot to do with it.
"And unfortunately in economics it can get like that – on the one hand this, on the other hand that.
"However it is clear that home building is weak, certainly well below averages over the past five years," Craig James said.
It was in part that Australians lacked confidence to build, he added.
"Others are opting for shared accommodation, whether it be Gen Y renting apartments together or staying home with their parents. Or it may be that senior Australians are opting to live with their children and grandchildren.
"Certainly home occupancy has been rising over the past two years – something that hasn’t happened in over a century," Craig James said.
 
Click to enlarge
<a title="Click to enlarge" href="/images/stories/hiamay29.gif" rel="shadowbox"><img src="/images/stories/hiamay29thumb.gif"></a>
HIA chief economist Dr Harley Dale says the April lift in new home sales of both detached houses and multi-is was an “imperative result”.
"Even with this latest improvement, the aggregate volume of both new home sales and local government building approvals imply that in the absence of a rapid and sustained recovery, national new home building is heading to a recessionary level in 2012.
“That’s an unfortunate fact which everybody needs to face and which requires further interest rate cuts and immediate government action,” Dale says.
“We keep hearing that Australia is one of the world’s strongest economies in aggregate.
“That’s a redundant concept if people on the ground aren’t feeling and experiencing that, and they haven’t been for quite some time,” he says.
"Further interest rate cuts are required, and the Reserve Bank should just get on with the job on June 5.
“However, rate cuts are not a panacea and the key to a housing recovery lies with governments at all levels.
“Job losses are mounting and governments need to collectively act to revitalise new home building through reducing the sector’s excessive tax burden and through an immediate injection of investment and funding,” the HIA press release says.
 
 
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jchancellor-FAypfDUnLy

New home sales partial recovery in April buoyed by Victorian first-home bonus deadline: HIA

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Canadian coffee chain Esquires Coffee House is expanding into Australia following an entry to the New Zealand market, spearheaded by a high-tech store concept. 
Founded in 1993 in Vancouver, Esquires has established a presence in North America, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, China, Fiji and even New Zealand. 
In New Zealand, there are 47 Esquires stores. 
Now the franchise has turned its attention to Australia, confirming it will open its first flagship store in Sydney next week. The store will be located in the affluent suburb of Mosman. 
The company-owned store will be the model for future Australian outlets, with additional stores planned for not only NSW but also Queensland and South Australia. 
Esquires is part of the Retail Food Group family, which is also the local licensee of Donut King, Brumby’s Bakeries, Michel’s Patisserie, bb’s café and, most recently, Pizza Capers. 
RFG’s brand manager Khim Puseman admits it is “a little bit unusual” Esquires entered the New Zealand market prior to the Australian market.
 “It’s a brand that’s been out there for a little while... A couple of guys in New Zealand actually bought the rights to the New Zealand market, but it is a little bit unusual,” Puseman says. 
Puseman is quick to point out the store in Mosman is not the first Esquires store in Australia – there’s another store in Tweed – but it is the first concept store. 
“The Mosman store is the first concept store in that it embodies the new brand position of Esquires Coffee House,” Puseman says. 
In addition to a self-serve kiosk and free WiFi, each new store will be equipped with iPads for customers to use. 
“We’re really trying to embody more of a high technology standpoint. We’ll be launching online ordering, mobile orders, and we have self-serve kiosks,” Puseman says. 
“We are leaning towards targeting a younger age group but really anyone who has an appreciation for technology.” 
According to Puseman, a love of technology is also important among the chain’s franchisees, which are currently being sought out. Of course, franchisees also need to care about coffee. 
“It’s a high-tech brand but it’s also a coffee brand. We’re looking for franchisees or people who have a great passion for coffee,” she says. 
“They need to be focused on the utmost quality of the coffee and the service of the coffee.” 
“We want them to be able to speak to the target market, and align themselves with the brand in terms of the high-tech offering. Essentially, they need to be enthusiastic.” 
Puseman isn’t concerned the popularity of the brand will be compromised because it is foreign. 
“The whole range has been adapted to be best targeted to Australia. We haven’t just brought in an international brand, plopped it in an Australian suburb and hope it does well,” she says. 
“All our products have been custom picked and chosen because of local palates and local taste… For example, we’ve added more cold beverages because it gets a bit warmer [in Australia].” 
Meanwhile, Queensland-based coffee franchise Zarraffa’s Coffee has announced its plans to expand into NSW. Zarraffa’s currently has 52 stores. 
A drive-through site in the suburb of Fairfield will be the company’s flagship location in NSW, as part of a plan to open at least 11 new franchises this year throughout Queensland and NSW. 
Zarraffa’s chief executive Kenton Campbell told Franchising the company is moving away from traditional shopping centre locations to more suburban retail sites. 
“Developing a successful drive-through store model has been critical to these plans,” Campbell said. 
“Our primary focus is on building the financial health of all our stores, and delivering value and support to our franchisees.” 
“Expansion has always been executed in a financially responsible way, and 2012 is the right time for this move.” 
The news comes less than two weeks after a franchisee couple was <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.startupsmart.com.au/franchising/billy-baxters-franchisees-win-%241.22-million-in-damages/201205156300">awarded $1.22 million in damages</a> after a successful appeal against franchisor Billy Baxter’s. 
Billy Baxter’s is a chain of licensed coffee houses, cafés and restaurants. 
Ross and Sue Pollard operated a Billy Baxter’s greenfield site in the Adelaide suburb of Glenelg, but did not achieve the turnover anticipated by the franchisor’s representative, Phillip Mauviel. 
A Victorian Supreme Court of Appeal decision found there were no reasonable grounds for Mauviel to make the representations regarding turnover, resulting in a $1.22 million payout.
This article originally appeared on <a href="https://www.startupsmart.com.au/" target="_blank">StartupSmart</a>.
 
