ROSSLYN Park is emerging as an increasingly popular choice for eastern homebuyers, with the number of homes sold in the suburb almost doubling in the past 12 months.

The suburb recorded 22 house sales in 2011, up from 12 the previous year, the biggest jump of any local area.

Only 24 of 66 eastern and inner-southern suburbs met or exceeded 2010 sales numbers

Other suburbs to record significant increases in sales were Kings Park, Forestville and Stonyfell.

Real estate agents attributed Rosslyn Park’s popularity to its large blocks and proximity to the city, prestigious schools and shopping centres.

“It’s in the dress circle of eastern suburbs and just at the stage that you get some views of city,” Brock Harcourts Adelaide managing director Michael Brock said.

Brock Harcourts’ most recent sale in Rosslyn Park, a six-bedroom house on Hyland Tce, had set a new benchmark for the suburb, selling for $2.65 million.

LJ Hooker Kensington agent Mark Bressington said the suburb’s aesthetics, stately homes and convenient location were popular with buyers.

“Families are moving into area for schooling and are either able to knock down substantial homes and start again or live in the renovated homes which are there,” Mr Bressington said.

Anu Raju, who recently bought a house in Rosslyn Park with his wife Dildeepa Naveen, said they were attracted to the suburb because it was close to the city, schools and public transport and it was “calm and quiet”.

“We have two young kids and its close to…

FARMERS looking for value-for-money secondhand machinery should pick up a bargain this season at South Australian clearing sales.

Agents said while bigger machinery was difficult to move at the moment, livestock equipment was in strong demand.

The first auctions of the year with significant farming equipment were held at Malinong and Inman Valley on Friday, January 13.

Brock Harcourts agent Sue Brand, who ran the sale at Inman Valley on behalf of David and Beth Kay, said there was 111 registered bidders.

“They were almost exclusively from the Fleurieu Peninsula, but there was also interest from Victoria,” she said.

The top-selling items were a Mitsubishi 4WD, knocked down for $7500 and a Case IH 595 tractor that made $7000.

Fifty round bales of hay sold for $46 each, while cattle scales sold for $880.

There was strong bidding on portable sheepyard panels, which made $630.

One of the big ticket items, a Leyland tractor, failed to sell at auction.

Auctioneer Mark Forde said while there was a strong crowd of more than 300 people, prices were not over the top.

“Things are getting a bit tight, so it could be a good opportunity to get items without paying too much,” he said.

Spence Dix & Co agent Mark O’Leary said there were 113 registered bidders at the Malinong sale, but larger plant – such as headers and tractors – failed to sell. The sale was held at Dean Bagshaw’s property, which has been sold.

“It was a solid sale, but…

RENTERS are opening their wallets wide as prices skyrocket – even doubling in Glenelg in the past year.

The state’s premier seaside suburb saw a 100 per cent spike in average weekly house rent – from $245 to $490 – a snapshot of the rental market by real estate analyst RP Data shows.

The Bay is one of nine hot property sites across the state recording house rent rises in excess of 20 per cent last year compared with 2010.

Among the big movers were West Beach (up 40 per cent), Whyalla (38 per cent) Roxby Downs (29 per cent) and Royal Park (27 per cent).

Unit rents also soared more than 20 per cent in Warradale, Wayville, Salisbury, Rose Park and Mile End.

The Real Estate Institute of SA said a lack of buying commitment was driving greater demand for rental properties in popular locations.

“More people are wanting to move to luxury properties in suburbs like Glenelg and West Beach but they are taking the rental option instead of committing to buying a home,” institute president Greg Moulton said.

“The rental increases in places like Roxby and Whyalla are tied to more people moving up there to work as the increase in mining operations comes to fruition.”

But the average weekly cost of leasing homes was also falling in other locations, RP Data found, with the worse hit St Georges (down $175 to $475), Aldgate (down $128 to $473) and Newport Quays (down $90 to $360).

RP…

THIS year will herald the return of first-time homebuyers to the market, northeast real estate agents say.

But do not expect to make any big gains if you put your home on the market in 2012, as agents say significant growth is still three to five years away.

In the past two weeks, Ray White Northeast agent Shane Illman has sold four houses to first-home buyers and said he expected the trend to continue.

“This year I have seen a big increase in the number of new homebuyers coming to open inspections,” Mr Illman said.

“I expect that to continue during the year but it depends on the banks as well.

“You need bank support for home loans in order to get new homebuyers in the market.”

Mr Illman said that 2012, like 2011, would be a buyers’ market.

“If buyers can hold on to their houses for three, four or five years, they will definitely see some growth in the property value,” he said.

“But we aren’t going to see any quick gains in this market.”

As of September 2011, Vista, Golden Grove and Holden Hill were the best performing suburbs reporting increases in house prices of 13.9, 10.6 and 7.3 per cent respectively.

Highbury reported the biggest decrease in house prices of 4.3 per cent, while Modbury and Redwood Park both dropped 3.9 per cent, according to RP Data.

Toop & Toop Golden Grove agent Len Allington said buyers should continue to focus their attention on properties in…

A PLAN to build a $27 million retirement village on Mary St, Unley, has stalled.

The company behind the project, Unley Community Developments, put the site on the market late last year.

The development, between Mary and Arthur streets, would have included 94 units in four separate buildings up to three storeys high.

A company spokesman said the site was being sold to “maximise an immediate return for the asset” but would not comment further.

