Values Fall!

From an RP Data Press Release today:

Dwelling values record first month-on-month fall since May 2013 

For the first time in 12 months, dwelling values across Australia’s capital cities showed a monthly fall by dropping 1.9 per cent in May.  Across most of the individual capital cities, dwelling values were also down over the month, led by Melbourne with a -3.6 per cent reduction in values. Over the past three months capital city dwelling values are up 0.7 per cent, the lowest rolling quarterly rate of dwelling value appreciation since the three months ending June 2013.

Over the growth cycle to date, which commenced in June 2012, capital city dwelling values are up 13.9 per cent. According to Mr Lawless, the surge in values has largely been driven by strong market conditions in Sydney (+21.1 per cent). 

“The month-on-month fall in capital city dwelling values is likely due in part to seasonal phenomenon, but may also be indicative of a broader trend towards cooler housing market conditions.   Historically, housing market conditions have softened in April and May as the market rebalances from what is typically a seasonally strong first quarter and also as a results of cooler climatic conditions during the autumn and winter months. Outside of the seasonality, we have been seeing signs that the housing market is at or approaching the peak of the growth cycle.  The rolling quarterly rate of growth peaked in August last year and we have been seeing weaker auction clearance rates since late February when the capital city clearance rate hit 76 per cent,” Mr Lawless said. 

By way of its cycle, Australia’s housing market has shown that a growth phase usually lasts around two years. Mr Lawless said that with affordability becoming more challenging and rental yields substantially compressed across Australia’s two largest cities, we wouldn’t be surprised if the growth trend moderated further over the year. 

A recent deterioration in consumer confidence reported in the Westpac/Melbourne Institute Consumer Sentiment Index shows that this factor may also be playing a role in the winding down of housing market conditions. 

According to the Index, consumer sentiment recently peaked in September last year and has since declined by 16.0 per cent. The May consumer sentiment results showed a significant fall away which can be attributed to the announcements made in the recent Federal Government Budget announcement.

Current investor risk is very much concentrated within the Sydney and Melbourne markets where investor activity has been the most concentrated,” Mr Lawless said. 

www.rpdata.com/indices 

The May RP Data - Rismark home value index results out today confirmed a fall in capital city dwelling values by 1.9% over the month which, according to RP Data research director Tim Lawless, can likely be attributed to both seasonality and more moderate housing market conditions. 

Brisbane apartment prices (to 31 May 2014):

May 2014 - down 1.2%

Quarter - down 0.1%

Year to Date - up 1%
Year on Year - up 3.4%
Median price based on settled sales of Brisbane apartments over the quarter - $385,000

Half A Million

Thank you to readers and contributors.  This blog has just passed 500,000 page views.  And that does not include page views from the predecessor blog.  Thank you!

Skyring Gasworks Newstead

Tom Dooley (TDD) is launching their Skyring development at the Gasworks site in Newstead (30 Festival Place).  This area is a popular development area at present, with FKP, Devine, Mirvac and Metro all with off-the-plan and completed developments in this area.

The development has 23 floors, with 11 apartments per floor.

TTD is has a chart on their website, representing what rents they believe will be achievable.  Some examples from the 10th floor:

• Two bedrooms - 82 sqm internal, 20 sqm balcony - $660 per week.
• Two bedrooms - 69 sqm internal, 18 sqm balcony - $590 per week.
• Two bedrooms - 105 sqm internal, 30 sqm balcony - $810 per week.
• One bedroom - 60 sqm internal, 17 sqm balcony - $525 per week.

Place Apartment Report

Place has published their "Current Market Report - Inner Brisbane Apartments - March Quarter 2014".  Link is here.

The report focuses on new, off-the-plan apartment developments, and is worth reading.  Many people say that there soon will be an oversupply of apartments in Brisbane.  At present, it is taking longer to rent out apartments, so maybe the glut is already here.  Maybe there will be an oversupply of smaller rental apartments and an undersupply of apartments for owner-occupiers?