 
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Canadian coffee chain Esquires looks to Australia following NZ success

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Investors who borrow through their self-managed super funds to acquire property continue to breach the rules and risk being reported to the Tax Office, warns Heather Gray, a partner at law firm DLA Piper.
Her warning comes as the ATO revealed in its third-quarter update (to March 31) that it had prosecuted of more than 1,500 people for tax and superannuation offences, sending “a clear warning to tax cheats that they can expect to be caught”. 
Properties acquired by a SMSF <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/finance/clarity-for-smsf-property-investors-as-ato-defines-single-acquirable-asset/2012052454820">using limited-recourse borrowing rules</a> have to be acquired via a separate trustee with a custodian holding the legal title.
“Clients still get this wrong all the time,” said Gray at the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia’s Business Forum 2012.
“They will ring you (their financial advisor) on a Monday morning all excited saying they have found a great property over the weekend for their super fund.
“They will tell you they have signed a contract and want to sit down to discuss how they will structure the investment in their fund,” says Gray.
But, she says, invariably the custodian has not signed the contract.
“In fact the client has not even thought about the custodian; it’s not even a twinkle in their eye as yet.”
“And they have paid the deposit, who knows from where – probably from some random banking account,” Gray says – not from the fund.
Such basic mistakes can result in investors breaching SMSF borrowing rules and being reported to the ATO.
“It is the super fund buying the property and the super fund that must provide the money,” explains Gray.
Furthermore it is the custodian, which holds the legal title, and it must be the one that signs the contract of sale.
Tax Commissioner Michael D'Ascenzo says the March quarter ATO prosecution figures show that there are “significant risks and consequences for people who do not properly fulfil their legal and civic responsibilities in relation to tax and superannuation”.
"The year-to-date results to 31 March reveal that the ATO successfully prosecuted 1,106 individuals and 400 companies for tax and superannuation offences," he says.
“We have a range of measures in place to ensure we detect and deal with those who evade their obligations. This includes information sharing and working with other government agencies, and also with overseas counterparts.
"The ATO pursues tax cheats to the full extent of the law to ensure honest taxpayers have their interests looked after. Australians don't want to face an unfair burden when dishonest people avoid their tax obligations, and they expect the ATO to provide a level playing field,” says D’Ascenzo.
Last week the ATO finalising guidelines for what constitutes a single acquirable asset under limited recourse borrowing rules and clarifying what <a target="_blank" href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/renovating/ato-ruling-specifies-allowable-repairs-and-renovations-for-smsf-property-investors/2012052454821">renovations and repairs are allowed to be carried out on properties</a> acquired through super.
 
