Off-the-plan values plummet in Melbourne

Original article by Su-Lin Tan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 4-Jan-16

Analysis by WBP Property Group shows that there has been a sharp fall in the value of apartments bought off-the-plan in Melbourne during the last two years. The firm has reported that the average value of almost 2,000 apartments fell by around $A40,000 in 2014 and 2015. Kim Quick of Herron Todd White says there has not been a similar downturn in apartment values in Sydney, noting that the residential market has benefited from the New South Wales Government’s infrastructure program.

CORPORATES
WBP PROPERTY GROUP PTY LTD, HERRON TODD WHITE AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Apartment crunch tipped for two cities

Original article by Robert Harley
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 33 : 16-Dec-15

A new report from the Commonwealth Bank warns of a looming apartment glut in the Melbourne and Brisbane CBDs from 2016, when a large number of apartment projects are slated for completion. The CommBank Property Insights report notes that about 80,000 apartments are under construction in Australia’s major capital cities, while an additional 117,000 have been proposed.

CORPORATES
COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA

Chinese face big losses as $A falls

Original article by Su-Lin Tan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 39 : 14-Sep-15

Basis Point estimates that the sharp decline in the value of the Australian dollar since late 2014 has cost Chinese investors about $A12bn. Basis Point’s David Chin notes that investors in residential property who have already settled the deal will have lost money. However, investors in off-the-plan apartments that have not yet been settled will benefit from the currency’s decline.

CORPORATES
BASIS POINT CONSULTING, AUSTRALIA. FOREIGN INVESTMENT REVIEW BOARD

Housing glut by 2018, BIS report warns

Original article by Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 20-Jul-15

A BIS Shrapnel report forecasts an oversupply of at least 12,000 dwellings in Australia by 2018. The firm expects just 164,000 new homes to be built in 2018, compared with an estimated 210,000 in 2014-15. However, demand for housing in New South Wales will continue to exceed supply in coming years, while there will be an oversupply of apartments in Victoria and houses in Western Australia.

CORPORATES
BIS SHRAPNEL PTY LTD, HOUSING INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY

Done deal: Metro sets float date

Original article by Larry Schlesinger
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 33 : 15-Jun-15

Metro Property Development is offering its shares to retail and institutional investors at $A2.25 apiece in an IPO that will raise about $A170m. The residential property developer will have a larger market capitalisation than listed rivals such as Sunland Group and Finbar when it debuts on the Australian sharemarket on 13 July 2015. Metro’s founders will retain a 46 per cent stake in the group.

CORPORATES
METRO PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT PTY LTD, MOELIS AND COMPANY, MORGANS FINANCIAL LIMITED, SUNLAND GROUP (VIC) NO 2 PTY LTD, FINBAR GROUP LIMITED – ASX FRI, VILLA WORLD LIMITED – ASX VLW, CEDAR WOODS PROPERTIES LIMITED – ASX CWP

Home and apartment building hits record $54.4b in 2014

Original article by Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 26-Feb-15

New figures show that $A54.4bn worth of residential dwellings were built across Australia during 2014, compared with $A49.3bn in 2013. Dwelling commencements in the December 2014 quarter topped $A14.3bn, an increase of 12.3 per cent. Non-residential construction activity rose by 1.3 per cent to $A35bn in 2014, although there was 2.9 per cent contraction in the fourth quarter

CORPORATES
MASTER BUILDERS OF AUSTRALIA, WATPAC LIMITED – ASX WTP, CARDNO LIMITED – ASX CDD

Packer doesn’t want to share his Crown

Original article by Jessica Gardner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 9-Feb-15

The Federal Court will be asked to rule on the right to use the Crown brand and logo in a trademark dispute between James Packer and property developer Iwan Sunito. Packer’s Crown Resorts is seeking to have Crown Group Holdings barred from using trademarks such as Crown Apartments, Crown Towers and Crown Resort in marketing its apartment projects. The listed group is undertaking its own apartment project as part of the Crown Sydney hotel and casino development

CORPORATES
CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN, CROWN GROUP HOLDINGS PTY LTD, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, CROWN MELBOURNE LIMITED, ECHO ENTERTAINMENT GROUP LIMITED – ASX EGP, THE STAR, CITY OF SYDNEY, SYDNEY CHRISTIAN WORSHIP CENTRE

Landlords hit by glut of apartments

Original article by Michael Bleby,Samantha Hutchinson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 21-Aug-14

The growth of the apartment market in Sydney and Melbourne has prompted a sharp downturn in rental income for landlords. RP Data notes that there has been a 6.4 per cent fall in weekly advertised rents for apartments in Melbourne’s Southbank precinct in the last year, and a 3.6 per cent fall in the Docklands. Property consultant Margaret Lomas says demand for apartments in Melbourne is significantly outpacing supply

CORPORATES
RP DATA LIMITED,CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD,DESTINY PROPERTIES PTY LTD,VICTORIA. DEPT OF TRANSPORT, PLANNING AND LOCAL INFRASTRUCTURE