Showing posts with label newman. Show all posts
Showing posts with label newman. Show all posts

Friday, June 14, 2013

Leaving Brisbane

Many young adults live in apartments in Brisbane.  But many want to leave.  Brisbane is expensive, and is not yet a first tier city.  I like Campbell Newman's new motto for Brisbane that sums things up:  "Brisbane -- It could be worse!"  As recently reported in England:

"But the Queensland capital’s younger residents are voting with their feet, seemingly unconvinced it is worthy of global renown."  See The Guardian

Saturday, October 6, 2012

Protest over Lot Entitlements Change

GOLD Coast association Voice of Unit Battlers is marshalling its troops to ensure the Newman Government hears the concerns of unit-owners about its community-title Bill.
President Philip Williams said the Bill "has the potential to make small units almost worthless" and their owners needed to make a stand.The organisation last week staged meetings at the Pinnacle and Q1 towers to encourage unit-owners to make submissions on the Bill to parliament's legal affairs committee.
See Article and Prior Post

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Changes to Lot Entitlements, Again

The Campbell Newman Queensland Government has decided to change the lot entitlement laws, yet again.  This adds more uncertainty for apartment owners and people intending to buy apartments.  It also enables a body corporate to reverse any recent changes made to their lot entitlements under the prior law.  So some apartment buildings will end up having 4 lot entitlement schemes within 4 years.  As a direct result of these changes, some apartment owners will have their body corporate levies increased, and a minority of apartment owners will have their body corporate levies significantly decreased.

The Newman Government is clearly favouring rich penthouse owners over those owning the less desirable apartments in a building.  These changes will create further disharmony in some apartment buildings.

Before buying an apartment in Queensland, you should make sure you fully understand the implications of these changes.

Details see:  SSKB newsletter   (Story about old law that has now been repealed is here.)

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Newman State Budget

  • An increase in stamp duty: Increase in the transfer duty threshold from $980,000 to $1 million; rate to increase to a whopping 5.75 per cent.
  • FHOCG:  For first home owner buyers who buy a new or off-the-plan apartment or house in limited circumstances.  Terry Ryder thinks it is a bad idea.  Will it just add $15,000 to the price of  new properties?  It is just another payback to developers who supported Newman, including the apartment developer who is Newman's father-in-law.  Why is the government trying to encourage young people to buy overpriced new apartments?

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

West End High Rise

The State Government has allowed 12 storey apartment buildings to be built in West End, against local community interests, and as a reward for loyal property developers.

"The Newman government has cleared the way for 12-storey buildings in the part of West End opposite Toowong by ticking off on changes to the local plan.  Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney yesterday confirmed he had approved the reinstatement of parts of a Brisbane City Council plan that had been blocked by the former Bligh government."  See Brisbane Times

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Prediction: Market to Keep Falling in Brisbane

My prediction for the next four months -- the Brisbane property market will continue to decline.  My reasons - (a) There is much uncertainty as to what new taxes and increased taxes Newman will hit property owners with.  We will not know until September.  (b) There will be many Queensland government employees and contractors who will suddenly become unemployed.  This has started to happen, and they are selling their investment properties in distressed situations, and few government workers are buying investments at present due to the uncertainty.  It is uncertain whether foreign buyers will be less interested due to the doubling of capital gains tax for non-residents.  I am seeing many Brisbane apartments being sold for 10% below recent sales price.  Gloomy times ahead.

Friday, June 15, 2012

Newman Targets Property Owners for Tax Increases


Any further financial imposts on property investors is likely to see them pull up stumps and sell their rental properties, according to the Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ).

The release of today’s audit on the Queensland Government’s finances shows property owners, and investors in particular, have once again been earmarked to financially salvage the State’s fiscal woes.  The audit has outlined potential revenue-raising measures including: imposing a $100 levy on all property owners; reducing or removing the concession on land tax; applying a premium transfer duty rate; and increasing the landholder acquisition duty rate.

Acting REIQ CEO Antonia Mercorella said property owners were sick and tired of having to bail out the government.  ‘‘Property owners - and investors specifically - seem to forever be targeted by all levels of government when they are short of cash, whether it is through higher council rates, one-off levies or higher rates of stamp duty,’’ she said.  ‘‘The additional legislative and compliance obligations on property investors over recent years, coupled with weaker returns on investment, has resulted in many opting to sell their rental properties.’’

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data shows the number of investors active in the Queensland property market has halved in the last five years.  Ms Mercorella said this number was likely to decline even further if investors were slugged with additional costs.
“We are currently starting to see the impact of this reduced investor activity with vacancy rates tightening and rents increasing across the State. If more investors left the rental market, then this situation would undoubtedly worsen,” she said.  “If land tax thresholds are reduced or removed, the added costs would put an end to the glimmers of renewed investor activity we have seen in recent months and would also likely be passed onto tenants via increased rents.  Also the unit and townhouse market in particular is yet to see investors return significantly with the additional costs associated with this type of housing deterring investors.”

Newman was unfriendly to property owners as Mayor of Brisbane -- he substantially increased rates for apartment owners, and did nothing to reduce spending by Council or the number of council administration workers.

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Campbell Newman and Apartments

Campbell Newman, when at Brisbane City Council, introduced the "parity factor", in relation to rates paid to the Council by Brisbane apartment owners.  Until this time, all rates in Brisbane were calculated based on the unimproved value of the land (regardless of the house or buildings on the land).  Under the "parity factor", apartment owners are now assessed taxes at a high rate than house owners.  In effect, house owners are taxed based on the unimproved value of the land, but for apartment owners, the tax takes into account the improvements on the land.  This doubled or tripled the rates for a number of apartment owners.

For houses, if I build a $2 million house on land worth $400,000, and you build a $250,000 house on the block of land next door also worth $400,000, we both pay the same rates in Brisbane.  But if you build an apartment building with 8 one-bedroom apartments, then the rates over all for those apartments will be higher than for the $2 million house.

I guess Campbell Newman will be looking at ways to increase taxes if he becomes Premier, and I doubt that he will be friendly to apartment owners.