 
 
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SMSF investors still making basic mistakes on property purchases as ATO cracks down on super ‘cheats’

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Amid all the recent doom and gloom, major global banks are quietly alerting their clients to prepare for a share market surge, if Greece exits the eurozone.
That's because they believe world authorities will be flooding international markets with massive liquidity.
And given the G8 Communique from Camp David, this may well occur anyway — just to keep Greece within the fold.
Last week, Ken Henry (former treasury secretary) predicted Australia could provide global appeal to investors:
“It's quite possible on this occasion Australia will be seen as offering something of a safe haven for global capital movements.”
And this is already being evidenced by strong demand for Australian bonds — where the yields for 10-year bonds fell to a new post-war low of less than 3.2%, during last week.
But there's some hesitancy.
There still seems to be a general confusion within the economy. And unfortunately, when people are confused, they tend to do nothing. Therein lies the current dilemma for Australia.
Even though our fundamentals are in vastly better shape than 80% of the rest of the world, most consumers are "feeling less wealthy" than they were several years ago.
This is mainly due to house prices having fallen and remained stagnant, as well as the volatility within the share market. Plus there are number of structural changes working their way through the economy.
But overall, employment levels are holding up, and in some areas, business investment is expected to increase by more than 20% this year.
Furthermore, imports should grow by 12% and the terms of trade are expected to improve by about 10% over the coming 12 months. Even Japan has notched up a 4.1% growth for the first quarter, and the US housing market looks as though it may have bottomed.
The latest OECD forecast has Australia growing at 3.1% in 2012 and reaching 3.7% during next year.
Still, pundits are a fearing a slowdown in China, but you really need to keep this in perspective:
<ul>
<li>China's growth has fallen from 9% to 8.1% — which is still remarkably high;</li>
<li>Its economic growth is driven by domestic investment, not exports to Europe; and</li>
<li>Resource-heavy investment into new roads, bridges, airports, officers and apartment blocks is still growing by over 20% per annum.</li>
</ul>
This is what will continue to underpin China's demand for Australian resources.
Bottom line: Taken together, all of this is clearly creating havoc for the forecasters. However, it certainly doesn't justify the level of caution being shown by commercial property investors at present.
Right now, if you do your homework in finding a modern property with a solid tenant on a four- to six-year lease,  you'll be able to snare a well-priced commercial property investment, offering you excellent growth over the next five years.
Chris Lang is an advisor to commercial property investors and gives keynote speeches and regular seminars on the best way to invest in commercial property. He maintains a blog, <a href="https://bitly.com/IFf40C" target="_blank">his-best.biz</a>, which he updates regularly about the best way to get the most out of your commercial property investment.
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The predicted slowdown in China must be kept in perspective