Some highlights from the report:

• The three months to March 2014 recorded 639 unconditional sales. Although this is not to the same level of transactions as the record breaking December Quarter prior, this is still almost twice the 10 year average of 326 unconditional sales per quarter.
• A weighted average of $710,524 was recorded during the March 2014 quarter. This is a figure 30% above the December period previously and representative of a higher level of owner occupier sales recorded in Inner Brisbane as opposed to any genuine price growth.
• The increase in local buyers has seen 52% of transactions recorded as two bedroom configurations.
• Despite this weighted average price rise, the 12 month rolling average price remains under $600,000, reflecting an overall longer term demand for affordable inner city apartments.
• One bedroom sales represented a further 40% of the quarter’s transactions, again the bulk of which transacted within the $350,000 and $450,000 price point.
• The distribution by price point was more evenly spread through the first quarter of 2014. The $350,000 to $450,000 price point still however retained the market share with 26% of the quarter’s sales.
• There were 1,225 apartments remaining for sale in Inner Brisbane at the end of the March 2014 quarter – The lowest level in 4 years.
• Overall, two bedroom apartments maintain the majority of current supply within Brisbane equating to 58% of the apartments remaining on the market. One bedroom apartments total only 29% of the available apartments for sale, and 3 beds represent only 9%.
• There were six new projects which recorded unconditional sales during the March 2014 quarter. These included Abian (CBD), Proximity (Hamilton), 38 High Street (Toowong).
• The best performing projects in Brisbane during the quarter were Abian (108 transactions), Broadway on Anne (58 transactions), Southpoint (46 transactions), Proximity (45 transactions), and 38 High Street (44 transactions).

Admiralty Towers One

From a recent Ray White report by Colin Walsh:

"Admiralty Towers 1 continues to be one of the Brisbane CBD's most sought after resident apartment buildings with the recent complex improvements adding a fresh appeal.  Seven sales were recorded in 2013 with prices on the incline.  For the first time in a couple of years, there are two D Type apartments sold for $880,000 and $900,000.  This illustrates that buyers are sawing new opportunities in the complex and are prepared to meet seller's demands."

The D Type apartments are two bedroom, two bathroom apartments, and are over 130 sqm in size.  Apartment 44 is a D Type, and went to auction recently but did not sell at auction, and is now listed for sale for "over $825,000".  This looks like a great deal.  This apartment is one of the best two bedroom apartments available in Brisbane.

Admiralty Towers 1 is direct riverfront, located at 35 Howard Street.

Lazy Agents

I always find it surprising that some agents work really hard, and others just fumble around.  I have been in the market to buy recently, and it is amazing how many agents just don't return calls or emails, and don't follow up.  I feel sorry for their sellers.

Small Apartments

In today's AFR (Australian Financial Review), there is an article titled "Size rules could hurt apartment market".  The article states:

• Property investors are being warned that banks may not finance "popular micro apartments" currently being built.
• Cookie-cutter apartments that are less than 50sqm in size are not cutting it with lenders.
• Apartments between 40 and 50 sqm are being marketed as accommodation suitable for foreign students.
• There is a disagreement between developers and surveyors about how to determine an apartment size (measured from the outside wall or the inside wall).  Developers usually measure from the outside wall.

Keep in mind that a typical hotel room (bed and bathroom, no kitchen) is about 33 sqm.  A bedroom is about 12 sqm.  Older apartments are often in better locations and are larger than some of the newer apartments being marketed in Brisbane.  Over time, a typical two bedroom apartment in Brisbane has decreased in size from 132 sqm, to 116 sqm, to 110 sqm, to 95 sqm, to 85 sqm and now 75 sqm.

Two Tier Property Market in Brisbane?

Is there are two tier market in Brisbane for apartments?  Are Brisbane owners, investors and renters looking for one kind of apartment, but developers are building another kind of apartment for foreign investors?  Some commentators have said that there will be an oversupply of apartments in Brisbane. For a certain kind of apartment, that may be correct.  But for what Brisbanites want, there may be an undersupply.

Take Bowen Hills for example.  It is close to the city, but has very few local amenities.  It was a light industrial area, and with highways cutting through it.  It is not inner city, and too far to walk to downtown or the Valley.  There are no parks or restaurants or river views.  There are number of large apartment buildings being constructed in that area, with small one and two bed apartments.  A lot of the sales and marketing is targeted at foreign investors, particularly the Chinese.  But do locals want to live in these apartments?  They are very small, and the buildings are very dense.  There are very few owner occupiers in these buildings.

