Real estate agents say low prices and the proximity to the beach and local shops puts the south in a strong position for first time buyers and investors.

Latest statistics from RP Data show Christie Downs is the most affordable suburb in the Southern Times Messenger area, with median unit prices at $209,000, based on 10 sales in the past 12 months.

Reynella came in a close second at $210,000, based on 13 sales, followed by Morphett Vale at $228,250, based on 62 sales, and Port Noarlunga, at $253,000, based on 16 sales.

Timms Real Estate sales con-sultant Jason Mills, who is based at Christies Beach, said the demand for units in the area was increasing as buyers shifted their lifestyle priorities.

“With the majority of the population over 60, they don’t have the energy to maintain the garden of a larger house,” Mr Mills said.

“And the younger generation want a low maintenance lifestyle, where they can lock up the house and go to Melbourne for the weekend. These properties provide all of that … I wish I had 20 more of these types of properties to sell.”

Christies Beach Brock Harcourts sales manager Jayne Baily agreed.

“They do make a no-fuss investment because they are generally strata titles and they don’t have to worry abut maintaining gardens,” Ms Baily said. “Close proximity to amenities and transport represent value buying for the suburbs.”

The median sales price for units across Adelaide was $322,000, more than $100,000 more than units in Christie Downs and Reynella.

Christies Beach Century 21 sales consultant Margaret Kneebone said affordability was driving investment in the south. “Christie Downs is more price driven and a way for investors to get in the market,” Ms Kneebone said.

“But it’s close to the beach and Colonnades and it’s still affordable.

“It’s about lifestyle.”

Hallett Cove resident Taryn Allan – who bought a unit in Port Noarlunga in March as an investment – said you could not beat the south’s location.

“You’re right near Colonnades, you can walk to Christies Beach or Port Noarlunga and you also have all the wineries right nearby,” Ms Allan said.

“What’s not to love?”

Median unit prices
Christie Downs has a median unit price of $209,000 – based on 10 sales in the past 12 months
Reynella: $210,000 – based on 13 sales
Morphett Vale: $228,250 – based on 62 sales
Port Noarlunga: $253,000 – based on 16 sales
Christies Beach: $260,000 – based on 25 sales
Aldinga Beach: $281,250 – based on 16 sales
Seaford Meadows: $335,000 – based on 10 sales
*Source: RP Data. Based on sales in the past 12 months. Other suburbs had less than 10 sales and could not provide a median sale price.

Source: Southern Times Messenger

Is the answer to stay in it, sell it, or rent it out?

Now that the first of the baby-boomers are of official retirement age, the property and finance industries are dealing with more retirees and impending retirees than ever before. Experts are certain on one thing — there is no one right or wrong answer.

Personal circumstances, market movements (including real estate and share markets) and individual lifestyle choices are different for everyone.

Baby-boomers have taken a hit on their savings and super investments in recent years, but one silver lining for many is that the family home has been paid off and is now worth a whole lot more than it was a generation ago. Deciding on what to do with the empty nest will take a lot of homework, but here are a few ideas to make your home work for you.

Reversing gears

Reverse mortgages allow eligible homeowners to borrow up to a certain per cent of the value of their property, or investment property, and then repay the debt from its sale when they move out or pass away. Repayments can also be made at any time.

Belinda Williamson from Mortgage Choice says the group has a list of handy tips for anyone considering a reverse mortgage.

First, it is a good idea to discuss with family members the decision to take out a reverse mortgage, especially the beneficiaries of your estate, because a reverse mortgage will affect their inheritance.

The next step Mortgage Choice advises is to seek financial advice from an accountant to determine if a reverse mortgage meets your financial needs and desires, as well as a solicitor to satisfy any legal queries.

And anyone who may be on the borderline of receiving a pension should check in with Centrelink to assess any impacts a reverse mortgage could have on benefits.

Williamson also says getting help from a mortgage broker will help empty nesters find out how much they could borrow and to wade through the maze of products available.

Another option for empty nesters is to use the equity built up in the family home

to kick-start a property investment portfolio, renovate, or just to indulge a little.

“Depending on your financial circumstances, and the advice you receive from your accountant and/or financial planner, your home equity can be used for a wide range of purposes,” she says.

Room at the inn

In a recent survey by PRDnationwide, almost one in three homeowners would consider renting their spare room to help pay the mortgage. For empty nesters, renting out rooms in the big family home could not only fill the gap left by the kids moving out, it could bring in extra cash.

PRDnationwide’s research director, Aaron Maskrey, says the survey results were not surprising given the tough economic times.

