Can we summarise the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) Annual Report in 60 seconds? Sure, why not? The number of residential approvals to foreign buyers has been crippled over the past two years, from about 40,000 to 10,000. Show More
Investment Theme
In early 2018 I wrote on Livewire that the year ahead would be a mixed bag for housing, as tightness in markets like Hobart contrasted the negative outlook for Sydney, which appeared to be at a market-top. As the year played out, a number of the concerns raised came to... Show More
The elephant in the room for residential property is the ongoing pressure on banks' net interest margins. While the recent rise in funding costs has been well documented, this dynamic is persisting. Show More
We recently co-authored a detailed report with independent analysts RiskWise Property Research, following in-depth investigation, modelling and data analysis, assessing Labor’s proposed reforms to negative gearing and the capital gains (CGT) tax discount. Show More
In this report, we have isolated two of the leading indicators in Australia’s economy, namely building approvals and money growth, and highlighted some key themes arising from our findings. Our analysis is independent and takes account of evidence through liaison with industry contacts, combined with data. Show More
In our latest 50-page report for funds and institutional investors, Chemical Change, we’ve conducted a detailed consideration of shifts in mortgage lending standards, and the likely outcomes from these changes. Highlighted below are three immediate implications. Show More
We should expect to see variations around the country for residential housing in 2018. For example, the Hobart market is extremely tight and there will be ongoing price gains there, and some peri-urban regional markets in New South Wales & Victoria are tracking well. Overall, though, access to credit is... Show More
With the flow of new interest-only lending limited to 30% of the total, some existing borrowers may be about to discover that they are unable to roll over their interest-only loans, and they will be forced to start repaying principal. Show More
Given some recent potential headwinds, Livewire recently reached out for my thoughts on the residential property market, specifically what new drivers have emerged, what their implications are, and what data investors should be keeping a close watch on. Show More
The downside risks relating to Australia’s leveraged property market have been well documented, with the possibility of tighter lending rates on investment loans in 2017, and an oversupply of inner city apartments looming in Brisbane, Melbourne, and potentially Canberra. That said, we’ve known about the pipeline of apartments for a... Show More
With record numbers of attached dwelling completions expected over the next two years, the key data point to watch will be new apartment non-settlements. During reporting season, non-settlements on new apartments were generally either in line with, or below, long run averages. However, with Australia’s major financiers reluctant to lend... Show More
Over the next two years Australia's capital cities are due to see an unprecedented 231,129 units and apartments due to settle according to CoreLogic-RP Data research, with an associated risk of oversupply. The sub-regional data and disaggregated figures show that the high-rise sector plays host to the greatest risk, while... Show More
The ABS released its latest Finance & Wealth figures for Q2 2015 this week which showed household net worth surging to above $8.4 trillion in the June quarter. Show More
The ABS released its Residential Property Price Indexes for Q2 2015. Show More
With the monthly dollar value of investment loans having more than doubled since the beginning of 2012, the regulator APRA has become obliged to take action in order to cool the investor segment of the Australian property market. In the first 7 months of this calendar year the volume of... Show More
With skilled migration often having favoured those in the 21-30 age bracket - and with the average age of the first homebuyer having increased over time - there is presently a relative dearth of people in the first homebuyer age brackets. Show More
The latest Building Approvals figures from the ABS showed that the residential construction boom is set to break all manner of records. Show More
A new report from Credit Suisse estimates that Chinese investors will pump $60 billion of investment into Australian housing over the next 6 years, more than double that invested over the past 6 years at $28 billion. Show More
A much debated subject over the past year, there is now compelling evidence that Asian capital is impacting our property markets in a number of different ways. Show More
This week the ABS released its latest Regional Population Growth figures. Show More
Absolutely this is a key issue. Developments is much being skewed towards the new investor market, particularly offshore buyers - and particularly so in Melbourne and Sydney. We have changing demographics, but still we're building far too much high rise as the ABS data for 4+ storey units shows.
Thanks Dave - some of the unit values have certainly left me scratching my head, especially iron ore!
Good read DS. Resi construction may be trending higher in aggregate but new house building appears to have passed its cyclical peak which isn't so clever. Huge numbers of apartments underway, which is perhaps welcome from a construction spend perspective, but high-density apartment oversupply may introduce some systemic risk to housing markets too...
A bit of a surprise! Will be interesting to see what happens to commodity prices on Monday.
Good question. The good news is it will have a long tail - while building approvals have passed their peak, commencements are still trending up quite strongly, so the construction cycle could easily have another 2-3 years to run. We will know more on January 15 when the next round of Building Activity data is released, so watch this space.