Property research can be daunting, especially for first-timers, but two property gurus and self-proclaimed data nerds lay the groundwork for smart investing. The co-founders of The Property Nerds, Arjun Paliwal and Kent Lardner, recently released a 154-page Australia’s Top 20 Investing Regions for 2021 report, using data to track down the best-performing markets in the country. In terms of methodology, the duo explained their processes of data shifting on a recent episode of The Smart Property Investment Show. “We had to sit back and thought, ‘There”s regions I like, there’s regions Kent likes and then there’s regions where we think others may like. This made it pretty hard to begin with,” according to Mr Paliwal. “But then we came back and thought about it and said, ‘What do investors really want? They want good capital growth in an area with relatively low incoming risk, combined with a property that gives them a […]

Propertylogy’s head of research, Simon Pressley, believes that a simple yet structured process, as well as forward planning, could ultimately allow investors to maximise returns from their rental properties. He provided eight tips that landlords (and their property managers) can follow to garner greater returns: 1. Be the captain Mr Pressley encouraged landlords to take an active role in the leasing process – working alongside their property manager instead of simply being dependent on their services. He advised them to make sure that they have all the necessary information to be able to make smart decisions about their investment, particularly regarding rental incomes and lease renewals. 2. Begin lease renewal early According to the researcher, the lease renewal process should begin three months before a lease expires to avoid extended vacancy. Within those months, the landlord should be able to establish whether the tenant will stay or go. Ultimately, documentations should […]

Vendor satisfaction has risen to an all-time high, sparking new expectations that a significant rise in the number of properties available for sale is set to occur. RateMyAgent’s latest Price Expectation Report, which surveyed more than 51,500 Australians who sold a home between October and December, showed 51 per cent of sellers achieved the price they were looking for – up from 47 per cent at the same time in 2019. Preliminary data for the first three months of 2021 shows vendor happiness has risen to 56 per cent, RateMyAgent said, which would be the highest overall satisfaction rate reported in the survey’s history. Regional areas recorded slightly higher levels of satisfaction than major cities in the final quarter of 2020, at 52 per cent, compared to 50 per cent. In Victoria’s Mallee region, a whopping 70 per cent of vendors reported they were satisfied with their sales price, an indication […]

Australia’s housing market finished the year on a strong footing with CoreLogic’s national home value index rising a further 1.0% in December; the third consecutive month-on-month rise following a -2.1% drop in dwelling values between April and September.  Australian home values finished the year 3.0% higher with regional housing values rising by 6.9%, a rate of capital gain that was more than three times higher than the combined capitals, where home values were up 2.0% over the year. CoreLogic’s research director, Tim Lawless, said the year was characterised by a mild COVID dip in values, but unprecedented volatility in the transaction space. “The number of residential property sales plummeted by -40% through March and April but finished the year with almost 8% more sales relative to a year ago as buyer numbers surged through the second half of the year. Despite the volatility, housing values showed remarkable resilience, falling by […]

NEW LAW GIVES CONSUMERS ANOTHER REASON TO USE BROKERS Great news for anyone planning to take out a home loan – new legislation means consumers are even better protected when they use a mortgage broker. The Best Interests Duty, which took effect on 1 January 2021, legally obliges brokers to act in the best interests of their clients. This new law is on top of the National Consumer Credit Protection Act, which already regulates the conduct of brokers. Brokers must “prioritise their consumers’ interests” if there’s ever a conflict of interests, according to the legislation. But while brokers have to follow the Best Interests Duty – banks do not. A broker must give their client the best possible recommendation from all the lenders on that broker’s panel. However, a bank will recommend only its own products, even if there are better alternatives. Brokers act in your best interests when recommending a home […]

An unexpected call to say there’s a problem with your computer should set the alarm bells ringing. You answer the phone, and the caller says they’re from a well-known company like Telstra, the NBN or Microsoft. They need access to your computer to fix a problem. Sounds normal right? Except you weren’t aware of any issues. No matter, just hand over your credit card details, let the caller access your computer remotely, and all will be sorted. That’s the scenario behind remote access or ‘technical support’ scams. But far from cleaning up your laptop, what the caller is really interested in is cleaning out your bank accounts. $5 million lost to remote access scams in 2019 The criminals behind these scams often sound convincing, using tech talk or quoting legit-sounding employee numbers. But they’re a slippery bunch, and they’re after a lot more than a few bucks fleeced from your […]