Archive for the 'Buyer's Agent' Category
Property values in Sydney suburbs with rail links to the CBD have outstripped those in suburbs without, says new research.
PRDNationwide has discovered that prices in suburbs near railway stations leapt by 12% in 2009 – whereas those in areas without rail links only grew by 8%.
“Population growth continues in Sydney and this has prompted a high demand for places located near public transport facilities as the capacity of roads to cater for the influx of residents, particularly during peak traffic times deteriorates,” said PRDnationwide managing director Jim Midgley.
The research says the median sale price for properties near railway stations increased to $730,000 during 2009. The highest median price was recorded on the North Shore Line Line, with $1,325,500 recorded over the same period.
However, PRDNationwide points out that while growth has been impressive in the short term, both suburbs with and without train stations recorded equal median price growth 3.1% over a five-year period.
Source: Kevni Eddy 6/7/10 www.brokernews.com.au
UPDATE: The Minister for Lands, Tony Kelly, confirmed today the new tax would begin on July 1 and had been formulated as a NSW budget measure.
The tax will be levied on the buyer.
TENS of thousands of NSW home buyers a year are set to be hit with a new tax that will cash in on the improving property market and boost state government coffers by an estimated $90 million annually.
Quietly released by the Minister for Lands, Tony Kelly, amid the wash-up of the federal budget, the new land transfer charge will be imposed on the sale of residential and commercial property worth more than $500,000.
The announcement has outraged property groups, which branded it ”just another stamp duty increase”, while the opposition has criticised the timing of its release as ‘’sneaky”.
Under the proposal, the portion of the sale amount between $500,000 and $1 million will attract a tax rate of 0.2 per cent, before the charge rises to 0.25 per cent for the portion of the sale above $1 million.
The median Sydney house price is about $600,000, which would attract a charge of $200, while the tax on a property sold for $1.2 million would be $1500.
According to figures provided by the Department of Lands, almost 30,000 residential and commercial property sales of between $500,000 and $1 million were settled in the past 12 months. More than 10,000 properties sold for more than $1 million in the same period.
Aaron Gadiel, the chief executive of the developer lobby group Urban Taskforce, said the new charge amounted to a 4.5 per cent increase in stamp duty for the top end of the property market.
He estimated that a developer looking to acquire a $10 million development site for new housing would be hit with an extra cost of $23,000.
Mr Gadiel said that it ”flies in the face” of the recommendations of the recently released Henry tax review, which criticised transfer duties.
”The Henry review said they were unfair; they hit some members of the community harder than others and they could cause economic distortions and reduce business activity,” he said.
The acting NSW executive director of the Property Council of Australia, Glen Byers, said that the tax was introduced ”without consultation, without explanation at a time when the investment climate in NSW is fragile”.
It is understood that legislation for the new tax will not be introduced before the next session of Parliament, which begins next month.
The government is not indicating when the tax might begin, but a spokesman for the Treasurer, Eric Roozendaal, said the revenue forecast to be generated by the tax would be included in the state budget on June 8.
The announcement was labelled ‘’sneaky” by the Opposition Leader, Barry O’Farrell, because it was buried in a press release which focused on new security measures for land transfer documents.
Mr Kelly’s release suggested part of the tax would be used to fund the security measures.
A spokesman for Mr Kelly said revenue from the charge would flow to the Department of Lands, not the Office of State Revenue, as was the case with stamp duty.
However Mr O’Farrell said: ”This is another attempt under the cover of a federal budget to get some bad news out from the state budget, well away from polling day in Penrith.”
Figures provided by Mr Kelly’s office suggest that the proposed NSW charge is at the lower end when compared with similar charges imposed by other states.
Based on a sale worth $750,000, the spokesman said only Western Australia charged a lower ”registration charge” of $260, compared with $500 proposed in NSW. In Victoria, the figure is $1350, in Queensland it is $1623 and in South Australia it is $4759.
Article Source: 13/5/10 SEAN NICHOLLS – STATE POLITICAL EDITOR
With the property market heating up, we are seeing quite a few buyers pipped at the post. The G Word (Gazump) is popping up again, and people are not sure what just hit them.
What does Gazumped mean?