“Renting out a spare room to generate extra cash could reduce the likelihood of suffering mortgage stress.

“Getting on to the property ladder is increasingly difficult for thousands of first-time buyers in Australia and, increasingly, homeowners are making unused space earn its keep,” Maskrey says, adding that finding a lodger has become easier with a range of websites advertising rooms to rent and flatmates.

Ian Agnew, NSW and ACT general manager of Archicentre, the building advisory service for the Australian Institute of Architects, says rethinking home design could be the answer to our metropolitan housing crisis.

He says for older Australians looking for a way to fund their retirement, purpose-built or redesigned properties could provide a healthy source of income.

“By designing a home with two separate entries and facilities for cooking, laundry and bathroom areas, plus private outdoor spaces, a new homebuyer can build in a rental return to help pay for the new home, which in the future can be expanded at a later time into a full-size home by a simple renovation that joins both zones,” he says.

He says it is taking the idea of the “granny flat” and taking it one step further because it provides an alternative option for baby boomers who want to downsize without actually leaving their home.

Move out and up

Kevin Young, founder and director of The Investors Club, which helps investors build property investment portfolios, says selling the family home to downsize might not be the best option for empty nesters today.

Stagnating property prices in many suburban areas and a tight rental market in our cities mean renting out the family home and leasing a smaller, more convenient property could be the best bet.

Young says empty nesters can trade in the lawnmower and pool equipment for a “lock up and leave” lifestyle in an apartment or villa.

“By not selling, you have a regular rental income and by renting a home elsewhere you avoid paying stamp duty and can change your mind after a year and try somewhere else if you want to,” he says.

“This method gives you flexibility and the chance to become a SKIN — that’s someone spending kids’ inheritance now,” Young says.

Whatever the decision, Young says it is imperative that these empty nesters put a plan into action.

“Too many people wait until a year or two after retirement to decide about their future. You’ve got to set yourself up before you retire because, while you’re still working, that’s when banks will still throw money at you, and you can set up a line of credit,” he says.

Source: realestate.com.au

The country’s top 10

Brewarrina in New South Wales takes the title of Australia’s cheapest suburb, with a median house price of just $35,000. In fact, NSW, is the best represented state in the top 10, with four suburbs making the list. Tasmania is home to three of Australia’s cheapest suburbs, while Queensland has two and South Australia one.

Source: RP Data, March 2012

Read on for a rundown of the 10 cheapest suburbs in South Australia….

Source: RP Data, March 2012

Source: Your Investment Property Magazine

In Queensland, a grant of $15,000 was provided to the Australian Leukodystrophy Support Group, whose aim is to provide assistance and information to those affected by Leukodystrophy and to support research into the disease.

$11,180 was granted to the Cancer Council Tasmania while a further $4,000 was provided to Alzheimer’s Australia in New South Wales.

Another $4,000 grant was provided to the Little Heroes Foundation in South Australia which offers support to children living with cancer and other serious illnesses, and their families.

The money granted will provide these charitable organisations with the funds to carry out important research and development projects, purchase vital equipment for those in need, and run significant community projects and services.

Mike Green, Managing Director of Harcourts International, is thrilled that The Harcourts Foundation is able to provide much needed support to local community groups and charitable organisations.

“I’m incredibly proud of The Harcourts Foundation and am so thankful that as an organisation we are able to help so many communities in need. Our local communities have supported us so well over the years and I’m thrilled that we are now in a position to give back to them,” Mr Green said.

Established in August 2008, The Harcourts Foundation aims to provide financial support that helps, grows and enriches local communities, and has received close to $1.5 million in donations from Harcourts staff, offices and clients around Australia and New Zealand in its first three and a half years of operation.

To date, all funds have been raised by dedicated Harcourts team members and clients in the form of fundraising events, auctions, workplace giving, individual donations or ‘off the top’ giving (a percentage calculated from each sales commission).

“The next round of grant applications has already begun, with the closing date being the 30^th of June 2012.

“I encourage all Australian charities to jump online at www.harcourtsfoundation.org and download the grant application form. We look forward to funding as many applicants as possible,” Mr Green said.

Be sure to look out for grant application deadlines:

• 1 April – 30 June 2012
• 1 July – 30 September 2012
• 1 October – 31 December 2012

http://wic003lc.server-web.com/~admin417/uploads/Auction%20Rates/Auct%20Clearance%2013%20May.pdf

And they’re being stung up to $280 a week just for a square of grass to set up camp.

Metropolitan caravan parks say they are at or near capacity and most campers sleeping in tents or caravans are not holiday-makers, but residents who cannot find a rental.