Brock Harcourts agent Michael Brock, who is handling the sale, said more than 30 potential buyers had expressed interest in the site.

He said there was a good chance the development would go ahead under new owners and expected the site to fetch more than $10 million.

“We are quite hopeful that there will be a decision in the next month or so,” Mr Brock said.

Aged and Community Services SA & NT chief executive Alan Graham said the Unley site was important because people moving into aged care accomodation needed local options.

“We will be monitoring it pretty carefully because that site has been designated for aged care-type living, that should continue,” Mr Graham said.

Unley Community Developments first proposed a $30 million, four-storey retirement village on the site in 2008 but the project stalled when the Supreme Court ruled that the proposal was non-complying for the zone.

The revised plan was lodged with Unley Council in 2010 and attracted 131 written representations from residents in opposition, and one in support of the proposal.…

PORT Adelaide, Aldinga Beach and Hackham are among the hottest suburbs for property investment, a real estate report says.

The “Fast 50 Hotspots” in the Smart Property Investment magazine were chosen based on their population growth, housing demand, income levels, employment, vacancy rates, previous capital growth and the current gross rental yields.

Six South Australian suburbs and towns made the 50. Also worth watching among them are Seaford, Port Augusta and Whyalla.

Hotspotting director Terry Ryder said growth in the SA economy would be reflected in the housing market.

“South Australia is emerging as the third-biggest resources state, boosted by the upcoming $30 billion expansion of Olympic Dam and many other multi-billion dollar ventures,” Mr Ryder said.

He chose Port Adelaide as his top property investment location.

“The Port Adelaide precinct, which will gain new facilities from the resources expansion, also has the Techport facility at which the Air Warfare Destroyer fleet is being built (and) nearby suburbs offer a seaside lifestyle and affordability.”

Buyer’s agent Todd Hunter said Aldinga Beach was a case of “build it and they will come” with a population shift to the beachside suburbs.

“Since this shift, the councils and Government have announced a new highway and rail line,” he said.

“This is a direct result of significant increase in the population.”

Real Estate Institute of SA president Greg Moulton urged buyers to be cautious in some of the recommended suburbs.

“Port Adelaide at the moment has a lot of property on the market…

Harcourts, which has real estate offices in 10 countries, has rung in the New Year with strong sales results.

Harcourts’ Australian offices posted a 20 per cent year-on-year increase in sales in November 2011, while the group’s New Zealand offices booked an increase of 34 per cent in the same period.

“These results are simply fantastic and I believe the figures are proof that there are buyers out there and that a strong level of investor confidence is returning to the market,” Mike Green, managing director of Harcourts International, said.

In November, Harcourts posted sales totalling over $1.7 billion across its Australian and New Zealand operations, slightly above the Group’s December total of just over $1.4 billion.

Within Australia, Harcourts’ New South Wales operations reported a 99 per cent lift in sales from December 2010 to December 2011, while Harcourts Western Australia posted a lift of 89 per cent, and Harcourts Tasmania’s sales increased by 44 per cent over the same period.

Furthermore, Harcourts Queensland reported a lift of 14 per cent from December 2010 to December 2011, despite the devastation brought by the state’s natural disasters.

“The state-based figures are incredibly encouraging, particularly given the uncertainty experienced within the property market during 2011.

“The Queensland results are also exceptional given the devastation caused by the floods. It’s fantastic to see such a strong level of activity within the state,” Mr Green said.

Overall, Harcourts’ strong finish in 2011 has continued into 2012 with increased activity already being reported in…

Auctioneer Will Hampson discusses why the Country’s leading agents embrace Auction.

Understanding the benefits of auction and having a belief that the process works is the first step towards joining other top agents. Auction is a superb method of sale to market property for your clients; so many agents around the country are embracing auctions to sell more property in less time and are achieving great results.

So why is it that the leading agents in our country embrace auction in a big way?

The top 20 per cent of agents in Australia understand by maximising the exposure of their client’s property with a world class marketing campaign – combining print and digital marketing – to attract as many buyers as possible to the property, then putting a time frame on the sale, they are giving the property and their vendor an increased opportunity to achieve a premium unconditional sale.

In taking a property to auction your average days on market are reduced by putting a set time frame on the sale. When a property is put to auction in a competitive environment we often see record prices achieved or sales that exceed owners’ and sometimes even agents’ expectations. On the flipside it is very rare to see a private treaty property sell above the asking price.

Agents who utilise auctions regularly understand the benefit of having a crowd of 50 to 100, or even 300 people, seeing them in action negotiating with their…

he Real Estate Institute of South Australia expects the housing industry in the Upper Spencer Gulf to become a sellers’ market in 2012.

That would be a turnaround from the past 12 months.

For Port Augusta real estate agent Michael Rowbottom, 2011 was a tough year.

“Buyers were certainly taking advantage of those conditions with an oversupply of houses for sale,” he said.

The latest data from the real estate institute shows the median house price dropped in Port Augusta by 30 per cent and by 16 per cent in Port Pirie during the past 12 months.

However, the Institute’s president, Greg Moulton, says that should change in the year ahead.

“We are expecting Whyalla actually to pick up quite strongly through 2012,” he said.

“I think you’ll find Port Augusta and Port Pirie will get dragged along with that.”

He says there are already signs of a rebound after consecutive interest rate cuts late last year.

Source: abc.net.au