Being Gazumped occurs when you verbally agree to buy a property, and then the seller (vendor) talks to someone else behind your back and sells to them, usually at a higher price. The next thing you find out is the vendor has exchanged contracts with someone else and you have lost the property.
But what about all that emotional energy, time & hundreds of dollars spent on pest inspections reports, solicitor costs, building reports, and moving plans? For those who have experienced this in recent weeks, we are certain you will not let it happen again.
What can you do to beat gazumping?
Exchanging contracts is the only way to beat gazumping. Unfortunately, a sale ain’t a sale until contracts are exchanged. English property laws dating back to 1677 require a binding agreement to be an “exchange of contracts”. The only exception is an auction whereby the highest bidder is bound to purchase the property after the auction.
What Can I Do NOW to Prepare for a quick property purchase?
The best thing to do is build a team of professionals ready for the big moment. They have done this 1000’s of times versus your 2 or 3 transactions, so make sure you leverage from their experience.
Here is a list of people to have on speed dial in your mobile phone:
* Accountant - know which name you are going to buy the property in, or what structure.
* Mortgage Broker – obtain solid finance approvals (learn the difference between pre-approvals, conditional approvals and final approvals). Find out your borrowing capacity.
* Solicitor or conveyance – They will read the contract for you and advise you on legal dscisions. ask the agent to send the contract as soon as possible to your solicitor, and have them in advise you through the “exchange” process. Also, know when you can use a cooling off period to give you more time to get prepared.
* Pest Inspector and Building Inspector - Apart from having guys crawl over the property for cracks and critters, find other consultants to check anything else that is flagged in the contract i.e. flood zoning, bushfire zones, heritage consultant, RTA reports for future roads through your house, conservation areas, mining subsidence, powerlines. There are consultants in every field to help you check out your property.
If you need help finding these people, call Plan Assist on 02 9449 2333 and find out who we recommend. We have a full list of consultants in any field.
Ever had trouble negotiating an option with a property owner?
Harry Charalambous, Buyers Agent and Property Expert, explains how to sweeten a Property Option Agreement to meet the vendor’s needs.
Most days, Harry negotiates and assists property investors in acquiring property using property options.
If you have found an investment or development site that works for you, yet you don’t know how to negotiate an option, call the team at Plan Assist on 02 9449 2333 and have Harry and the team help you secure favourable terms with ease.
THE Hunter Valley has emerged as one of Australia’s hottest places to invest in property thanks to the international resources boom.
A list released yesterday of the nation’s 10 best investment locations included the Hunter Valley coalfields, Glen Innes in the New England district and North Western NSW towns like Moree and Gunnedah.
Property researcher Terry Ryder said he chose the top 10 regions based on their low prices, strong rental returns and potential for growth.
“There has been so much media attention on affordability issues but it tends to focus almost exclusively on the major cities,” he said.
“That ignores all the good prospects in some of our regional centres.”
Decent four-bedroom homes in Muswellbrook, on the doorstep of the Hunter Valley’s coal mines and horse studs, were advertised online yesterday for as little as $198,000.
But real estate experts predict those prices will climb dramatically with the opening of a billion-dollar coal mine and expansion of transport and energy infrastructure.
Approved in 2007, the Mangoola coal mine is expected to see more than 1500 miners and their families move to the area, many of whom will need rental accommodation.
Muswellbrook real estate agent Phil Lawler said his agency took four deposits on homes in town yesterday.
“It’s a long, long time since I have seen such urgency in the marketplace,” he said.
“Rents are starting to increase dramatically, and that will start to turn investors’ heads.
“For $250,000 to $350,000 you can get a really attractive property up here that can return up to $600 in rent a week if furnished.”
Real Estate Institute of NSW president Wayne Stewart said the rural lifestyle on offer in the region added to its allure.
“Some of those areas are only an hour from the ocean and that is part of it as well,” he said.
According to the report, Glen Innes made it onto the list for its location at the junction of the New England and Gwydir highways, the quality of homes on offer and plans for new development in and around the town.
Mr Ryder, who runs the hotspotting.com.au website, said a planned inland rail link and mining expansion meant real estate in North Western NSW was also likely to boom.