Some examples are Madison Heights (286 apartments) and Chelsea (195 apartments).  It appears that it is taking a long time to rent out or re-rent the apartments in these buildings.  Rents are being reduced, for example, to $485 for a two bedroom apartment.  I suspect that the rental market is saying that, for the location and facilities, you can do much better elsewhere, so the apartments are renting only if rents are very competitive.

On the other hand, river front apartments in Brisbane city, apartments in New Farm, and "normal" residential locations such as Indooroopilly (where very few new apartments have been added to the market in the past five years), appear to be selling well and renting quickly.  These apartments are often much larger (130 sqm compared to 75 sqm for a 2 bedroom apartment, for example), have a better location, have more owner occupiers, and there is not an oversupply.

I also wonder what rents and returns the investors in the new apartment buildings have been promised, and what they are actually receiving, and for how long the apartment sits empty not generating rent?

Will the rents hold up when it comes renewal time in six months or a year?  Will tenants stay on or move out?  The Chelsea is an example of a building that appears to have a number of apartments for rent; it completed in 2012, and received bad press at the time.  (An advertisement below from last year for Urban Edge at Kelvin Grove, settled last year, where apartments will be coming up for renewal about now.  Kelvin Grove is a much better location than Bowen Hills in my view.)

Kangaroo Point new apartment developments

If you want to buy an apartment off-the-plan at Kangaroo Point,  there are many options at present:

• Liberte, by Pradella
• Yungaba, by Australand
• Riverview Towers, by Metro Property Group
• Peninsula, by Tom Dooley, reported as sold out.

Gardens Riverside West End

Pradella is advertising apartments in its Gardens West End development (which is located behind Flow and Waters Edge) at the following prices:

• 1 bed, 70 sqm - from $399,000
• 2 bed, 2 bath, 93 sqm - $565,000
• 3 bed and student - $929,000

Pradella's apartments are often well-designed, and are often a decent size and quality.  I am not thrilled with this location -- too far from the shops and restaurants in West End.  But it is less than 3 km from the Brisbane CBD.

Proximity Hamilton

Peloton is developing Proximity Hamilton.  This appears to be located at the back of the Portside development, and is not direct riverfront (although the river and cruise ship terminal is nearby).  One beds from $330,000 and two beds from $495,000.  A "free" furniture pack is offered.  Looking at the website, it appears to be targeted at people in their twenties who like to eat but don't actually eat that much.

The largest apartment is a corner two bedroom:  82 sqm internal, with a 13 sqm balcony.  See floor plan below.  This looks ok, but there are only 4 of these apartments.   Most of the other apartments are small -- 50 sqm internal for a 1 bedroom (where I would expect at least 60 sqm to be reasonable size.)

Basse South Brisbane

A new development in South Brisbane, Basse, is being sold off-the-plan.  It is located at 14 Merivale Street.  The complex appears to have 1 and 2 bedroom apartments only.  The one bedroom apartments start at $339,000.  A two bedroom apartment is advertised at $539,000.  Buyers should take care -- this development is on a very busy road -- the off ramp for the Go-between Bridge.

April Index Results from RP Data

Brisbane apartment prices (to 30 April 2014):

April 2014 - up 1.9%

Quarter - up 1.4%
Year on Year - up 2.8%
Median price based on settled sales of Brisbane apartments over the quarter - $382,750.

Likely increased investor activity in Brisbane predicted

From RP Data Press Release:  "Gross rental yields on a typical Melbourne house are sitting at 3.3 per cent and Sydney gross yields are a bit higher at 3.7 per cent. According to Mr Lawless, such a scenario of low yields in these two cities suggests that housing values have moved out of step with rental rates which is likely to dampen some of the investor exuberance we have seen in both of these markets. I wouldn’t be surprised if Brisbane, where home values are much more affordable and rental yields are comparatively healthy, will start to see an increase in investor related demand based on Brisbane’s early stage in the growth cycle and comparatively healthy rental yields,” he said."