Rents in Perth have jumped 10 per cent in a year, with the median price now $420 a week and the official vacancy rate at just 1.6 per cent, according to the Real Estate Institute of WA.

It comes as estate agents report crowds of 50 or more would-be tenants turning up at home opens, and rental bidding wars becoming the norm.

Adding to the housing stress, WA’s population growth is outstripping all other states, with 60,700 people moving to the state in the year to September 2011.

Even highly paid fly-in, fly-out workers are also being forced to live at camping grounds, some wanting to avoid paying rent when they’re working away and others who simply cannot find a rental property.

Despite having a full-time job in the mining industry, Tom Shannon and his partner, Suezanne Leaker, have been knocked back for a roof over their head many times since moving from Melbourne.

They say they had no choice but to hire a tiny caravan and set up a temporary home with their four children at an eastern suburbs caravan park in February, paying almost $400 a week while desperately trying to find a permanent home.

“We went through homes nearly every day or second day looking for a house and there was always 30 people or more,” Ms Leaker said.

“We have no problems paying for a house. It would just be great to have a back yard and room for the children not to be on top of each other.”

Ms Leaker said housing in Perth had hit crisis point and caravan parks were now having to take formal applications to keep up with demand.

At another camping ground, qualified chef Brad Withyman and his wife said they had been living in a tent for five weeks while they searched for a home to rent. The camping ground was full of others struggling to find homes, Mr Withyman said.

“We just heard the same story over and over again with people saying, ‘God, you know, this is what we’re resorting to’,” he said.

Another camper, FIFO trades assistant Edward, told The Sunday Times he spent his downtime in Perth paying $240 a week for a tent site to avoid the hassle of finding a room.

At Crystal Brook Caravan Park in Orange Grove, southeast of Perth, the manager said campers were “screaming” for proper accommodation. “We’ve had people call and say they’ve got nowhere to go but we can’t help them,” he said.

Mission Australia WA state director Melissa Perry said the charity was seeing families who had never experienced such chronic housing stress.

“It’s just your ordinary Australians who are finding it really, really tough. We’ve had people asking for tents, sleeping bags, blankets, socks,” Ms Perry said.

Salvation Army spokesman Warren Palmer echoed the need for more to be done to help people keep their accommodation and prevent them sliding into homelessness.

Despite the shortage, REIWA said it expected the rental crisis to ease this year as more people decided to buy their own home and investors bought property to cash in on high rental prices.

The rising number of people living in tents comes a year after the death of Brett Spies, 48, and his children Ben, 16, and Georgie, 13, who died when fire ripped through their tent at Timbertop caravan park in Mandurah. The family were living there after being evicted from their rental property.

A patch of grass at Perth Vineyards Holiday Park in the Swan Valley is costing campers $240 a week for a powered site or $192 per week for an unpowered site, and campers can only stay for a maximum of 90 days.

Central Caravan Park in Ascot $273 a week including power costs, for a space in which to erect a tent for a maximum of 60 days.

Source: Perth Now

Rising Star – Alex Ouwens, Ben Clarence, Dale Gray, Bernadette Genua, Tony Dimasi and Graham Catt

Senior – Nathan Casserly, Karen Green, Hamish Mill, Nick Baranikow, John Joyce, Mark Sheppard and Steve von der Borch

Finalists – Nick Baranikow, Nathan Casserly and Mark Sheppard

Good Luck to Nick, Mark and Nathan in the finals!

—

Q – I am in the process of upgrading our balcony to retile it as the waterproofing appears to have broken down and we are getting some leakage below. The balcony has a fibre cement thick sheet base with a drainage point in the middle of the floor. We like the idea of large 600mm x 600m tiles, but how do I achieve the required falls to the outlet?

Robert, Unley

A – As you have found when out tiling an external balcony, every care must be taken to ensure the end result is waterproof. External balconies are also generally exposed to hot and cold weather as well as driving rain. It is particularly important to use waterproofing compounds and adhesives that are compatible with each other. Your tile supplier should be able to advise on the most cost effective suitable products to be used. Achieving the desirable falls or gradients is through the use of a tile screed laid to correct shape and fall. With large tiles some cutting may be required near the drainage outlet.

Advice provided by Antonio Tripodi, Colonial Tiling 8182 4309.

Q – Our council approval has recently been granted for a new home, but the council has applied a condition that the significant tree root zone must be protected from the footing excavations. What would they mean by this condition?