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It’s been a while since we heard about the “top 1%”.  The protests that spread the globe earlier in the year have fallen under the radar in <country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region> – buried deep below the Thompson affair and global “wows”.  However, according to recent reports, if you live in the <country-region><place>United States</place></country-region>, the 1% are busy bulk buying thousands of real estate foreclosures and taking full advantage of what’s becoming – in some states – a very tight rental market.
The once “American dream” that fueled a nation with a similar owner-occupancy rate to that of <country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region> is slowly turning into a rental nation.  It’s no secret that <country-region><place>US</place></country-region> recovery from the financial crisis has been little more than a halfhearted limp.  If owner-occupiers have managed to hold onto their homes, it’s been at a substantial capital loss. Aside from the large number of foreclosures – which according to a recent report in the <a target="_blank" href="https://nyti.ms/LedaiO">New York Times</a> has been in the order of some 4 million since 2007,   potential home owners now find it virtually impossible to access finance.  This, along with the pressures of record high unemployment, has begun to fuel an unparalleled rental boom.
For example, in <city><place>San Francisco</place></city> the vacancy rate has dropped to around 2% compared with 5% in 2009.  Property managers are charging fees simply for placing an <a target="_blank" href="https://bit.ly/LeephV">application</a>, and rents have increased some 13% since last year.  As one report puts it – trying to access rental accommodation has turned into a <a target="_blank" href="https://bit.ly/JESorm">‘competitive sport’</a>, and it’s a similar story in other cities such as <state>New York</state>, <city>Los Angeles</city> and <city><place>Boston</place></city>.
Whether the <country-region>US</country-region> buying market has bottomed out or not is debatable and like <country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region>, it’s impossible to draw broad conclusions because each state suffers its own unique conditions. However, recently <a target="_blank" href="https://read.bi/LekCKw">Gary Anderson</a> reported in Business Insider that the number of bank-owned homes for sale in the most affected market of the <country-region>US</country-region> – <city><place>Las Vegas</place></city> – has fallen from 18,000 to just 1,600 in a remarkably short period of time.  The suggestion mooted by <city><place>Anderson</place></city> is that banks have been marketing these foreclosures for a period of 30 days at a “real” price, after which – if not sold – they are taken off the market and offered in bulk to investors, who enter a bidding war to purchase the homes at “wholesale” prices.  There is no evidence for this in the article and it’s also worth noting that <city><place>Las Vegas</place></city> has recently passed a bill requiring banks to use the more expensive “judicial foreclosure” process, which would add to the reduced figures.  However, there’s plenty of evidence that points towards a massive Wall Street buying spree of foreclosed homes which is creating a huge disparity in the market.
The <country-region>US</country-region> government is moving ahead with a trial project to sell big pools of foreclosed family homes owned by Fannie May, in some of the hardest-hit markets in <country-region><place>America</place></country-region>.  The initiative has created what Reuters report as <a target="_blank" href="https://reut.rs/LeqhQV">a "Wall Street investing craze”</a> and the L A Times suggests “Wall Street hedge funds and private equity firms" are " positioning themselves to snap up foreclosed homes and convert them into rental units”.
Of course, when you have a large number of investors purchasing affordable family homes that are the bread and butter of the owner-occupier market, you not only have speculation potentially inflating prices, you also have more distressed potential home buyers firmly stuck on the rental ladder.  It’s important to emphasise the <country-region><place>US</place></country-region> housing bubble resulted from a sub-prime lending crisis and not from large numbers of cash buyers looking for positive rental returns.  Therefore, it would be unwise to jump to any broad conclusions that this is the start of another potential boom-and-bust “bubble” cycle.  However, the market tipping in favour of investors over owner-occupiers has led to many wondering if the <country-region><place>America</place></country-region> dream has become just that – a dream.   Such is the outcry, some 15,000 realtors recently gathered in <place><city>Washington</city><state>DC</state></place><a target="_blank" href="https://bit.ly/MFJpwk">to protest</a> against the investor-dominated market.  As one realtor on the video states – “we’re here to protect home ownership and the American dream!”
More on pages 2 and 3
 
