The Real Estate Conversation

Contact

At $310,000, could this be the cheapest property in Sydney's eastern suburbs?

It's bright and sunny, it's freshly painted and has new carpet, it's in Sydney's fashionable inner-city suburb of Paddington. And it's on the market for $310,000.

International National

Design

25 Australian architects make World Architecture Festival shortlist

The shortlist for the World Architecture Festival has been revealed, and 25 Australian architects have made the cut.

Queensland (Qld)Brisbane

Featured Property

'Cremorne', built in 1905 high on Hamilton Hill, overlooks the Brisbane River and CBD

'Cremorne' - the immaculate estate that fuses history with award winning, contemporary design - is for sale for $6.35 million with Sarah Hackett and Damian Hackett of Place Bulimba.

National New South Wales (NSW)Sydney South Australia (SA)Adelaide Victoria (Vic.)Melbourne

The Economy

Auction clearance rates stuck in 60s for five weeks as chill sets in

We take a look at last week's auction markets in Adelaide, Melbourne, and Sydney.

Queensland (Qld)Brisbane

People

Get to know architect Elizabeth Watson Brown, design director with Architectus

Elizabeth Watson Brown came to the 'slow art' of architecture through a love of ancient history, archaeology, anthropology, and art, and is fascinated by the process of transforming ideas into inhabitable places. She was a key collaborator on the design for the major new Brisbane development, 443 Queen Street.

New South Wales (NSW)Sydney

People

McGrath boosts Sydney's Upper North Shore team

Former elite soldier, Glenn Curran, has built a strong real estate platform in Sydney's Upper North Shore.

Victoria (Vic.)Melbourne Collingwood

Featured Property

Owner-architect designed ‘The Courtyard House’ merges contemporary home with Gothic Revival church

Designed by owner-architect Ilana Kister, 'The Courtyard House' in Collingwood extends from the former St Saviour church; it has been nominated for architecture prizes and featured in magazines. The home is for sale through Rick Daniel and Arch Staver of Nelson Alexander Fitzroy.

International New South Wales (NSW)Sydney Tasmania (Tas.)Hobart Victoria (Vic.)Melbourne

The Economy

Sydney, Melbourne, Hobart climb Knight Frank global price-growth index

Knight Frank has released its latest Global Residential Cities Index: Sydney is up from 30th place to 23rd, Melbourne is up from 28th to 24th, and Hobart has rocketed from 77th position to 34th.

Western Australia (WA)Perth

The Economy

Pace of decline in Perth property prices steadied in June quarter

Though 54% of sellers had to lower their asking price in the three months to June, the size of the discount has levelled out at 6.5%, preventing the median price from falling futher.

Queensland (Qld)

Featured Property

Glass House Mountain views from this architecturally designed 40-acre property on Mount Mee

A private getaway that doesn't compromise on quality: this property is for sale with Terry Ward of Ray White Wamuran.

Pages

News Roundup

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/16/nyregion/robert-durst-subject-of-hbo-documentary-on-unsolved-killings-is-arrested.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=first-column-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news&_r=0

New York real estate scion arrested

The eccentric and estranged son of one of New York’s most prominent real estate dynasties, Robert Durst, was arrested on a charge of murder at a New Orleans hotel on the weekend. The arrest follows the airing of a six-part HBO documentary about him and the deaths of three people over the course of three decades.

The New York Times

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/property/barangaroo-sydney-harbour-views-to-come-with-50m-price-tag/story-fn9656lz-1227259094883

Barangaroo: Sydney Harbour views to come with $50m price tag

Lend Lease is set to slap a $50 million-plus price tag on penthouses in the Renzo Piano-designed One Sydney Harbour complex at Barangaroo South, making them the most expensive apartments to be marketed in Australia. The group is yet to finalise its internal designs for the three apartment towers, but sources said the company would probably market “more than one” apartment in the complex for more than $50m.

The Australian

http://www.news.com.au/finance/economy/move-to-this-australian-capital-city-if-you-want-a-beautiful-home-and-cash-to-spare/story-e6frflo9-1227258803657

Move to Canberra

It's the Australian city where homeowners have the biggest disposable income. But most people wouldn’t think that moving here would help them have a life. This is Canberra, the capital notorious for being the county’s most boring metropolis.

news.com.au

http://www.macrobusiness.com.au/2015/03/crime-commission-targets-foreign-property-buyers/

ACC questions real estate agents

The noose is tightening on foreigners laundering money into Australian property, with the Australian Crime Commission (ACC) questioning real estate agents in expensive Melbourne eastern suburb locations, which are known to be hotspots for overseas buyers.

Macro Business

http://www.yourmortgage.com.au/article/research-finds-more-first-homebuyer-activity-in-queensland-wa-197903.aspx

Research finds more first homebuyer activity in Queensland, WA

New research has revealed dramatically varied levels of first home buyer activity across Australia’s states, where New South Wales emerged to have the smallest percentage of first home buyers entering the market. Mortgage Choice’s new data found NSW’s first home buyers accounted for less than one in every 20 loans written.

Your Mortgage

http://www.afr.com/p/business/property/property_boom_home_owner_dream_in_wIAnZ6MvqHU82AZ2bvlx2J

Property boom a $55M home owner's dream in St Leonards

Nine home owners in St Leonards on Sydney's lower north shore have grouped together to create a development lot that could yield more than 200 apartments and a multi-million dollar pay day. Residents on Holdsworth Avenue and Canberra Street have appointed JLL agents Sam Brewer and Ben Hunter to market their nine homes in one line, spanning a total of more than 5700 square metres. Some estimates suggest that the properties could fetch a combined price of up to $55 million.

The Australian Financial Review

http://www.forbes.com/sites/carlapassino/2015/03/05/german-real-estate-why-investors-are-buying-it-now/

German Real Estate: Why Investors Are Buying It Now

Germany may soon compete with London on the international real estate arena. Ultra-high-net-worth investors are increasingly interested in cities such as Berlin and Munich, which have seen a marked increase in activity in the last year.

Forbes

http://blogs.wsj.com/expat/2015/03/05/top-20-most-affordable-latin-american-cities-for-real-estate-which-is-no-1/

Top 20 Most Affordable Latin American Cities for Real Estate

The survey of 20 top property markets in Central and South America conducted by Live and Invest Overseas over the past three months identifies Cali, Colombia, as the most affordable on a per-square-meter basis. The survey considered the cost of two-bedroom apartments of 75 to 100 square meters in each market.

The Wall Street Journal