REAL ESTATE – AUSTRALIA – RESIDENTIAL

House prices face turning point: HSBC

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by James Frost
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 7-Jul-17

HSBC expects house prices in Sydney to rise by between 14 and 16 per cent in 2017, while apartment prices will rise by between 10 and 12 per cent. Growth in house and apartment prices is expected to moderate in 2018. HSBC’s forecasts for Melbourne are similar to Sydney for house prices, but it is predicting that apartment prices in Melbourne could fall by as much as three per cent in 2017 and by up to four per cent in 2018. Nationally, HSBC expects house prices to rise by between eight and 10 per cent in 2017, before rising by between three and six per cent in 2018.

CORPORATES
HSBC AUSTRALIA HOLDINGS PTY LTD, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY

Household debt hits all-time high

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Jacob Greber
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 4-Jul-17

Australia’s household debt-to-income ratio rose to a new high of 190.4 per cent in the March 2017 quarter. Treasurer Scott Morrison has indicated that rising household debt was a key factor for the Federal Government in backing new regulatory measures aimed at curbing interest-only loans for property investors. He has warned of the economic impact if the nation’s residential property market experienced a "hard landing". He adds that the Opposition’s proposed negative gearing reforms would have heightened the risk of a hard landing.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

RBA worries property could spark downturn

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Jacob Greber
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 21-Jun-17

The minutes of the Reserve Bank’s June 2017 monetary policy meeting show that board members are concerned about the potential impact of rising household debt and residential property prices on economic growth. Concerns were also raised that financial stability could be undermined by record low interest rates. Board members also stressed the need for continued co-operation between the central bank and other regulatory agencies, such as the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, COUNCIL OF FINANCIAL REGULATORS, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD

Melbourne cladding still in place after fire

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 8 : 16-Jun-17

The tragic Grenfell Tower fire in London and the possible links to its external cladding has led to concerns about buildings with similarly dangerous cladding in Australia. Cladding on one such building, the Lacrosse building in Melbourne, was directed to be removed after it was affected by a potentially lethal fire in November 2014, but the cladding remains. Victorian Planning Minister Richard Wynne says many apartment buildings in Australia could have the same cladding problems as the Lacrosse building.

CORPORATES
VICTORIA. DEPT OF JUSTICE AND REGULATION, LU SIMON BUILDERS PTY LTD, VICTORIA. BUILDING APPEALS BOARD, VICTORIA. BUILDING COMMISSION, MELBOURNE METROPOLITAN FIRE BRIGADE, CSIRO, GREAT BRITAIN. NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE, GREAT BRITAIN. OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, QUEENSLAND. DEPT OF HOUSING AND PUBLIC WORKS, ELENBERG FRASER PTY LTD, CHARTER HALL GROUP – ASX CHC, CITY OF PORT PHILLIP, CITY OF MELBOURNE, METROPOLITAN FIRE AND EMERGENCY SERVICES BOARD

Australia rises in house price index

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 33 : 9-Jun-17

Iceland heads Knight Frank’s latest Global House Price Index, with annualised growth of 17.8 per in the March 2017 quarter. Of the 55 countries covered by the survey, 48 recorded house price increases, with 11 posting an annualised rise of more than 10 per cent. Australia ranks 20th in the list, with strong performances in the Melbourne and Sydney housing markets helping it to achieve annual growth of 7.7 per cent in the March quarter.

CORPORATES
KNIGHT FRANK, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY

New home sales coming off peak

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Michael Bleby
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 34 : 5-Jun-17

New home sales all rose in New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia in April 2017, according to Housing Industry Association figures. Western Australian sales declined by 12.7 per cent, while Queensland sales fell for the fifth month in a row. Australia-wide, sales were up when compared to March, but were 3.3 per cent down on April 2016. HIA senior economist Geordan Murray notes its current forecasts for 2017-18 suggest new home starts will be down by about 10 per cent.

CORPORATES
HOUSING INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION LIMITED

REITs at risk in housing slowdown

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Elizabeth Redman
The Australian – Page: 25 : 1-Jun-17

Data from CoreLogic shows that residential property values across five Australian capital cities fell by 1.1 per cent in May 2017. Analysts and fund managers warn that listed real estate investment trusts could be vulnerable to a slowdown in the housing market. Stuart Cartledge of Phoenix Portfolios notes that developers that have pre-sold apartments will not be hit by any downturn, although future sales volumes may be affected.

CORPORATES
CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, PHOENIX PORTFOLIOS PTY LTD, STOCKLAND – ASX SGP, MIRVAC GROUP – ASX MGR, LEND LEASE GROUP LIMITED – ASX LLC, CEDAR WOODS PROPERTIES LIMITED – ASX CWP, AVJENNINGS LIMITED – ASX AVJ, VILLA WORLD LIMITED – ASX VLW, RESOLUTION CAPITAL LIMITED, CLSA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FOLKESTONE MAXIM ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED

Australia ‘must deal with quite spectacular housing bubble’

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 28 : 1-Jun-17

A sharp downturn in the residential property market and an economic slowdown in China are among the biggest risks to the Australian economy, according to Willem Buiter of Citigroup. The investment bank’s global chief economist warns that the Federal Government’s plans to invest $A75bn in infrastructure over 10 years will not be sufficient to offset the impact of a property market downturn. He says the Government must take action to ensure that the housing market has a soft landing.

CORPORATES
CITIGROUP INCORPORATED, THE GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INCORPORATED, LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS, BANK OF ENGLAND, WORLD BANK, EUROPEAN COMMISSION, EUROPEAN BANK FOR RECONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY, CORELOGIC AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB

RBA: road and rail a house price fix

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Jacob Greber, Mark Ludlow
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 5-May-17

The Australian Government’s May 2017 Budget is tipped to include funding for road and rail infrastructure, as part of its policy on housing affordability. Reserve Bank governor Philip Lowe says improved transport infrastructure is the best way to making housing more affordable. He adds that the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority’s move to crack down on lending to property investors is intended to provide "breathing space" to allow the supply-demand imbalance to correct itself, rather than being aimed at reining in house price growth.

CORPORATES
RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN PRUDENTIAL REGULATION AUTHORITY

Housing prices to drop 7pc, bank says

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Elizabeth Redman, Daniel Palmer
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 4-May-17

Data from REA Group shows that housing demand in New South Wales declined by 7.8 per cent month-on-month in April 2017, while demand among house buyers in Victoria fell 1.6 per cent. Meanwhile, Citigroup has forecast that residential property prices could fall by up to seven per cent in 2018, with apartment prices in Melbourne and Sydney regarded as the most vulnerable to a correction. However, the investment bank adds that any downturn in the property market is unlikely to impact on the broader economy.

CORPORATES
REA GROUP LIMITED – ASX REA, REALESTATE.COM.AU, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, GENWORTH MORTGAGE INSURANCE AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX GMA, NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, STOCKLAND – ASX SGP