Top 10 articles 2017 The Real Estate Conversation

From Melbourne's most affordable suburbs, to the owner of its most expensive mansion. From a unique Adelaide water-tower home, to a global bank's Aussie lending blackspots. The Real Estate Conversation's readers are interested in the full gamut of property-related news.

Image: skeeze via Pixabay.

Our readers have a strong interest in articles based on data about the Melbourne property market.

The Real Estate Conversation's top 10 articles for 2017 reflect the broad scope of our coverage. From Melbourne's most affordable suburbs, to the owner of its most expensive mansion. From a unique Adelaide water-tower home, to a global bank's Aussie lending blackspots. The Real Estate Conversation's readers are interested in the full gamut of property-related news.

But one trend stands out: our readers appear to have a strong interest in the Melbourne property market. Our top-three stories were based on data from the REIV about Melbourne's most expensive and most affordable suburbs. The high level of interest could reflect Melbourne's large investor market.

1. Melbourne's most expensive suburbs per square metre

The article received more than 12,000 page views in 2017, and readers spent on average more than 5 minutes on the page. These results indicate to us that our readers have a strong interest in real estate data, particularly Melbourne-based data because the city has a strong investor market.

The article was published last year, but is still receiving strong traction until the present day.

South Melbourne was the most expensive suburbs per square metre, at $11,212 per sqm, according to the REIV. South Melbourne has undergone a "rebirth" in the last decade, according to the article. REIV CEO Geoff White said, "Greater demand for space within walking distance of the city has really pushed up the price of land in (the) areas."

Image: South Melbourne.

2. and 3. Melbourne's most affordable suburbs.

It seems our readers are interested to find out where the best value lies in the Melbourne property market. The first article was published in 2016, and is still well viewed by our readers. The second article was a revised and updated version based on the then current REIV data, and was published in May 2017.

At the time it was published, Melton West was Melbourne's most affordable suburb, with a median house price of $346,000. Joseph Walton, the then president of the REIV, said "Melbourne’s outer suburbs continue to offer value for money with many of the city’s most affordable areas also experiencing solid annual price growth." Infrastructure spending in Melbourne's outer suburbs was also likely to cause prices to keep rising, he said.

4. The top five suburbs in Australia for price growth

Western Australia's Geraldton was Australia's top suburb for price growth, with growth of 118 per cent based on Real Estate Investar data. Geraldton is located between Perth and the Pilbara, and therein lies its appeal. The city has well established infrastructure, a strong local business community, and apartments along the shoreline have stunning views of the marina.

Image: Apartments with views of the Batavia Coast Marina sell for more than $1 million.

5. Homes designed for the telecommuter: is this the future of home and work

It's understandable that The Real Estate Conversation's readers will be interested in what the future of real estate looks like. This article looked at two developments where home and work life happened under the same roof. Mirvac's Cargo Homes at Wharf's Entrance in Melbourne provides a generous ground-floor space that can be used as an office, with its own kitchenette, linen cupboard, and bathroom. The living areas are on the upper floors.

Elysa Anderson, general manager of Mirvac Residential, Victoria, said, "We listen and learn from our customers in order to understand their lives and their needs, and design residences that fit their changing lifestyles."

"We discovered more working professionals are working either exclusively from home offices, or a combination of the workplace and home office."

The second project was Monarch, located in Sydney's Mosman. Centrally located on Military Road, the development included a one-bedroom apartment with space for a study and shopfront. People are "looking for these flexible live / work spaces," said Tom Doran of Doran Commercial.

6. Brisbane to be major city within decade: Bernard Salt

This article received 452 Facebook shares. The Brisbane property market has had a mixed year. High-end real estate is still selling well, but concerns about oversupply are weighing down the apartment sector.

High-profile demographer Bernard Salt, who infuriated millenials when he said they should stop eating smashed avo on toast if they want to save for a house, wrote a report called 'Imagining Brisbane in 2027'. He predicted the city will be in the "major metropolitan league with Sydney and Melbourne" within a decade.

7. "Majestic" Semaphore water-tower home with 360-degree views for sale

Our readers loved this property as much as we did. The word 'unique' is bandied about a lot in real estate, but this water-tower home in Adelaide's Semaphore was the real deal. With 360-degree views from the 30-metre tower, a great location in the heart of a cosmopolitan village and within walking distance of the beach, and adjoining apartments, this was truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

The property sold at auction for $1.2. million. The Sydney buyers, a family with young children, hadn't actually seen the property in person but had a friend inspect it for them.

8. Chinese national Qi Yang confirmed as buyer of Melbourne's $40m Toorak mansion

The Real Estate Conversation was one of the first media outlets to report this story before more details become available. Our readers are interested in finding out about who is buying Australia's highest-end real estate.

9. Victoria's removal of stamp duty exemption for OTP buyers 'final nail in coffin'

We spoke to Sam Tarascio, managing director of Victoria's largest developer Salta Properties, about the Victorian government's decision to scrap the stamp duty exemption for buyers purchasing off-the-plan. He told us "the government has got it badly wrong." He said buying new property will be less attractive for investors, and the new policy could mean a decrease in the supply of new homes.

10. Citi clamps down on lending in 'blackspot' suburbs

Our report on Citigroup's lending crackdown on 90 suburbs resonated with our readers. Sometimes it's just as useful to know where not to buy, as it is to know where the latest hotspots are.