Leslie, Northfield

A – Council has applied the condition to ensure that no damage occurs to the root system of the tree during excavations and construction of the new dwelling. Care must be taken, or you will be in breach of the Development Act & Regulations. Depending on the size of the tree and therefore the spread of roots, the footing contractor must ensure no damage occurs. Should tree roots be discovered during any excavation appropriate advice should be sought.

Advice provided by HIA Consumer Information line 1902 973 555.

Q – My neighbour and I are building a 800mm high retaining wall between our properties and we will then be welding metal posts to the uprights of the retaining wall to facilitate a 1800mm fence on top of the retaining wall. Will this completed structure require Development Act approval?

Tony, Renmark.

A – The Development Act Regulations in Schedule 3 outline development that is considered not to be development requiring approval. Schedule 3 states that a fence not exceeding 2.1 metres in height when measured from the lower side does not constitute development, and a retaining wall not exceeding a metre in height is not development. However, when the 1.8 metre fence is welded to and uses the retaining wall as support, both structures combined would exceed the allowable 2.1 metres in height. A check with your local council would confirm if they intend to seek an application.

Advice provided by Alan Thomson, Manager Environmental Services, Northern Areas Council. 8664 1139.

Source: Adelaide Now

“The proposed changes are designed to variously benefit tenants and landlords by increasing protection and clarity for both, and reducing red tape and delays in the system,” deputy premier and minister for business services and consumers, John Rau, said in the discussion paper .

The Real Estate Institute of SA said it supports the review.

“The current Act is nearly 20 year old now, so the time’s right to look at what can be improved to make sure that the systems are streamlined and workloads are reduced for both industry and the government administering the laws,” REISA chief executive officer, Greg Troughton, said.

“A review is also timely to ensure that the balance is right to encourage investors into the market to accommodate for the growing need in the private residential rental market.”

“REISA will be consulting extensively with our property managers to confirm the areas which require discussion but straight off the bat, three key issues we’ll be looking at are bond provisions, exit times from an agreement and standards of hygiene and cleanliness for properties.”

The discussion paper is now available at www.yoursay.sa.gov.au with comments sought through to Friday June 15. Alternatively, industry professionals can email their comments to tenancies.review@agd.sa.gov.au This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

The decision by the SA government to review its Residential Tenancies Act follows recent moves by the WA government, which is also reviewing its tenancy laws.

REISA said the current bond amounts of up to six weeks simply don’t cover rental arrear risks and potential damage to the property. “A change to these amounts will give landlords greater protection and highlight to tenants the responsibility they have in looking after someone else’s investment,” REISA said.

REISA also wanted to see greater precision in how cleanliness and hygenie is defined, so more clearly stating this in the Act will give tenants more confidence that the property they are leasing is clean and habitable state.

“Then at the time of ending the agreement, they will be expected to replicate these conditions,” REISA said.

“In the situation of a periodic or fixed-term lease, the notice timeframes are not the same for landlord and tenant and REISA is keen to see these aligned so all parties are equal and understand their responsibilities,” the state body said.

“Changes in this area will give more clarity for everyone who is a party to the agreement.”

REISA said it’s also involved in a working group through Study Adelaide and the review of this Act will allow for more consideration of student accommodation in tenancies.

“Student accommodation is a growing market in the metropolitan area and we need to ensure that our tenancy laws provide support and adequate protection for this group who are contributing to our local economy,” Mr Troughton added.

Source: http://www.rebonline.com.au/breaking-news/5017-sa-to-review-tenancies-act

Prime Minister Julia Gillard last week announced a further $214 million would be allocated to the government’s Future Submarines program.

The money will pay for studies to inform the government on the best design for Australia’s next submarines.

A spokeswoman for the Osborne-based ASC (formerly the Australian Submarine Corporation) said, although the number of positions created by the work was uncertain, it was expected to provide current workers with long-term security.

“Without knowing which submarine design will be built, it’s difficult to speculate on the types of workers required,” the spokeswoman said.

“But the Future Submarine program will almost certainly require engineers and tradepersons.

“Whatever option is chosen, it’s going to mean lots of jobs and lots of work for Adelaide, that’s a given.”

Anthony Brdar, owner and director of Port Adelaide-based MG Engineering said the announcement was good news for the company.

The locally owned and family-run business employs 50 people including boiler-makers, welders and engineers.

“We want to do long-term work with ASC and it has given us a lot of confidence in moving forward and investing our money and has given all the staff at MG a lot confidence,” Mr Brdar said.

“Our ambition is to be involved with it, and we want to do the best we can.”

Director of Semaphore Brock Harcourts Stephen von der Borch said the flow-on effects from business investment in the area would have a positive effect on real estate.

Source: Portside Messenger