Australians support scrapping stamp duty | The Real Estate Conversation

Australians support scrapping stamp duty | The Real Estate Conversation.

Home is where the wealth is | The Real Estate Conversation

Home is where the wealth is | The Real Estate Conversation.

NT Government Must Re-Think Housing Affordability Across the Territory

The reserve bank of Australia has taken a national perspective on the economy by taking the brave step of cutting the interest rate once more.  This decision was taken despite the strong rise in Sydney property prices.   Trends in other cities and Australian towns are varied.

Interest rates are at incredible lows but as well as the Reserve Bank making adjustment,  the NT Government must consider what adjustments it can make to help home owners into their first home and to stimulate competition in business to make home ownership more affordable overall.

Which Inner City Suburbs Are Most Affordable

CoreLogic RP Data’s weekly Property Pulse shows which suburbs have the most affordable median value near the CBDs of Australia’s capital cities.

According to the data, the median value for Sydney’s inner city houses is significantly higher than the rest of the capital cities, with Turrella as the most affordable suburb in Sydney having a median house value of $839,676.

IS IT A BUYERS OR SELLERS MARKET?

While the pendulum swung slightly in favour of sellers over the quarter to Jan 2015, market conditions in Australia as a whole remain balanced, according to the latest Commonwealth Bank-CoreLogic Home Buyers Index buyers.

In other words, supply and demand are roughly equal. A closer look at the figures, however, reveals that conditions vary greatly in different property markets around the country.

Why is this important?

Understanding whether you’re in a buyer’s or seller’s market can give you the edge when it comes to property negotiations. In a seller’s market, where demand is high, the seller can often negotiate a higher price. In a buyer’s market, where supply exceeds demand, the opposite is true.

Scrap stamp duty, says Property Council | The Real Estate Conversation

Scrap stamp duty, says Property Council | The Real Estate Conversation.

Fixed-rate loans falling out of vogue

THE bruising political row over banking competition has made potential home buyers more savvy with many opting out of fixed-rate loans, according to new figures.

It may have also turned up the pressure on lenders to be more creative in attempts to gain market share, even before the federal government implements its range of proposed initiatives.

Alice Springs Buyers Hurt by Land Supply

Nationally, first home buyer numbers are up according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, but the lack of land release in Alice Springs is restricting the building of new homes in the town.

Figures released by the ABS this week show first home buyers now make up 28 per cent of all dwellings financed — the largest proportion since the ABS began collecting the data in 1991.

Alice Springs Elders Home Loans’ Katrina Parrington said: “The scheme, while it has attracted some criticism on the basis that it has