THE RECENT BUSHFIRES HAVE WREAKED HAVOC ON LOCAL COMMUNITIES, DESTROYING PROPERTY AND LEAVING RESIDENTS TO RETURN TO THEIR HOMES WITH THE SCARRED LANDSCAPE A LONG TERM REMINDER; AND THEY ARE THE LUCKY ONES. We had four bushfire evacuees, and their cats, live with us during the Mundaring fires. Their trauma during those first days when […]
RECENT ABS DATA CONFIRMED WHAT MANY WESTERN AUSTRALIAN’S SUSPECTED, THAT BUILDING A HOUSE IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA TAKES LONGER THAN ANYWHERE ELSE IN AUSTRALIA. The ABS analysed average dwelling completion times around Australia and found that Western Australia experienced the highest average completion times for new houses, while Queensland and Northern Territory experienced the lowest. Average […]
2013 WAS THE MOST ACTIVE YEAR FOR FIRST HOME BUYERS IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA SINCE THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT’S TEMPORARY GRANT BOOST ENDED IN 2009. The number of First Home Owner Grants (FHOG) paid in Western Australia increased 19 per cent (to 20,441) in 2013, following the 28 per cent increase in 2012. “Declining interest rates and […]
BEFORE WE CAN UNDERSTAND HOW THE PERTH MARKET IS LIKELY TO BEHAVE IN 2014, LET’S FIRST TAKE A LOOK BACK AT DEVELOPMENTS OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS. Throughout most of 2011, dwelling sales were crawling along at their lowest levels in over a decade. As of October 2011, dwelling sales were 28 per cent […]
IF WE ARE TO ADDRESS HOUSING AFFORDABILITY WE NEED TO REALLY UNDERSTAND COMMUNITY EXPECTATIONS. With Christmas just around the corner people are looking to those less fortunate than themselves. Last week the Senate Economic Reference Committee announced an enquiry into Affordable Housing. Over the last decade we have seen reviews at both the State and […]
THE DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING UNDERTOOK A REVIEW OF DEVELOPMENT ASSESSMENT PANELS RECENTLY AND FEEDBACK WAS MIXED. Development Assessment Panels (DAPs) were introduced into Western Australia in 2011 with the objective of increasing transparency, consistency and reliability in decision making on complex development applications. Controversial at the time, the panels included representatives from local government as […]
URBAN DEVELOPMENT INDUSTRY PROFESSIONALS EXPERIENCED A STRONG LIFT IN WORKLOADS OVER THE LAST SIX MONTHS AND MANY EXPECT CONDITIONS TO STRENGTHEN FURTHER OVER SUMMER, ACCORDING TO THE LATEST INDUSTRY PREDICTIONS SURVEY. Sales activity and general confidence in buying new dwellings has improved substantially over the last two years in Western Australia, with the industry experiencing […]
WHERE WE LIVE AND WORK HAS IMPORTANT IMPLICATIONS ON OUR LIVES, BUT FOR THE MAJORITY OF PERTH’S RESIDENTS PROXIMITY TO THE CBD IS NOT A DECIDING FACTOR IN WHERE WE LIVE. We go to a real estate website and the first question we are asked is location. We have several options but we also have […]
UDIA RECENTLY RELEASED OUR “URBAN DEVELOPMENT INDEX” WHICH IS A SURVEY OF OVER EIGHTY DEVELOPMENTS. THE SURVEY COVERS AN ENORMOUS VARIETY OF INFORMATION BUT THE DATA THAT EVERYBODY LOOKS TO FIRST IS WHETHER THERE WILL BE ENOUGH LOTS FOR SALE OVER THE NEXT FEW MONTHS. The simple answer is yes, the industry is continuing to […]