L67 Property Operators and Real Estate Services

House plan rejected due to relaxed tree policy

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Original article by Nicole Hasham
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 6 : 3-Nov-14

The New South Wales Land & Environment Court has ruled against a residential property owner who applied to clear land under new laws rolled out in August 2014. These are designed to help prevent bushfires, and allow for the removal of otherwise protected trees within 10 metres of a dwelling and shrubs within 50 metres. A number of local government councils have similarly rejected clearing proposals, while others argue that the new rules hamper legitimate property development

CORPORATES
NEW SOUTH WALES. LAND AND ENVIRONMENT COURT, NEW SOUTH WALES. DEPT OF PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENT, NEW SOUTH WALES RURAL FIRE SERVICE, HORNSBY COUNCIL, GOSFORD CITY COUNCIL, TWEED SHIRE COUNCIL, PITTWATER COUNCIL, BLUE MOUNTAINS CITY COUNCIL, NATURE CONSERVATION COUNCIL OF NSW INCORPORATED

Negative gearing main factor in high house prices: Saul Eslake

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Original article by Nick Lenaghan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 34 : 29-Oct-14

Bank of America Merrill Lynch economist Saul Eslake has downplayed the role of foreign investment in the rising cost of residential properties in Australia. He argues that negative gearing has been a major contributor to the housing boom. Other factors cited by Eslake include the chronic housing shortage and the preference for Australians to live in more expensive inner-city suburbs

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

Tax Office forced to build Gosford offices

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Original article by Noel Towell
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 4 : 27-Oct-14

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann stresses that the Australian Government is honouring an election pledge by opening a new office building in the regional New South Wales town of Gosford for the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). The move has been criticised by the Opposition as it comes at a time of major job cuts at the ATO and as it has a surplus of 6,200 seats across its premises nationwide. There has also been neither a business case nor cost-benefit analysis, in breach of the Finance Department’s requirements for new property leases by civil service agencies

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Minister’s backflip spares Whitlam house

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Original article by Mark Hawthorne
The Age – Page: 9 : 24-Oct-14

Victorian Planning Minister Matthew Guy has intervened to prevent the demolition of "Ngara". The house in Kew is the birthplace of former prime minister Gough Whitlam. The Heritage Council has granted Guy’s request for an interim protection order, which will prevent the current owner of the historic home from carrying out further demolition work. Guy stepped in after a furore erupted over plans to demolish the home

CORPORATES
VICTORIA. DEPT OF TRANSPORT, PLANNING AND LOCAL INFRASTRUCTURE, HERITAGE COUNCIL OF VICTORIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, 3AW SOUTHERN CROSS RADIO PTY LTD, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD, VICTORIA. CIVIL AND ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL

Construction sector firms

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Original article by Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 50 : 21-Oct-14

Master Builders Australia (MBA) has reported that non-residential construction has returned to a growth phase. Its quarterly survey of the construction industry suggests that the turnaround, after more than four years of indicating contraction, is not a temporary trend. The MBA’s commercial construction index rose to 54.4 points in the third quarter of 2014, compared with 49.2 in the previous quarter

CORPORATES
LEND LEASE GROUP LIMITED – ASX LLC, MASTER BUILDERS AUSTRALIA INCORPORATED, HANSEN YUNCKEN PTY LTD, ROYAL ADELAIDE HOSPITAL

Nest intentions: Aussies getting lazier when it comes to home improvement

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Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Market Research Update – Page: Online : 15-Oct-14

A Roy Morgan Single Source survey has found that 30.5 per cent of Australians aged 14+ made minor repairs or alterations to their home in the year to June 2014. This compares with 33.4 per cent in the year to June 2010. The survey also shows that the number of Australians who painted something inside or outside their home has fallen from 22.5 per cent to 20.7 per cent over this period

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED

Schools brace for surge in enrolments

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Original article by Bethany Hiatt
The West Australian – Page: 11 : 8-Oct-14

Schools in Perth are expected to face a sharp increase in student numbers in coming years due to rising population levels in inner-city suburbs. Development of new housing in established suburbs is driving much of the growth, and Western Australia’s Department of Education has begun to examine ways to address the growing demand for places at the state’s schools

CORPORATES
WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF PLANNING, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. PLANNING COMMISSION

RBA must ‘bite the bullet’ on housing and lift rates

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Original article by Christopher Joye
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 8-Oct-14

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has finally adopted the advice of "The Australian Financial Review", and started to consider macroprudential measures to rein in rampant residential real estate prices growth. Some banking leaders also want the central bank to lift the official cash interest rate from its all-time low, to signal to property buyers that the current environment cannot last. Investors appear oblivious to the fact that the increase in asset values of 7%-plus per annum must come to an end, and a dangerous "bubble" may be forming

CORPORATES
FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. SENATE STANDING COMMITTEE ON ECONOMICS

Asian developers say ‘what’s the drama’

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Original article by Su-Lin Tan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 50 : 2-Oct-14

Chinese property developers have rejected claims that Asian investors are dominating the Australian residential property market. Country Garden Australia CEO Johnson Zhang said that local developers are competing for residential development sites, so claims that foreign investors are inflating prices are false. He said that the second-hand market offers enough housing for local buyers

CORPORATES
COUNTRY GARDEN HOLDINGS COMPANY LIMITED, SHANGHAI GREENLAND GROUP COMPANY LIMITED, MERITON APARTMENTS PTY LTD, GUANGZHOU R AND F PROPERTIES COMPANY LIMITED, FRAGRANCE GROUP LIMITED, ASPIAL CORPORATION LIMITED, UEM SUNRISE BERHAD, CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN

O’Dwyer seeks harsher penalties

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Original article by Nick Lenaghan, Joanna Heath
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 1-Oct-14

Harsher penalties have been proposed for foreign real estate investors who do not comply with regulations. Kelly O’Dwyer, head of the Australian parliamentary inquiry into foreign investment into real estate, said that few breaches were detected as foreign investors had to self-report to the Foreign Investment Review Board. Analysis by First National Real Estate found that prices had increased in some suburbs in Sydney and Melbourne that were popular with Asian investors

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD, FIRST NATIONAL REAL ESTATE GROUP, RP DATA LIMITED, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN PROPERTY MONITORS PTY LTD, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