State Of The Nation Compiled By Kevin Lee of Smart Property Adviser

www.smartpropertyadviser.com.au E: kevin@smartpropertyadviser.com.au T: (02) 9980 1311 M: 0416 083 995

Disclaimer: This document is a compilation of recent articles published in the media. The media sources are quoted beneath their respective article capture. Smart Property Adviser does not claim to be the author of any articles included within this document.

Coastal Homes Can Be Cheap

The start of the year is traditionally a busy time for the southeast's main beach hot spots, the Gold and Sunshine coasts. And while both those

markets appear to still be offering some significant bargains at the moment, thanks to the lingering effects of the global financial crisis, there are many other coastal and beach areas in the state where the buy-in price is a lot cheaper and the crowds during peak times a lot thinner. 21 January 2013. More.

The Cheapest Home Loan Offerings In The Lead-up To February RBA Decision There are just over two weeks to go until the Reserve Bank’s monetary policy committee meets for the first time in 2013 on February 5 to deliberate on the cash rate. It currently stands at 3%, with the lowest advertised variable rate on offer being 4.99% from lender Easy Street, owned and operated by Sydney-based Community First Credit Union. 21 January 2013. More. Man On The Moon

Anyone claiming that the Australian resources economy is over had better think again. There are about 90 committed resource projects across Australia – greater than the average number of such projects recorded over the past decade. 22 January 2013. More. Sydney Rental Market Eases To 1.9%: REINSW

The Sydney rental market eased in December with a monthly increase of 0.1% to an overall vacancy rate of 1.9%, according to the Real Estate Institute of New South Wales. The December 2012 REINSW vacancy rate survey saw an increase in rental accommodation right across the Sydney metro area with the inner suburbs – 0 to 10-kilometres from CBD - increasing 0.1% to 1.8%. 21 January 2013. More. Home Renovation High On Agenda

Homeowners are more likely to be saving for household renovations over any other major household item, particularly those in the Generation Y age group, a new

survey has found. Mortgage provider Loan Market surveyed its home loan customers and found that 37 per cent of all home owners, and 38 per cent of Gen-Yers, were saving this year for a major renovation. 22 January 2013. More

Sydney Home Building Narrowly Misses Target Home building in Sydney almost met former state government targets in the third quarter, but inconsistent growth means more affordable housing could still be a long time coming in some parts of the city. The McKell Institute’s Quarterly Homes Monitorshowed 5,559 dwelling completions for the third quarter

siting just below the target of 5,825 new dwellings per quarter set by the former NSW Government’s Sydney 2036 Metropolitan Strategy. 21 January 2013. More. Buyers Have Upper Hand When Purchasing Property

It may not seem like it during crowded open inspections, but buyers have the upper hand when it comes to purchasing property. The number of homes advertised for sale across Australia outstripped the

number of loans approved in the three months to November 2012, making it officially a buyers market, according to the latest Commonwealth Bank/RP Data Home Buyers Index. 21 January 2013. More.

Buyers Not Entirely Deterred By 'Severely Unaffordable' Market The Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey has called the country’s housing ‘vastly overpriced’- but what this actually means is up for debate. Despite a slight improvement in affordability compared to last year, Demographia classed two thirds of the Australia’s housing market as ‘severely unaffordable’, giving us one of the most unaffordable housing markets in the developed world. 23 January 2013. More.

Barangaroo Project Sparks New Claims The NSW Greens say conflict of interest concerns about a firm helping to assess James Packer's $1 billion Barangaroo proposal are another blow to the state government's transparency claims. Deloitte has been appointed to offer independent

commercial advice to the panel assessing Mr Packer's Crown Limited hotel and casino plan. 23 January 2013. More. Mortgage Comfort At All-Time High, Optimism Near Record Low

Australians are more comfortable than ever with their mortgage payments and are looking to save in the year ahead, but their economic optimism has plunged. The ING Direct Financial Wellbeing Index has found that a record 64% of Australians say they are "very comfortable" with their mortgage. 23 January 2013. More.

Byron Bay Land Values Down Almost 7% In Past Three Years

Byron Bay's total property values have dropped 6.7% in the past three years, according to the NSW Valuer-General, with land owners in the Byron Bay local government area (LGA) recently issued with the fresh valuations. These valuations are used for ratings purposes and reflect the land value based on market conditions as at July 1, 2012. 23 January 2013. More.