Urban Construct

South Australian based Urban Construct has acquired more than $100 million in development sites in Brisbane.  They have development applications in train for 2,200 apartments in South Brisbane, Newstead and Wooloongabba.  This includes:

• 611 Coronation Drive - 275 apartments
• 142 Montague Road, West End - 400 apartments
• Vulture Street, Wooloongabba - 240 apartments
• Ella & Chester Streets, Newstead
• Hope St, South Brisbane

Brothel in your building

There is an interesting article in Domain regarding a Sydney apartment building that became home to a brothel.  In Brisbane, a number of inner city apartment buildings are used by travelling escorts on a regular basis to see their customers.  Some of the escorts are Eastern European, posing as tourists.  Many are from Australia or NZ.  An example list of visiting tourists is here.

Based on the informal surveys I have done, the preferred Brisbane apartment buildings for travelling escorts are [X ]and [Y].  M on Mary is also popular.

If you reside in one of these buildings, you may find that your neighbour for a week is a busy busty blonde from Prague with many male friends.

For reference,  an old Commissioner's decision on this topic is here.

Update on May 8, 2014:

The blog received a letter of demand from a management rights owner, threatening a lawsuit.  As a result, the names of two buildings have been deleted from this post at the present time.  Before buying or renting in an inner-city apartment building, it is recommended to conduct appropriate investigations.

Vacancy Rate and Rents Fall in Brisbane

Recent Press Release from REIQ:

The majority of Queensland’s rental markets have returned to tighter conditions, according to the REIQ’s latest Residential Rental Survey.

REIQ CEO Anton Kardash said the survey, carried out in March across all REIQ accredited agencies, found that the majority of the state recorded lower vacancy rates compared to three months ago.

“Queensland is seeing a return to a tighter rental market,” he said. “Stronger tenant demand and a decrease in the availability of stock are the common themes across the State.”

In Brisbane, the overall vacancy rate for the metropolitan area was back down to 2.3 per cent, as seen at the end of September last year.  Excluding the spike recorded in December, the Brisbane vacancy rate has been around the 2 to 2.3 per cent mark for over 12 months now.  As expected, the Brisbane inner city rental market returned to a healthier vacancy rate following a spike in December.  This is reportedly the result of easing asking rents to ensure vacancies are refilled quickly and also to compete with the new stock on the market. ...

Despite increased investor activity across Queensland in recent months, local agents report an increased number of sales of former investment properties to owner-occupiers, reducing the overall rental pool in some areas.

Brisbane Apartment Prices Going Backwards

Don't let real estate agents or the News Corporation press (including realestate.com.au) hoodwink you.  The Brisbane apartment market is not booming.  In fact, it is going backwards.  Compared with inflation, not great capital gains.  If you bought at the peak, you are still 5% below, not taking into account stamp duty and real estate agent fees for selling.  So ignore the headlines and look at the detailed actual results (that is, Brisbane apartment prices, and not Australian housing in general or Brisbane house prices).

From RP Data:

"After a flat February result, the RP Data – Rismark Home Value Index finished the March quarter in a strong fashion with dwelling values rising 2.3 per cent over the month to post a 3.5 per cent capital gain over the first quarter of the year. Apart from Perth, every capital city recorded a rise in dwelling values over the past three months. Melbourne posted the highest level of growth at 5.4 per cent over the quarter with Sydney and Hobart also recording a strong result in the March quarter with values up 4.4 per cent and 4.7 per cent respectively.

According to RP Data research director Tim Lawless, half of all Australia’s capital cities are now posting record high dwelling values, with Sydney’s housing market showing the most substantial increase beyond its previous market high."

Brisbane apartment prices (to 31 March 2014):

March 2014 - down 0.7%

Quarter - up 0.3%
Year on Year - up 1.7%
Year to Date - up 0.3%
Median price based on settled sales of Brisbane apartments over the quarter - $368,000.

Brisbane Shows Promise?