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Back to Australia, and although we have been fortunate enough to avoid the level of housing stress seen in America, I often wonder if we shouldn’t take time to learn a few valuable lessons in our own defense of the right to home ownership. The right not to be kicked out after a six-month or 12-month tenancy, the right to own a “share” of tangible Australian land, the right not to suffer from rent increases – and the right to feel secure.  The number of first-home buyer commitments nationally fell by 19% in the first three months of this year and is currently sitting some 24% below the five-year moving average.   Outside the east-west divide of those prospering from the mining sector, potential first-home buyers are becoming long-term renters and under current policy decisions I can’t see it improving.
Like <country-region>America</country-region> pre GFC, <country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region> has grown used to its reliance on a booming housing market.  Generous tax incentives such as negative gearing, first-home owner grants, capital gains benefits, borrowing against equity, restrictions on residential development, low interest rates and an insistence on keeping growth and job centers predominantly locked in capital city locations has pushed the cost of metropolitan accommodation to unsustainable extremes.  Household debt to income ratios sit at around 150% and while all the above policies have supported debt fueled growth in the past, it’s time we took steps to discourage our housing market from becoming a long-term investor-dominated paradise.
The drop in interest rates may be welcomed in so much as it eases the burden on the average mortgage holder releasing much-needed disposable cash.  However, lower rates primarily encourage investors to borrow more, leveraging interest-only loans against increasing yields in a very tight established housing market. Other policies such as negative gearing and poor urban planning encourage investors to take advantage of the bread and butter of the first-home buyer market.  Investors aren’t typically buying million-dollar real estate, they’re purchasing inner-city apartments – the “affordable” options, leaving first-home buyers unable to compete.  Investors have the upper hand in our housing market, and it’s assumed the asset will provide above-inflation capital growth, which the above government policy decisions all but guarantee.
A recent OECD Better Life index of 34 member countries looking at “housing, income, jobs, community, education, environment, governance, health, life satisfaction, safety and work-life balance” has voted <country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region> as “the world’s happiest country”.  It shouldn’t come as a shock when you consider the economic climate in the <country-region>USA</country-region> and <place>Europe</place>.  It doesn’t take a “Better Life” index to work out, when comparing <country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region> with nations currently on their knees with double digit unemployment, we’re going to come out top of the pile. Of course, Wayne Swan is having a field day on the news, and who can blame him?  There’s hasn’t been an abundance of good news in the Labor camp of late.  However, neither Wayne Swan nor a “Better Life” survey can hide the fact that in <country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region>, there is a widening gap between the rich and poor.
Last year, the OECD bought out its <a target="_blank" href="https://bit.ly/MFS7e7">Divided We Stand: Why Inequality Keeps Rising</a> report.  It showed that since 2003, <country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region> has jumped some five or six places up the ladder in terms of inequality and currently sits in ninth pace.  Although we fare better than the <country-region><place>US</place></country-region>, since the year 2000 the rich/poor divide has been speedily increasing.  Studies conducted by the ABS have shown the top fifth of households hold some 62%of the country’s total wealth. We now boast the world’s richest woman (Gina Rinehart), whose fortune is estimated to be $29.17 billion.  Never is it more evident that the wealth of the mining boom simply does not trickle down than when you see reports such as <a target="_blank" href="https://bit.ly/MFUOwe">"WA is moving away from the east"</a> and read from the 60,000 jobs created in <country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region> over the last 12 months, some 50,000 of them were mining.  As the article clearly points out, the eastern and western states may be connected physically, but mentally our western state is fast becoming a closer partner to Asia than <city><place>Canberra</place></city>.
The rental market in <city><place>Perth</place></city> speaks volumes.  Vacancy rates are as low as 1.6% and over the past 12 months, the average rent has increased by 10.5%.  Yields are now coming in at 5.5% and expected to get higher. WA is taking a greater share of overseas migration than anywhere else in <country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region>, and the consequential stress on house prices will place pressure on those most vulnerable.  We may have low default rates in <country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region>; however, we can hardly hail it a healthy environment when over 50% of an average family’s income is spent on funding mortgage repayments.
More on page 3
 
