High-risk lending during the recent property boom has left thousands of Australians penniless and homeless, indicating there is a major gap in the regulation of the property investment market.
About 4,000 people have lost approximately $300 million in the collapse of Perth property developer Westpoint Corporation due to high-risk lending schemes.
Real Estate Consumer Association president and [...]
HOUSE prices in Melbourne, Perth and Canberra rose significantly in the December quarter, according to a report released yesterday by the Real Estate Institute of Australia and Mortgage Choice Australia.
Canberra house prices rose 5.1 per cent to a median of $328,000 while Melbourne prices jumped 5.6 per cent to $375,000, the report said.
Perth prices [...]
A NEAR-record month for home lending in December has seen the housing and real estate industry turn into 2006 with wind in its sails and record numbers of people taking out loans to buy their own homes.
The Bureau of Statistics reported yesterday that the total amount lent for housing in December was the second highest [...]
Giving the bathroom the attention it deserves increases a home’s value and will return the investment when it’s time to sell, according to First National Real Estate NSW state manager Michael McCaffery.
“Bathrooms and kitchens are the most popular rooms in the home. They’re a priority to homebuyers and are the biggest factors in the [...]
Borrowers are less likely to get burnt if they know the types of commissions paid to brokers by banks and other lenders, George Liondis writes.
MOST people go to a mortgage broker because they want independent advice. After all, you can’t trust the banks, can you?
What most people do not realise is the extent of the [...]
TREASURER Peter Costello is under pressure from the Government’s back bench to more than double grants for first-home buyers to $15,000.
Gold Coast Liberal MP Steven Ciobo, who is part of a ginger group agitating for tax reform, yesterday said the existing $7000 grant was not enough to help first-time buyers enter the property market.
Mr [...]
SHE cited stress for failing to appear in a Perth court last week, but the temptation of designer stilettos proved too great for millionaire socialite Rose Porteous yesterday.
Flanked by her real estate agent husband Willie, the controversial personality made an hour plane journey from Melbourne to Sydney especially to attend a launch party to celebrate [...]
A NEAR-record month for home lending in December has seen the housing and real estate industry turn into 2006 with wind in its sails and record numbers of people taking out loans to buy their own homes.
The Bureau of Statistics reported yesterday that the total amount lent for housing in December was the second highest [...]
Homeowners are likely to be spared an interest rate rise for much of the year, with the Reserve Bank signalling inflation largely under control across the Australian economy.
Although warning it might still raise rates if there were an inflation breakout, the central bank actually reduced its expectations for price increases.
But it did warn there were [...]
A SMALL Tasmanian town has been named one of the most sought-after destinations in Australia.
The picturesque seaside town of Low Head, on the north coast at the mouth of the Tamar River, is among a monthly magazine’s “top 10 most desirable towns for a sea change” .
The Wish magazine, published monthly in The Australian [...]