Lot release ‘too slow in NSW’

Original article by Tim Binsted
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 18 : 26-Nov-14

Brickworks MD Lindsay Partridge believes that the limited supply of land for residential development is contributing to the rising cost of homes in New South Wales. He has urged the State Government to accelerate the release of new housing lots, arguing that it should be making 10 times more lots available than at present. Meanwhile, Brickworks achieved 14 per cent growth in revenue year-on-year in the first quarter of 2014-15

CORPORATES
BRICKWORKS LIMITED – ASX BKW, CIMB SECURITIES INTERNATIONAL (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD

No charges, but watchdog takes civil action after LM property collapse

Original article by Ben Butler, Roseanne Barrett
The Australian – Page: 19 : 21-Nov-14

The Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) is bringing a civil action against real estate investor Peter Drake, but it will not pursue criminal charges. His LM fund management firm raised $A800m-plus from small retail shareholders before failing in 2013. The watchdog alleges that Drake channelled $A26m to personal spending, and that director’s duties were breached in approving the loans by LM’s Francene Mulder, Eghard van der Hoven, Simon Jeremy Tickner and Lisa Maree Darcy

CORPORATES
LM INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT LIMITED, LM ADMINISTRATION PTY LTD, LM MANAGED PERFORMANCE FUND, AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, MADDISON ESTATE PTY LTD, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS, ERNST AND YOUNG

Surge likely for China investment

Original article by Rowan Callick
The Australian – Page: 28 : 19-Nov-14

Ross Hamilton of Ernst & Young forecasts that Chinese investors will ramp up their investment in Australian commercial property to $A8bn a year due to the free trade agreement. He notes that Chinese investment in the sector has totalled just $A24bn over the last seven years. Greenland Australia MD Luo Xiaohua says the Chinese group has invested $A2bn in Australia to date

CORPORATES
ERNST AND YOUNG, SHANGHAI GREENLAND GROUP COMPANY LIMITED, WANDA GROUP

A-REITs outperform

Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 29 : 12-Nov-14

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 A-REIT Index gained 6.8 per cent in October 2014, recovering from a sharp sell-off early in the month. Morgan Stanley has an overweight position on a number of listed property trusts, while Goldman Sachs has a "buy" rating on Mirvac Group, DEXUS Property Group, GPT Group, Hotel Properties Investments and Goodman Group

CORPORATES
STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 A-REIT INDEX, MORGAN STANLEY AUSTRALIA LIMITED, GOLDMAN SACHS AND PARTNERS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, GPT GROUP – ASX GPT, MIRVAC GROUP – ASX MGR, DEXUS PROPERTY GROUP – ASX DXS, GOODMAN GROUP – ASX GMG, HOTEL PROPERTIES INVESTMENTS – ASX HPI, BWP TRUST – ASX BWP, SCENTRE GROUP – ASX SCG, NOVION PROPERTY GROUP – ASX NVN, FEDERATION CENTRES – ASX FDC, LEND LEASE GROUP LIMITED – ASX LLC, STOCKLAND – ASX SGP, NATIONAL STORAGE REIT – ASX NSR, ARENA REIT – ASX ARF, STANDARD AND POOR’S (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, INVESTA OFFICE FUND – ASX IOF, WESTFIELD CORPORATION – ASX WFD, CHARTER HALL RETAIL REIT – ASX CQR, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD

$A fall attracts Chinese buyers

Original article by Samantha Hutchinson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 11-Nov-14

Property investors in China are capitalising on the nine per cent fall in the value of the Australian dollar to buy into the domestic property market. Peter Li of CBRE notes that a lot of Chinese investors are opting to buy higher-priced apartments, as they have become more affordable due to the currency’s recent weakness. Jock Langley of real estate firm Abercrombys notes that may expatriate Australians are taking advantage of the lower dollar to buy into the property market

CORPORATES
CBRE PTY LTD, ABERCROMBYS REAL ESTATE PTY LTD, COMPASS GLOBAL MARKETS PTY LTD, OZFOREX GROUP LIMITED – ASX OFX

Sydney exceeds Melbourne in auction sales for first time

Original article by Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 10-Nov-14

The respective residential real estate auction clearance rates for the Sydney and Melbourne markets over the 10 months to early November 2014 are 74.9% and 68.8%. The system of selling by auction is becoming more common in Sydney, meaning that the city has had more such transactions than Melbourne, at 24,590 against 24,335. Meanwhile the average price of Sydney properties has grown 11.9% during the calendar year so far

CORPORATES
RP DATA LIMITED, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, SQM RESEARCH PTY LTD, BELLE PROPERTY PTY LTD, TOGA DEVELOPMENTS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN FINANCE GROUP PTY LTD, BELLER RESIDENTIAL, MORRELL AND KOREN PTY LTD

Capital-city rents hit a wall as apartment stock floods in

Original article by Kylar Loussikian
The Australian – Page: 8 : 7-Nov-14

RP Data has issued its latest figures on residential rents in Australian state and territory capital cities, showing an increase of 1.8% for the 12 months to November 2014. The average per annum over the past half-decade by comparison is 3.8%, and the current CPI rate 2.5%. One factor is the ample supply of apartments, as new projects are completed. Perth has suffered a decline of 3.1%. Meanwhile rental yields have fallen to 3.3% in Melbourne and 3.7% in Sydney

CORPORATES
RP DATA LIMITED, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, BANK OF AMERICA AUSTRALIA LIMITED, MERRILL LYNCH (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD

Eliza’s crowning glory yours for $15mn

Original article by Samantha Hutchinson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 47 : 6-Nov-14

Savills and McGrath are marketing a luxury apartment in the Sydney CBD on behalf of its developer, Ceerose. The 499sq m penthouse comprises three floors of the developer’s Eliza apartment building, which is adjacent to the Sheraton on the Park hotel. The penthouse is expected to fetch at least $A15m, and features four bedrooms, a lap pool, a marble staircase and a private elevator

CORPORATES
CEEROSE CONSTRUCTIONS PTY LTD, SHERATON ON THE PARK, LEND LEASE GROUP LIMITED – ASX LLC, SAVILLS (AUST) HOLDINGS PTY LTD, McGRATH REAL ESTATE PTY LTD, GROCON PTY LTD, COCO REPUBLIC, ARTBANK

Sydney leads home listing surge

Original article by Robert Harley, Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 41 : 5-Nov-14

Data from SQM Research shows that there was a 7.3 per cent increase in house and apartment listings across Australia during October 2014. This includes a 21 per cent rise in Sydney, where residential property values increased by 1.3 per cent during the month. Listings in Melbourne rose by just 2.6 per cent in October, and by 1.8 per cent year-on-year

CORPORATES
SQM RESEARCH PTY LTD, RP DATA LIMITED, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Melbourne tops fastest list

Original article by Samantha Hutchinson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 6 : 4-Nov-14

New figures show that there was a one per cent rise in Australian house prices in October 2014. House prices in Melbourne recorded the strongest growth at nearly two per cent, ahead of 1.3 per cent for Sydney and 0.6 per cent in Brisbane. However, there was a 2.3 per cent decline in house prices in Hobart and an 0.1 per cent fall in Perth. Nationally, house prices have risen by 8.9 per cent in the last year

CORPORATES
RP DATA LIMITED, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, AUSSIE HOME LOANS LIMITED