<hr class="system-pagebreak">
 
A recent AHURI (Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute) study suggests 43% of mortgage holders are redrawing on their mortgage for “pressing financial needs”.  The report presents a compelling argument that <country-region><place>Australia</place></country-region> is moving into a “housing-based welfare system” with funds heavily invested in the “prospected” safety of bricks and mortar.  Falls in superannuation, a dramatic reduction in business investment, lower capital gains from investments and continual shocks of confidence as Europe threatens to do a Mount Vesuvius-style eruption have led to an over reliance on the mining boom and vain hope that China will continue to need us far into the future.  As long as <country-region>China</country-region> goes the course, we can prop up any prospected surplus and wave around figures that give the notion we’re all enjoying <state><place>Western Australia</place></state>’s increase in wealth.  The true picture is far more dangerous.
Most people don’t go through life looking for extreme riches; however most assume if they’ve worked hard, paid their taxes and invested wisely, they can at least rely on the government to set in place the potential to grow old in relative comfort.  Around 64% of the gross wealth of Australian home owners is locked in their housing.  The expense of housing ensures most of an average family’s income is given over to servicing high mortgage payments and hedging against prospected growth in overall household expenditure – investment elsewhere is therefore compromised.
Through various methods of manipulation, successive governments have done everything they can to inflate house prices and encourage over-investment in what should be viewed primarily as a commodity for shelter rather than a quick road to leveraged riches.  Housing is debt-fuelled and totally reliant on supply of credit and the ability of banks to prop up lending volumes. The mining boom may have protected the wealth of this country – however all “happiness” surveys aside, this wealth is not being distributed across the broader population – “haves and have-nots”.  As a consequence, many of today’s workers will enter retirement still paying off mortgages or servicing high rental fees.
Various studies have shown two thirds of residents under the age of 35 living in Sydney are locked out of home ownership altogether and considering Melbourne’s house prices are only baby steps behind Sydney’s, the stats are likely to be similarly mirrored.  The prospect of growing numbers reaching retirement locked out of home ownership is as frightening as an economy heavily leveraged against a debt-fuelled, rate-sensitive capital model. Our reliance on <country-region>China</country-region>’s continued need for Australian commodities is all but assumed, however various economists such as Satyajit Das have pointed out <a href="https://ind.pn/KVtA40">many</a> times that <country-region><place>China</place></country-region>’s economic picture may not be as sunny as it seems.  Should <place>Europe</place> collapse, the resulting consequences and looming dark clouds could reduce that demand a lot sooner than expected.
As it stands at present, there is nothing to suggest an immediate or quick deflation in house prices – however we should all keep a close eye on Europe fully understanding the consequences any dramatic fallout could have on commodity demand from <country-region><place>China</place></country-region>.  We are short on adequate affordable housing supply around the major job centers where the population is rising and demand for accommodation (buying or renting) is consistent.  However, housing should be a provision first and foremost for owner occupiers and models that encourage broad based investment in the established market (as in the US) need to be scaled back and pushed into increasing supply and infrastructure in newer suburbs in order to boost the supply and feasibility of affordable accommodation.
Options for secure long-term tenancy need to be investigated to provide those unable to purchase adequate affordable and secure shelter into retirement. And we must increase the supply of good quality public and social housing. <state>New South Wales</state> and <state><place>Victoria</place></state>’s decisions to cut back their funding for <a target="_blank" href="https://bit.ly/LpMbAQ">public housing</a> is remarkably short sighted. The powers that be have their heads in debt-fuelled sand. Our banking sector has directly or indirectly invested around 80 per cent in housing. We’ve already seen finance tighten and income stagnating, not to mention the risks of a rising unemployment as small business’s struggle.  The housing crash in <country-region><place>America</place></country-region> – albeit caused by a landscape different to our own – is resulting in similar consequences, by ensuring increasing numbers will enter retirement firmly stuck on the rental ladder.  There will always be those who are unable to purchase, however can we call a system “just” if we’ve manipulated policies that advantage investors over owner-occupiers, potentially locking many out of home ownership all together?
Catherine Cashmore is a market analyst with extensive experience in all aspects relating to property acquisition. She is Channel Ten’s property expert on The <a href="https://ten.com.au/the-circle.htm">Circle</a> and a senior consultant for <a href="https://www.nationalpropertybuyers.com.au/">National Property Buyers</a> servicing the needs of property owners Australia wide.
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Just as the US after the housing crash, Australia is becoming a nation of renters

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Victoria narrowly pipped Tasmania and South Australia with the biggest percentage increase in properties newly listed for rent, according to RP Data. Victoria also has the highest number of listings of any state, with its 27,193 total listings some 8% higher than in May last year. Some 60% of Victoria's current rental listings are newly advertised. The 14, 553 fresh listings are well up on the same month last year, when there were 10,199 fresh listing.
For increases in new rental listings,Victoria was closely followed by Tasmania and South Australia, up 40% from 773 to 1,081 and 39% from 2,585 to 3,597 respectively.
Across Australia new rental listings for the month ending May 20 have increased 26% from 38,910 last year to 49,020.
Total listings Australia-wide were down 10% from 93,499 in May last year to 83,942 this May. New listings represent 58% of total listings in Australia.
Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania were the only states where total rental listings increased over the year.
For total listings the Northern Territory has experienced the biggest decline over the year. Total rental listings in the territory dropped 33% from 1,139 last year to 765 for the month ending May 20.
Total listings in WA decreased 21% over the year but new listings now represent 66% of total advertised properties.
"Total rental listings are now at their highest level in eight weeks," the report says.
"Although rental listings have risen, they are currently 10.2% lower than at the same time last year nationally and 6.2% lower across the combined capital cities.
"Across individual capital cities, rental listings are lower than at the same time last year in: Sydney (-8.5%), Brisbane(-23.3%), Perth (-22.7%), Darwin (-40.4%) and Canberra (-5.8%). On the other hand, rental listings are higher than a year ago in: Melbourne (7.7%), Adelaide (9.4%) and Hobart (19.2%)"
 
