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Featured Property

Three-storey penthouse in Sydney's historic Rocks on the market for $18m

A three-level, four-bedroom luxury penthouse in the celebrated Stamford Residences is for sale through Michael Lowdon of Ray White Residential.

National

Australian real estate gets its own Monopoly board

Orange ranks with Sydney Harbour as the nation's most prestigious locations on the new Australian Monopoly board.

New South Wales (NSW)Sydney

The Economy

Cooler weather slows NSW rental market: REINSW

Sydney vacancy rates edged higher to 1.8 per cent in May, but a rate below 2 per cent shows the market is still stressed, says John Cunningham.

Queensland (Qld)Gold Coast

Featured Property

Surfers Paradise home built for Matsushita family, founders of Panasonic empire, for sale

Originally designed by American architect Edward Larrabee for the Matsushita family, this iconic riverfront home is for sale through Robert Graham of Ray White Prestige Surfers Paradise.

National

The Economy

BMT’s top ten tips for tax time

Bradley Beer of BMT Tax Depreciation lists his top tips to help you make the most of your investment property at tax time.

International

London fire: Could it happen here?

As reports begin to emerge that external cladding caused the London fire to spread so quickly, many in Australia are beginning to ask could the same thing happen here?

International

Design

Pinterest names its top interior trends for 2017

Watercolour wallpaper, plywood kitchens, and 1970s furniture are in style right now.

Western Australia (WA)

Featured Property

An exquisitely designed and built home on Geographe Bay, WA, is for sale

An architect designed and custom built home fronting the serene Toby Inlet in Dunsborough, Western Australia, is for sale through Ben Jecks of JMW Real Estate Dunsborough.

National

The Economy

Great Australian dream still alive, just different

The average age of the Australian first-home buyer has remained remarkably consistent at around 32 years, according to the new CommBank Connected Future Report.

New South Wales (NSW)Sydney

People

Laing+Simmons embarks on new franchise model

Laing+Simmons opened its first example of a new business model last week with the opening of a Liverpool office that will be partly owned by the group.

Pages

News Roundup

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-18/morgan-stanley-fund-to-exit-a-9-billion-of-australian-properties

Morgan Stanley Fund exits Australian real estate

Morgan Stanley’s property unit appointed advisers as it seeks to exit its $9 billion real estate business in Australia. Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investing said in a statement it plans to sell its holding in Investa Property Group, Australia’s third-biggest owner of city center offices, and that UBS AG and Morgan Stanley Australia would “explore strategic alternatives.”

Bloomberg

http://www.afr.com/p/folkestone_increases_profit_as_platform_nQlf1ytiA6biuRy4iOS0gI

Folkestone profits soar

Sydney-based fund manager Folkestone has posted a 2014-15 interim net profit of $2 million, which is 23 per cent higher than previously. Headed by property veteran Greg Paramor, the boutique manager boosted funds under management to $870 million, across a range of syndicates and development opportunities.

The Australian Financial Review

http://www.architectureanddesign.com.au/comment/preparing-for-the-worst

New scorecard for measuring resilience to disaster

The United Nations’ Office for Disaster Risk Reduction scorecard measures how well prepared a city is for a disaster, including responding to and recovering from it. Developed by engineering and IT giants AECOM and IBM, the scorecard has extensive assessment categories based on the UN’s Ten Essentials for urban resilience.

Architecture & Design

http://www.news.com.au/finance/real-estate/chinese-househunters-click-on-victorian-real-estate-listings/story-fncq3era-1227224368399

Victoria first choice for Chinese buyers

Property portal myfun.com, owned by REA Group, says Victoria was the most clicked state among Chinese buyers in 2014. The site was designed by REA Group to showcase Australian property to Chinese buyers.

news.com.au

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/indigenous/property-red-tape-stifles-aborigines-tim-wilson/story-fn9hm1pm-1227224642501

Property red tape stifles Aborigines

The ability of indigenous Australians to reach their full potential is being undermined by legal and regulatory restrictions on their freedom to exercise property rights in Aboriginal communities, says Human Rights Commissioner Tim Wilson.

The Australian

http://www.theage.com.au/business/online-property-transaction-system-pexa-tipped-to-cut-conveyancing-costs-20150217-13grh0.html

Online property transaction system PEXA tipped to cut conveyancing costs

Property sellers and buyers could find that settlement times drop to one week and conveyancing costs fall 25 per cent under a new online property transaction system. The $100 million Property Exchange Australia e-conveyancing platform began full digital property transfer services in NSW last November and rolled out similar services in Victoria two weeks ago.

The Age

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/02/17/genworth-mtg-ins-westpac-contract-idUSL4N0VR2AD20150217

Westpac scraps mortgage insurance deal with Genworth

Genworth Mortgage Insurance Australia Ltd, the Australian affiliate of United States Genworth Financial Inc, said on Tuesday Westpac gave the company 90 days' notice that it was ending a sales agreement after a review of its riskier loans, a move that will hit the insurer's 2016 earnings. The cancellation came after the bank reviewed all new residential loans with a loan-to-value ratio of more than 90 percent.

Reuters

http://www.9news.com.au/national/2015/02/17/11/27/people-struggling-to-survive-as-western-australian-mining-boom-grinds-to-a-halt

WA mining boom grinds to a halt

The once-booming real estate market in Port Hedland has collapsed in the past year, with more than 400 homes available to rent – unheard of at the height of the mining golden years.

9 News