Issue # 023 January 25, 2013

State Of The Nation Continued…

E: kevin@smartpropertyadviser.com.au T: (02) 9980 1311 M: 0416 083 995 Disclaimer: This document is a compilation of recent articles published in the media. The media sources are quoted beneath their respective article

capture. Smart Property Adviser does not claim to be the author of any articles included within this document.

If you would like to voice your opinion on any article you have read in the State Of The Nation Newsletters or elsewhere that has concerned you, please send the article and your opinion on it to us and we will include it in a future issue of the State Of The Nation. Send your opinion to kevin@smartpropertyadviser.com.au

First Timers Don't Want To Buy Into The New Dream

Most of them gave up on a house long ago, but now first home buyers are struggling with the latest government-inspired revision of the great

Australian dream. Responding to the worst first home buyer loan figures in 20 years, the head of the main developer lobby group said getting first-timers to choose new property was ''a cultural shift that people are finding a bit difficult to grasp - they just want to buy an existing home''. 19 January 2013. More. Queensland Accounts For 19 Of The Nation's 20 Highest Property Vendor Discount Suburbs Queensland is the state requiring vendors to slash asking prices most to secure a sale, according to a RP Data study. The state accounted for 19 of the top 20 suburbs where vendors gave the greatest reductions on their initial asking price. Stapylton, situated some 45 kilometres south of Brisbane, topped the list, with an average required vendor discount of 32%. 21 January 2013. More. Specific Landlord Insurance Overlooked

More than half of all self-managing landlords don’t have specific landlord insurance to cover incidents with tenants, even though research shows that three out of five recognise a bond isn't sufficient, according to First National Real Estate. While Australian buyers continue to invest in property, many landlords and investors neglect to protect their investments by taking out appropriate insurance cover. 23 January 2013. More.

Economist Tears Roof Off Affordability Study

Housing affordability is improving but Australia is still the second most expensive country to buy property, according to a global survey released on Monday.

However, the Australian economist Dr Andrew Wilson criticised the Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey, saying that comparing the Australian housing market to others was like making comparisons with Jupiter. 21 January 2013. More.

Rebound Areas In WA Offer Opportunities Favourable market conditions offer ample opportunities for investors waiting to jump into property in WA, especially in ‘rebound areas’, according to RE/MAX WA managing director, Geoff Baldwin. Some semi-regional and areas just outside of Perth offer terrific value, especially from a positive geared point of view, Mr Baldwin told Smart Property Investment. 22 January 2013. More.

Area May See “Overnight Jump” In Prices

A significant proposal for an area in New South Wales has been identified as likely to underpin long-term price growth as well as a quick spike in values, according to a number of property experts. Wyong Shire Council, on New South Wales’ Central Coast, has recently been earmarked for the development of an airport. 18 January 2013. More.

Don't Try This When Selling Your Home If you're having a tough time selling your house, spare a thought for the real estate agents attempting to sell these homes. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder but what seemed a good idea at renovation time, often doesn’t translate into a

saleable home. Don’t agree? You certainly will after seeing our pick of the most astonishing marketing photos of homes for sale. 18 January 2013. More.

Why You May Be Suffering From Financial Stress

‘How to attain wealth’ isn’t something that is taught in school. Instead at school, they teach you how to secure a job and be a good employee. It is therefore your responsibility to reject this way of thinking and get financially educated so that you know how to secure your financial future in ways which don’t require you to work endless hours for a week to week pay check. If you haven’t heard of The Pareto Principle, it is the law of the vital few - it’s the 80/20 rule. The Pareto Principle originated in Italy in 1906 by an economist who observed that 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of its population. 22 January 2013. More.

Controversy Corner

Sydney Mayor Apologises Over Banners Row A SYDNEY Liberal mayor has apologised after ordering a gay and lesbian advocacy group to remove its banners from a family festival. Parramatta mayor John Chedid caused controversy after asking Sydney-based Twenty10 to remove its banners from the Rediscover the River Festival last week, having apparently taken offence. 23 January 2013. More.

Some Parting Advice

“There are numerous ways to build wealth through property and many people will promote the use of negative gearing, positive

gearing, renovating, developing, investing in houses, investing in units as ‘the way’ to make your fortune. Unfortunately the list is as

long as there are people willing to part with their hard earned cash.”

Until Next Time…. Kevin Lee

www.smartpropertyadviser.com.au