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Victorian rental listings increased 43% in past year, with Tasmania a close second: RP Data

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Approximately 99.7% of the earth’s people believe Australia is the strongest, wealthiest, most fortunate nation on the planet. The 0.3% who do not believe it are all Australians.
A lengthening list of authorities – including the OECD, the IMF and sundry consultancies that conduct surveys and write economic reports – all conclude that we are indeed the lucky country. We rank at or near the top for economic prosperity, standard of living and personal wealth.
That’s how it looks from the outside looking in. But Australians refuse to accept it.
We’re a boom nation with a recession mentality.
How did we get to be so pessimistic amid so many reasons be bullish? How did a nation that embodies confidence and success in so many spheres – notably in sport and in entertainment – manage to develop such a massive dose of the sulks?
Here’s a plausible explanation, one that speaks directly to the real estate industry.
We are infested with politicians, industry associations and business leaders who seem determined to talk us into a recession.
We have a federal government that has recently devoted more energy to internal fighting than to running the country. We have a federal opposition that appears unable to challenge the government without talking down the nation. We have state governments handing down austerity budgets at a time of economic prosperity. We have mining giants that use threats and scare campaigns as standard negotiating tools. We have business organisations that talk down their own industries to pressure governments. We have economists and others who peddle negativity to get media attention. And we a media immersed in an orgy of pessimism.
There is no greater example of the problem that the housing sector. This is the industry that has shot itself in both feet and is now pointing the gun at its head.
If insanity is defined as repeating the same mistakes while expecting different outcomes, then the Housing Industry Association is the craziest bunch in the nuthouse.
For years the HIA has been trying to extract concessions from government by pumping out “crisis” media statements on an almost-daily basis. We have an affordability crisis, a housing shortage crisis, a red tape crisis, a taxation crisis – the HIA has talked down its own industry day after day. Even positive data has been twisted into a tale of pessimism.
Australians are out there buying homes and investment properties again – and markets are rising. But they’re not building new homes, they’re buying existing ones. Why would anyone want to build when the HIA keeps telling them the industry is stuffed and their products are too expensive?
The negativity tactic has been running with increasing stridency for years. And it hasn’t achieved a single significant concession from any level of government.
So what’s the HIA’s response to this stark failure of its policy? Go even harder with the same strategy!
Now they’re saying the residential building industry is descending into recession. “New home building has collapsed,” says managing director Shane Goodwin. “We’re on the brink of recession … the worst conditions in decades.”
The only thing that’s collapsed is common sense and sound judgment at the HIA.
They should be selling the benefits of building new homes. They should be highlighting the areas in Australia where the economy is strong and business is good.
There are many such places. I get around the country a bit, and I’ve recently visited plenty where business is brisk for builders – including Gladstone in Queensland, the Hunter Valley in NSW, Whyalla in South Australia, Ballarat in Victoria and Toowoomba in Queensland.
The number of building approvals in Toowoomba, which benefits from its proximity to the Surat Basin resources province, rose 59% in the March quarter. Townsville, Rockhampton, Mackay and Gladstone have all seen building approvals double in the past year.
There are good news stories out there, if the industry only had the wit to tell them.
Builders won’t thrive until they start recognising themselves as part of the problem and stop blaming government for everything.
Terry Ryder is the founder of <a href="https://www.hotspotting.com.au/" target="_blank">hotspotting.com.au</a> and can be <a href="https://www.twitter.com/hotspotting" target="_blank">followed on Twitter</a>.
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terryryder-YECXbqmri2

