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While the states grapple with containment of new coronavirus outbreaks, the property sector soldiers on: Here are the biggest property stories from this week.
Welcome to REB’s weekly round-up of the headline stories and news that’s important not only for the real estate sector, but also for the state of property in Australia more broadly.
To compile this list, not only are we taking a look at the week’s most read stories and the news that matters to you, but we are also curating it to include stories from our sister brands that could have an impact on the Australian property landscape.
1. 13 unlicensed advice warnings issued to agents
The corporate regulator has followed up on 124 reports of real estate agents who had advised tenants to apply for early release of super to pay their rent. It said it was forced to take action on 13 occasions by issuing warnings.
According to ASIC executive director for assessment and intelligence Warren Day, “the conduct isn’t continuing, and we’ve seen a huge amount of walk back from real estate agents”.
2. Sydney’s Hills to be serviced by new merged entity
Laing+Simmons Bella Vista | Glenwood will merge the former Laing+Simmons Bella Vista with a local Glenwood real estate business, with Sam Dalby and Tony Garay at the helm.
3. How are real estate agents coping with the crisis?
The mental health outlook of real estate agents has improved since the first few weeks of the pandemic, according to the latest findings from a MyBusiness/Momentum Intelligence survey.
Four in 10 real estate agents reported their mental health state as “very good” while 36 per cent considered their mental health to be “good”. Just 4 per cent considered their mental health to currently be “poor”, compared to 20 per cent at the beginning of the crisis.
4. Belle Property confirms latest expansion
Belle Property has bolstered its offering with a new office in Braidwood, NSW, to be headed up by experienced agent and principal Kelly Allen.
It will focus on rural and residential sales and marketing and “will be opening with a close-knit team with Kelly at the helm, alongside business manager Tim Allen and an assistant agent”.
5. FHB demand soars, bucks credit trend
Aussie Home Loans has reported that home loan inquiries from first home buyers surged over the month of June, up by 219 per cent from the previous corresponding period.
This is despite a sharp drop-off in demand for housing credit across the broader market, with the latest data from the ABS revealing that the value of home loan approvals plunged by 11.6 per cent (seasonally adjusted terms) to $16.4 billion in May — the largest fall in the history of the series.
Jamie McPhee, CEO of ME Bank, has resigned after being at the bank for more than a decade.
Earlier this year, the bank came under fire for its handling of a change to its redraw policy which saw it reduce the amount borrowers could redraw from specific legacy mortgage products without forewarning customers.
7. The property ‘cliff’: Will property prices fall from September?
The question on everyone’s lips is, “Will house prices fall?”, writes Aaron Christie-David.
The best advice at this stage is to not panic and watch the market closely. Should you decide to buy, undertake extensive research into the area and type of property, talk to your mortgage broker about what you can afford and run various scenarios to assess how that decision will affect you in the short, mid and long term.
8. ‘Recipe for disaster’ brewing for Sydney landlords
Sydney vacancies are now sitting at 4.5 per cent — 0.4 of a percentage point higher than vacancy rates in May and 1.5 per cent higher than what was posted in March.
According to REINSW CEO Tim McKibbin, “Sydney’s inner ring experienced the most significant change, rising by 0.8 [of a percentage point] to 5.8 per cent. Last month, vacancies in the inner ring hit an 18-year high at 5.1 per cent, a result that has been exceeded this month. Looking back at more than 20 years of survey results, we’ve not seen vacancy rates this high. It really is staggering.”
9. 5 ways to use COVID-19 to your property buying advantage
With the recent revelation that Millennials believe the COVID-19 crisis has made their goals of property ownership more likely to be realised, there are a number of ways would-be buyers can take advantage of the less-than-ideal pandemic.
10. RE/MAX Brisbane offices combine
Two RE/MAX offices based in Brisbane, Queensland, have united this month, falling under one single ownership.
The move comes as a result of the sale of RE/MAX Profile Real Estate at Bardon by Grant and Christina Penrose to Adam and Roxanne Workman.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Grace Ormsby
Grace is a journalist across Momentum property and investment brands. Grace joined Momentum Media in 2018, bringing with her a Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Communication (Journalism) from the University of Newcastle. She’s passionate about delivering easy to digest information and content relevant to her key audiences and stakeholders.
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