Gracemere, near Rockhampton, has emerged as Queensland’s top growth suburb – recording the biggest leap in the number of house sales over the last 12 months.

According to new research released by PRDnationwide, 96 houses sold in Gracemere in the six months leading up to June 2011 – up 63 per cent compared to the same period a year before.

Prices also rose by a modest 3 per cent during the same period.

The largest drop in house sales was recorded by The Gap, on Brisbane’s west – down 57 per cent.

The twenty suburbs which had the strongest increase and strongest decrease in house sales activity for the 12 months leading up to June 2011 are identified by the Queensland Sales Overview.

Aaron Maskrey, PRDnationwide research director, said 17 of the top 20 suburbs to have recorded the largest reduction in activity occurred in South East Queensland.

“The largest softenings throughout the first half of 2011 were achieved in The Gap, Buderim and Forest Lake,” he said.

“Notably, only three suburbs in the top 20 to experience declining sales, have recorded a median sale price above $500,000.”

“Despite interest rates remaining on hold since November 2010, it appears that confidence was sapped in the South East Queensland property market, as the majority of the top 20 suburbs to have experienced the largest decline in activity are located within this region.

Source: The Advisor

The big four commercial banks in Australia are estimated to receive an additional A$5.6 million in profit for each day where they delay the passing on of interest rate cuts to borrowers, according to an industry estimate.

Some argue that this A$5 million per day gain could be passed on to retailers that were hurting significantly due to low spending over the Christmas period.

ANZ Bank passed its rate cut on first, trimming its borrowing rates by the full 25 basis points at 12:30pm on the Thursday after the Tuesday 6th December announcement. NAB did likewise later that afternoon.

A number of factors caused this delay, with the main rationale cited being the time taken to consider the cost of sourcing funds from overseas.

Source: SMH

We have just been reading about the unpredictability of the property markets Australia wide. Whilst things look positive for Australia to not see the large decreases in property prices that other countries have suffered, sitting around waiting for our property portfolio’s to increase is not a good plan in the short term for increasing your personal wealth. There is only one true way to ensure profit in property in the current market: adding value to a property in one way or another which in therefore means we manufacture the growth in the investment.

Adding value can be done in several ways, and the following are just a few. Purchasing an old property, under the current market value and renovating in a cost effective way. Adding an additional bedroom to a property, again in a cost affective way. Creating a separate house or land via a subdivision. Investors these days need to think outside the box, and do their research.

The problem that most investors have is “Where do I start?” Confusing council codes, questions about engineers and architects, and dealing with builders can be too much of a headache to figure out, that sometimes we are so caught up in these questions that we don’t move forward, even when there is a huge desire to create wealth for your future. ProfitsToShare can assist you. Harry and his team of property professionals will assist you to set clear, defined goals, and help you put together a plan as to how to achieve your goals. ProfitsToShare will educate you via a large array of tools: one-on- one meetings with Harry and his team; access to a leading finance expert, to ensure that you are set up in the most effective way for property purchases; online tools and resources; Webinars and training / networking events. ProfitsToShare also gives you access to transactions, which may suit investors that want to invest at a more passive level.

“My intention is for you to realise your dreams, and to do this you need to have the right team and tools at your fingertips. I believe ProfitsToShare gives you the foundations you need, to assist you to realise these dreams” – Harry Charalambous

It is very common among people who have a desire to create wealth, to want to share this wealth with the greater community. At Plan Assist we also have this passion to help others, and the team working with ProfitsToShare Club Members are committed to presenting worthy causes with 10% of our profits.

Each year we give our ProfitsToShare clients the decision on which charities to support. We have set up the ProfitsToShare Foundation and currently support charities such as The Australian Children’s Music Foundation, The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Make A Wish Foundation and Green School. Green School is a fantastic charity that Plan Assist has support in the past, making a difference to children in Bali.

Right now is the time for members to be casting their vote for which charities we will support together.

Families looking to upgrade to a bigger house have been noticeably absent from the Sydney real estate market for much of this year but that might be about to change, experts predict.

Agents are starting to see more of these buyers at open houses and in some of the more affordable upgrader areas – where these properties sell for less than $1 million – they are very active. This is in contrast to more affluent suburbs, where interest has been much more subdued.

“The top end of the market is generally the one that suffers in an increasing market,” says Harry Charalambous, “as they are the last to go up in price. They are also the first to feel the pinch in a declining market, as they are the first properties to be hit, and usually with significant decreases.”

The chief executive of LJ Hooker Real Estate, Janusz Hooker, says the catalyst for upgraders re-entering the market has been the Reserve Bank’s interest rate cut. This recent interest rate cut has put more money in the pockets of existing first home owners. ”So at our open for inspections over the past couple of weeks since the RBA’s announcement, we’ve seen an increase in activity of about 10 per cent [in these buyers], which is pretty significant,” Janusz Hooker says.

The principal of Belle Property Mosman, Tim Foote, says upgrading is the ”number one opportunity” for buyers at the moment because selling and buying in the same flat market means ”the difference between what your property is worth and what you can buy is smaller”.

Upgraders tend to follow the pattern of first-home-buyer to mid-range property, then upgrading their mid-range to top end when considering their next property purchase. This is the reason that this group are being identified as being active on the market now. They can get a decent return on their existing property, and look for larger homes in similar areas for a relatively marginal increase in pricing. Previously these larger homes would have been priced outside their budget.

For those that are seeking to subdivide and renovate in the current market, looking at the needs that a home must meet for upgrading to be attractive is a key part of your investment strategy – ensuring that value is provided to these potential buyers. Room numbers and sizes, fittings and fixtures, proximity to key amenities are all considerations with regards to the upgrading market.

Before starting a development project understand who your buyer is – are you targeting a family, downsizer or an out of area buyer?  Along with the different buyers comes a new set of must haves. You must always provide value and meet the market to receive the best results.  Speak to local trusted agents about the demographic of your suburb and design your property to meet these buyers needs.