The Australian property industry has shot itself in both feet and is aiming the gun at its head: Terry Ryder

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There is less than a month to go until five state home owners’ grants and one state stamp duty concession come to an end.
<img src="/images/stories/june302012.gif">
Victoria
On June 30 Victoria will end two bonus schemes aimed at first-home buyers – the $13,000 first-home bonus, which has run for three years, and the $6,500 regional bonus, which has run for two years.
These schemes will not be replaced.
Instead the government will increase existing stamp duty concessions for first-home buyers, as announced in the Victorian state budget.
From January 1, 2013 the <a href="https://www.sro.vic.gov.au/sro/sronav.nsf/LinkView/C88211C9E07486F0CA2578B70001025018E490D796850F8ECA2575C1008187C7">existing 20% stamp duty discount first-home buyers spending less than $600,000 on a house purchase will be increased to 30%.</a>
The stamp duty discount will rise to 40% on January 1 2014 and to 50% on September 1 2014.
To qualify for the stamp duty discount, first-home buyers must also qualify for the federal $7,000 first-home owners’ grant.
ACT
In the ACT, the <a href="https://www.revenue.act.gov.au/home_buyer_assistance/home_buyer_duty_concession/1_January_2012_-_30_June_2012">home buyer concession scheme (HBCS)</a> will end on June 30. The scheme provides stamp duty concessions on homes worth up to $470,000 and vacant land up to $260,000 and to qualify applicants must satisfy a combined income test for one year prior to the date of the grant starting from $120,000 for applicants with no children and up to $136,650 for applicants with five or more children.
No new schemes were introduced in the May 2011-12 ACT budget.
 
NSW 
The <a href="https://www.homebuyer.nsw.gov.au/newhomes.php">NSW government's home builders bonus</a>, which provides full exemption on stamp duty for new homes where the value does not exceed $600,000 and also applies to vacant land up to $400,000, will end on June 30. The scheme is available to everyone, including investors, who purchase a new house or apartment. For homes already under construction, a partial stamp duty reduction of 25% is available up until June 30.
The NSW state budget was handed down on June 12 <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/tax/nsw-doubles-its-first-home-grant-for-new-homes/2012061255075">wit</a><a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/tax/nsw-doubles-its-first-home-grant-for-new-homes/2012061255075">h changes announced affecting investors and first-home-buyers from July 1 and October 1</a>. The changes create a<a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/landlords/nsw-property-investors-condundrum-take-the-%2422490-housing-bonus-now-or-just-%245000-after-july-1/2012061255081"> conundrum for property investors.</a>
South Australia
The <a href="https://www.revenuesa.sa.gov.au/fhog/bonus8000">first-home bonus grant of up to $8,000</a> available to first-home buyers who qualify for the federal $7,000 first-home owner grant will be abolished from July 1, 2013. The first-home owners’ grant is not being phased out.
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Time running out for first-home bonuses and stamp duty concessions

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Rental yields have been increasing across most of Australia over the past 12 months and are better option than holding cash or government bonds, according to Janusz Hooker, executive chairman of real estate group LJ Hooker. 
Rising yields, he says, are being driven by softening property prices and increasing rents due to relatively low vacancy rates nationwide. 
“Given the forecast supply of rental stock and forecast demand for rental stock, rents look set to continue their five-year historical average growth of 5.8% per annum for apartments and 5.4% per annum for homes,” he says. 
“At present average gross yields for apartments in Australia are 5.2% (around 4.2% net of expenses) and for homes 4.5% (around 3.5% net of expenses). 
“If you look at real estate as a long-term asset class to hold, these yields are becoming increasingly attractive compared to cash and government bonds – not to mention the appreciation of the property asset,” Hooker says. 
“Typically more affordable housing has a higher yield. 
“Also property yields are often higher outside of the major metropolitan areas.” 
Hooker says the highest yields at present in Australia are in the mining boom towns in the Pilbara and central Queensland, where double-digit yields are achievable on rental properties.
 
 
 
 
 
 
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