From HTW's Month in Review:

Brisbane’s revival continues and the ongoing confidence in property will be one key economic driver as this year progresses. As a capital, we have fed off the regional mining boom. Anyone with major mineral digs out in the nether reaches on the state invariably had a head office based in the big smoke. As this sector of the economy finds itself weakening, there are quite a few property participants touting construction as the saviour.

At a recent presentation in Brisbane, demographer, Bernard Salt, was pushing some big population growth for major cities around the nation in 2014, and Brisbane was firmly amongst his favourites. If we see this goodwill translate into actual gains, then the rest of the year should firm up nicely for those in property.

Time to Buy or Sell in Brisbane?

A Brisbane real estate agent, Brad Munro from Position Property, has released a newsletter that states that the Brisbane market is booming.  He specialises in inner ring apartments.  He states "From 6th January of this year, we have seen the market explode!"  Brad then goes on to say that 5000 new apartments located within a 5km radius of the Brisbane CBD are expected to be completed in the next two years, and so there may be an oversupply of apartments, and more sellers than buyers.  Then, he concludes:  "Overall, the long term outlook for the property market in Brisbane looks good, however if you were looking at selling your property over the next 2 or 3 years, the next 3 to 4 months is, in my opinion, the best time to be doing this.  The less competition (other properties for sale) you have, the better the sale price will be, without question."

What this means to me is that now is not a good time to be buying, but wait a little while, and you may do better.

Or another view is that agents always tell property owners that now is the time to sell.

Metro 21, Recent Sales

One of the better inner city apartment buildings is Metro 21.  It has a maximum of 4 apartments per floor, a sky garden, and no short term rentals.

Recent sales (since July 2013) of two bedroom apartments (all with car park, some with 2 bathrooms, some with 2.5 bathrooms):

• Apt 1104 - $510,000
• Apt 1204 - $500,000
• Apt 2504 - $565,000
• Apt 3201 - $590,000
• Apt 3003 - $560,000
• Apt 3401 - $595,000
• Apt 3101 - $550,000
• Apt 2101 - $545,000

Note that the first two digits of the apartment number is the floor level.  Some of the apartments on the higher floors have river views.  This building is not riverfront, but is centrally located near George Street.  Rents for two bedrooms, unfurnished, are above $600 per week.

Rents at Madison Heights, Bowen Hills

Madison Heights at Bowen Hills has completed, and apartments are available for rent.  For a 2 bedroom 2 bath apartment,  the listed rent is $445 (with 4 weeks free - so really the rent is $410 a week).  Some are even less.  Under the NRAS scheme, the listed rent for a 2 bedroom is $389 per week.

The building has 308 apartments, with 174 under the NRAS low income rental affordability scheme, which offers apartments for 70% of the market rent (so a two bedroom under this scheme should be $287 a week based on the REA listing quoted above.)  Most of the apartments are 1 bedrooms -- in fact, 228 or about 75% of the apartments in the building are one bedroom apartments with a typical size of 51 sqm internal.

Apt 2901, 2 bedrooms, is for sale for $715,000, which appears to be outrageously expensive.
This two bedroom is $547,000.  67 sqm internal. Crazy!
A one bedroom is for sale for $485,000 -- not a bargain!

Here are some photos of the views from Madison Heights apartments.  The entry to the Airport Link tunnel cannot be seen from these photos, but is just to the right:

UniSon by Mirvac at Newstead

Mirvac has announced another apartment building in Newstead, called UniSon.  This will be located on the edge of the "Waterfront" development site.  It appears that there are a number of buildings to come on this site, so you will have plenty of time to select an apartment now or for many years in the future.

Bees Nees - A real estate agent's view of the Brisbane property market

"After a number of years of buyers being firmly in control, here's two telltales for us that we have a market on a new, more balanced playing field:

Buyers are calling us back. We know we're real estate salespeople and shouldn't be surprised when some people don't want to talk to us! But it's been a little lonely in recent years... Now the calls are returned, buyers keen to hear what 'freshies' we might have coming up for them.

The second reason? In the past fortnight I've had 3 real estate agents contact me chasing investments for themselves. Like a Charleville grazier can smell the coming rains, these agents get a sense when the market's on the turn.

