L67 Property Operators and Real Estate Services

Home affordability shapes as key issue

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Original article by Matthew Cranston
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 : 22-Dec-16

Tim Lawless of CoreLogic says housing affordability is likely to be a major issue in 2017. CoreLogic has co-authored a report which shows that while 86 per cent of a household’s income was required to save a 20 per cent deposit for a home in September 2001, this had blown out to 139 per cent in September 2016. It has risen from 117 per cent to 168 per cent in Sydney over the last 15 years, and from 93 per cent to 143 per cent in Melbourne. Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison argues that insufficient housing supply is the main cause of unaffordability, a view shared by leading property groups.

CORPORATES
CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, URBAN DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE OF AUSTRALIA, STOCKLAND – ASX SGP, FRASERS PROPERTY AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Troubled Estia puts Weiss in charge

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Original article by Sarah-Jane Tasker
The Australian – Page: 19 & 23 : 13-Dec-16

Australian-listed Estia Health has advised that Gary Weiss will succeed Pat Grier as chairman of the aged-care group. Weiss became a director of Estia in 2015, following its acquisition of Kennedy Health Care. Estia will undertake a $A136.8m capital raising in order to reduce its debt, with the new shares to be offered at $A2.10 apiece. Estia shares were fetching $A2.68 on 12 December 2016, prior to a trading halt ahead of the capital raising.

CORPORATES
ESTIA HEALTH LIMITED – ASX EHE, KENNEDY HEALTH CARE, JAPARA HEALTHCARE LIMITED – ASX JHC, REGIS HEALTHCARE LIMITED – ASX REG, SUMMERSET GROUP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX SNZ

Negative gearing not to blame

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Original article by Philip Baker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 1-Dec-16

Negative gearing is unfairly blamed for distorting Australia’s residential property market. However, house prices are rising because of record low interest rates. Cheap credit makes property acquisitions attractive to investors. Falling house prices in Perth suggest that property is not necessarily an attractive asset in all circumstances. BIS Shrapnel expects this trend to continue.

CORPORATES
BIS SHRAPNEL PTY LTD, BETASHARES CAPITAL LIMITED

Negative gearing not to blame

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Philip Baker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 26 : 1-Dec-16

Negative gearing is unfairly blamed for distorting Australia’s residential property market. However, house prices are rising because of record low interest rates. Cheap credit makes property acquisitions attractive to investors. Falling house prices in Perth suggest that property is not necessarily an attractive asset in all circumstances. BIS Shrapnel expects this trend to continue.

CORPORATES
BIS SHRAPNEL PTY LTD, BETASHARES CAPITAL LIMITED

Airbnb popularity with landlords puts squeeze on rental market

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Original article by Misa Han
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 28-Nov-16

The number of homes in Sydney’s central and eastern suburbs that are listed as short-stay accommodation on Airbnb now significantly exceeds the number of residential properties that are available to rent. Data from the University of Sydney’s Urban Housing Lab also shows that property owners can earn significantly more each month by letting their homes via Airbnb rather than seeking longer-term rental tenants.

CORPORATES
AIRBNB AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY, HEYTOM

Investor home loans on the rise as building approvals hit peak

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Original article by Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 11-Nov-16

Lending to residential property investors increased by 4.6 per cent to $A12.4 billion in September 2016, from the previous month. Lending to owners-occupiers, excluding refinancing of existing mortgages, declined slightly to $A13 billion. Jo Masters, a senior economist at the ANZ Bank, says house prices continue to rise, auction clearance rates are high and building approvals are also high, but this trend may not be sustainable.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, COMMONWEALTH SECURITIES LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY FORUM, HOUSING INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION LIMITED

Shock win ‘will boost local real estate sales’

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Original article by Scott Murdoch
The Australian – Page: 4 : 10-Nov-16

Donald Trump’s US presidential victory is likely to result in an interest rate rise in the US, increasing the likelihood of a cut in Australia’s 1.5 per cent official cash rate. LJ Hooker’s head of research Matthew Tiller says foreign investors will be less willing to invest in US property, and Chinese buyers in particular are likely to switch to Australia.

CORPORATES
LJ HOOKER (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, REPUBLICAN PARTY (UNITED STATES), REA GROUP LIMITED – ASX REA, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Sydney houses cement price growth

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Original article by Su-Lin Tan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 2-Nov-16

Data from CoreLogic shows that house prices in Sydney increased by 10.2 per cent year-on-year in October 2016. House prices in Sydney also rose by more than 10 per cent year-on-year in September, after recording single-digit growth since February. Tim Lawless of CoreLogic says the Reserve Bank is likely to adopt a cautious approach to further easing of monetary policy due to rising house prices and high auction clearance rates in Sydney and Melbourne.

CORPORATES
CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, SQM RESEARCH PTY LTD, STANDARD AND POOR’S CORPORATION, MOODY’S INVESTORS SERVICE INCORPORATED

Scene set for Kidman bidding war

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Original article by Kylar Loussikian, Sue Neales
The Australian – Page: 4 : 28-Oct-16

Directors of S. Kidman & Company have endorsed a $A386.5m offer for the pastoral business from Gina Hancock’s Hancock Prospecting and China-based Shanghai CRED. However, the BBHO consortium has signalled that its $A386m offer could potentially be increased. The Hancock-Shanghai CRED deal must be approved by the Foreign Investment Review Board, and Rinehart has indicated that Hancock will acquire full ownership of Kidman if the joint bid is rejected. BBHO has emphasised the all-Australian nature of its bid.

CORPORATES
S KIDMAN AND COMPANY PTY LTD, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, SHANGHAI CRED REAL ESTATE STOCK COMPANY LIMITED, BBHO, AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, ONE NATION PARTY, NICK XENOPHON TEAM, GLOBAL FARMLAND FUND, SHANGHAI PENGXIN GROUP COMPANY LIMITED

Different rules for Rinehart, say farmers

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Original article by Sue Neales
The Australian – Page: 5 : 25-Oct-16

BBHO syndicate member Sterling Buntine fears that its $A386 million bid for S. Kidman & Company will not be treated fairly by the board. Buntine stressed that a rival bid from Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting and Shanghai CRED is inferior on two counts, namely being lower at $A365 million and requiring approval from the Foreign Investment Review Board.

CORPORATES
S KIDMAN AND COMPANY PTY LTD, HANCOCK PROSPECTING PTY LTD, SHANGHAI CRED REAL ESTATE STOCK COMPANY LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD, BBHO