HTW Month in Review - March 2011

The HTW Month in Review for March 2011 has the following advice:

"In Brisbane it means check your pricepoints, shore up your rental base and see if you can value add. One sector that achieves all three is near city second hand units. These little treasure chests are normally in a three storey walk up design with a couple of bedrooms and a garage or two. This is all within an easy stroll of the really desirable stuff like shops and restaurants. Think Paddington, Auchenflower, Ascot, New Farm, West End and so on. In fact, draw a line around the CBD at about the 5km mark and start hunting. If you can feed off demand from a nearby university or hospital, all the better. If you can also get close to the café centres then you’re on a winner. It is still possible to land yourself in one of these gems for sub $400,000 and it’s amazing what a lick of paint and some new carpets can do for such little cost. If your dollar is a bit tighter try the same sector further out but close to shops and transport. All in all these units give you plenty of long term upside with capital growth and rental return pretty much a sure thing."

"And now, the caveat. We are witnessing a few eager beavers leaping onto flood affected property in the hopes of landing a bargain. We at Herron Todd White Brisbane have been considering discount rates of approximately 10% to 20% for the new wetlands but it must be remembered that there is now a whole heap of potential purchasers who will take years (if ever) to come back to flood effected property. If the 1974 example is set to repeat, there may need to be a generational change in buyers before the market returns to former glories relative to the non flood bricks and mortar. Make your investment a wise one when you start to consider the long term grow."

Gold Coast:

"Prudent buyers are seeking out prime beachside locations and purchasing both units and dwellings at prices up to 50% discount from there peak in late 2007.

The ‘Buyers Market’ which has been created by and oversupply properties has seen a steady decline in value levels throughout late 2010 and into 2011 with Iocal agents reporting buyers are willing to purchase if they feel a large enough discount has been given. This is very evident with local agents advising cash contracts being offered at open homes which are not subject to finance."