It's not all one-sided. Despite the competition we've still seen some price sensitivity from buyers. They're well-informed and most are not yet rushed to pay over the odds. They recognise there's a shortage of listings across many inner city markets and prices, but many are still okay to bide their time. There's more balance but it's too early to say it's a sellers market.

With that said, if you've been holding off selling I haven't seen a market as good as this since 2004.  Many are hoping it will continue 'gaining momentum' and those 'green shoots' will sprout into price growth to make Jack’s beanstalk look tiny."

From Bees Nees.

It seems that houses are selling much faster than apartments in Brisbane at present.

Gold Coast - Soul

From Mantra:

I am a representative of the Mantra Hotels Group, who have recently taken ownership of Sea Temple Surfers Paradise, under the Peppers Brand.

The property has been re-branded Soul Surfers Paradise and Peppers are keen to revitalise both the hotel and the Seaduction restaurant under their luxury hotels brand.

Official Statement: http://www.mantragroup.com.au/NewsMedia/News/TabId/730/PostId/394/mantra-group-to-manage-soul-surfers-paradise.aspx

We'd appreciate you letting your readers know of the changes at Soul:

Soul Surfers Paradise: http://www.peppers.com.au/soul-surfers-paradise/

Seaduction: http://www.peppers.com.au/soul-surfers-paradise/dining/

Australian Interest Rates - Predication by Westpac

From Westpac:

•Westpac has revised its profile for the RBA cash rate in 2014. Previously we expected that rates would be reduced by 25bps in both August and November. The forecast is now for flat rates throughout 2014. As before we do not forecast a rate hike until the third quarter of 2015 with a 25bp hike in both the September and December quarters. 

Growth in housing finance has been very strong, up 26.9% for the year to December and 22.3% for the year to January. Within that, loans to investors slowed from 40% (in December) to 28.6% in January. Owner occupiers slowed from 19.4% (December) to 18.6% (January). The “time to buy a dwelling” index from the Westpac Melbourne Institute Consumer Sentiment Survey is down by 16.8% from its September peak. There are tentative signs that housing lending might be slowing. As discussed, that slowdown, which has always been core to our forecasts, appears to be evolving. However, such a slowdown was a necessary but not sufficient condition for lower rates. 

A victory for miniature dachshund dog ‘Sebastian’ over the Committee

It seems that Body Corporate Committee members are officiously and uncaringly trying to prevent apartment owners have pets, even though there is no legal or other justification to do so.  A recent case involving a miniature dachshund dog called Sebastian highlights these issues.  The apartment owner was allowed to keep Sebastian in her apartment.

See Bougainvillea [2013] QBCCMCmr 448 (11 November 2013)

"Both the Committee and many submitted appear to believe that By-law 11 prohibits pets in the scheme. That is not correct. Adjudicators have consistently held that by-laws like By-law 11 are ‘permissive’ in that they allow the keeping of pets, albeit with prior consent. 

Adjudicators have further held that where there is a permissive by-law, the body corporate cannot impose an automatic ‘no-pets policy’. A body corporate may have a preference against pets, but it cannot override the potential in the by-law for consent to be given by imposing a policy of banning all animals. Under a by-law of this nature, the committee must consider each request for a animal on its merits and exercise discretion in whether to approve an animal or not. Accordingly the Body Corporate must consider each request on its merits.

Some schemes have tried to adopt by-laws that ban all animals, but this has been found to be contrary to section 169 of the Act. Section 169 provides for by-laws to regulate the use and enjoyment of lot, but does not authorise a by-law prohibiting such use and enjoyment."

"One submission notes that some tenants may have phobias to dogs. Another is concerned that some children could be frightened by the dog. While there may be some basis for genuine concerns about larger dogs, it is more difficult to perceive such difficulties with such a small breed of dog. In any event, if the applicant were to always ensure that the dog was carried or adequately restrained during its brief transits across common property, there seems to me to be little risk of any adverse impact."

See also Sunwaves [2013] QBCCMCmr 433 (30 October 2013)

REIQ reports improving market for apartments in last quarter of 2013

The median price of units and townhouses across South East Queensland grew over the December quarter, according to the Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ).

