Sunday Blog - Expert property investment insights

This week I finally managed to coordinate my industry friend, Mike Mortlock to join me on a quick zoom interview. Mike is a Quantity Surveyor and runs a national tax depreciation business, and aside from being a numbers guru, his self-depricating jokes and quick humour make him one of my favourite ‘think-on-their-feet’ presenters. So when…

Many buyers turn to off-the-plan, high rise apartment purchases for several reasons. Low deposits, enticing extra items thrown in, and that amazing feeling of sparkling new are just some of the reasons. For investors, the depreciation benefits can be significant for cashflow and holding costs. There are some issues for buyers to be mindful of,…

Lately we’ve been fielding increased enquiry from property purchasers who are considering the regions. These enquiries aren’t restricted to investors, either. In fact, the majority of these enquiries are home finders. We are currently searching for homes for clients in Ballarat, Geelong, and Castlemaine. We’ve had recent enquiries spanning Kyneton, Woodend, Drysdale, Red Hill, and…

I remember Friday 13th March well. We all woke up to the p-word. Pandemic. The world health organisation had declared it, and it wasn’t until that point that things really started to feel more serious for us. In the real estate world, our introduction to the pandemic was the elbow-touch. As a relatively friendly and…

This week we have spotted some ‘forecasted’ price drops in the media with claims of some 20-30% likely to impact our markets. We are not seeing any such signs in our current markets. There is no doubt that COVID-19 will have an impact on segments of our market, but it is important for us to…

In the midst of the COVID-19 shutdown, our challenges in the real estate industry in Victoria deepened when Consumer Affairs issued a notice to all agencies on the eve of our Easter long weekend. The message was clear; no private inspections with consumers were to take place in any owner-occupied or tenanted properties. The only…

Five years ago, while inspecting a line up of properties in Ballarat for a client, the agent I’d asked to show me through the properties stopped outside the second one, turned to me and said, “Cate, I need to tell you this. Something not-so-great happened in this house. I know how much you care about…

It’s been two and a half weeks since this pandemic was announced, and a lot has happened in two and a half weeks. A lot of turmoil, a lot of upset, a lot of announcements and a lot of change. Who knew we’d be thrust into the various situations we find ourselves in? And who…

There is no doubt about it. Buyer’s Agents are finding that a significant portion of their current clients are opting to put their search on hold, but not all clients are doing so. In fact, roughly half of our clients have been clear that their purchase strategy and timeframe stay on course as per their…

This would be my latest Sunday blog ever. It’s 10pm. I don’t think I’ve ever worked continuously through a weekend like I have this weekend. It’s been utterly strange. From last minute boardroom auction notifications to urgent agent calls, alerting me to a property selling, weekend solicitor reviews and hurried second inspections, buyer behaviour has…