The REIQ’s latest Queensland Market Monitor (QMM), released 28 February 2014, also found the preliminary numbers of unit sales increased six per cent over the year.

REIQ CEO Anton Kardash said the unit market was continuing to improve in-line with the house sales market – albeit centred around the southeast corner.

“A key difference between the Queensland house and unit markets is that predominantly the lion’s share of these types of properties are located in the southeast as that is where demand for housing is the greatest,’ he said.

“In fact, demand for units in Brisbane has resulted in record numbers of off-the-plan sales lately. According to recently-released research, more than 1,000 new apartment sales were transacted in the December quarter – the highest level since 2002.”

Click on chart to make bigger:

The most sales where in the Brisbane CBD, followed by New Farm, Nundah and St Lucia.

The largest one year change to the median price were in Wynnum West, Highgate Hill, Windsor and Paddington.  The worst performing suburbs were Northgate and Kedron.

Is Housing Market Slowing?

From an RP Data press release:

Mr Lawless said we will need to see further months of flat to negative movements before we can confidently say the housing market is slowing. “Our view is that housing market conditions will start to wind down later this year as affordability constraints and low rental yields dampen market conditions. Additionally, with a belief that mortgage rates are likely to start tightening later this year, it may help to quell some of the exuberance we have been seeing,” he said.

Brisbane apartment prices (to 28 February 2014):

February 2014 - up 0.3%

Quarter - up 1.5%
Year on Year - up 3.1%
Year to Date - up 1.1%
Median price based on settled sales of Brisbane apartments over the quarter - $387,000.

Florida Foreclosures

It is interesting to see that in Florida, it is possible to buy a one bedroom apartment for less than $80,000, including whitegoods.

1)  http://searchbankproperties.com/2014/03/bank-owned-condo-in-bermuda-dunes/

2)  http://searchbankproperties.com/2014/03/bank-owned-condo-orlando/

Makes the Gold Coast look very overpriced.

Rising Market

Valuer, HTW, reports that both the Brisbane and Sunshine Coast apartment markets are currently "rising markets".

See March 2014 Month in Review.

Soda Goes Soggy

It has been reported recently that the Soda apartment development in South Brisbane did not receive development approval from the Council.  Although 129 out of 131 have sold off-the-plan, the developer had not obtained development approval to build the building.

A newspaper report states that the apartments do not have sufficient ventilation, ceiling heights are too low, and there is not enough visitor car parking.  "The only outlook of many of the habitable room windows would be to a (future) adjoining development in very close proximity."

Well-known property law David Colenso said:  "Contracting 98% of apartments without a development approval contravenes all the basis risk parameters of property development.  Judging by the extent of councils refusal, this developer may need to redesign the development which puts at risk all contracts under Queensland's disclosure regime."

When I looked at this development in October, I thought that it was expensive.  It now looks to be very expensive, due to what appears to be poor quality design.

Investors buying off-the-plan should look at the checklists and information in this book.  Ceiling height, aspect and cross-ventilation are important to consider, and are often not disclosed in the glossy sales brochures.

Admiralty One

Apartment 59 in Admiralty Towers One sold at auction this week for $585,000.  It is a two bedroom apartment, in one of the best buildings in the city.

The Next Stage of Waterfront Newstead

Mirvac is soliciting interest for the next stage of its Waterfront, Newstead project.

See www.launch2014.com.au

Often, I register on these kind of sites, and never hear back.  When the developer is setting the sales price of apartments off-the-plan, one factor taken into account is how much interest they have in the presales stages.  Developers count the number of registrations on sites such as this, and take this information into account in setting price.

Housing Market in Qld strongest in years, says real estate agents

From an REIQ press release yesterday concerning houses (not apartments):

"The numbers of house sales across Queensland peaked at the end of last year as well as recorded healthy price growth, according to the Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ).

The REIQ December quarter median house price report, released today, found that the volume of house sales hit its annual peak of activity in the last three months of 2013. The numbers of sales was also one of the healthiest quarterly periods for a number of years.

REIQ CEO Anton Kardash said not only could the December quarter claim to be the third strongest in as many years, it was also firming without the aid of extraneous stimulus measures."