This week we begin a new series looking at suburbs with the lowest days on market for each state, starting with the Australian Capital Territory.And in our tax tip we’ll look at the benefit of deposit bonds to an investor when purchasing a property.
NewsBIS Shrapnel warns that the nation’s housing crisis could get worse if future interest rates rises force builders to rethink new housing construction. BIS predicts that private investment in dwellings will expand by 1.8 per cent this year, but not enough to make up for the 1.9 per cent contraction last year.The Economics forecaster says the Reserve Bank faces a dilemma because while it’s keen to prevent a potential housing asset bubble, it doesn’t want to undermine the recovery in dwelling construction.Meanwhile, the Housing Industry Association has released its inaugural Housing to 2020 report which found that if current building trends persist, Australia’s housing shortage could reach nearly half a million dwellings over the next decade. The report sights housing shortages in roughly half of the nation’s Local government areas - the majority of which are in and around metropolitan areas of Sydney and Brisbane.
Suburb in FocusIn our suburb in focus section, we begin a series looking at suburbs with the lowest days on market for each state. This week we’re taking a look at house and unit markets in the ACT.
First up we look at the house market in the suburb of Scullin located approximately 12 kilometres from the Canberra CBD.Located in the Canberra district of Belconnen with a population of 2,794 in the last census, Scullin is a 5 minute drive from Belconnen Town Centre and the Hawker Shopping Centre.For the 12 months to 2009 Scullin recorded a median house price of $399,500. There were 34 homes sold in the area, with the median price for houses rising 4.4% for the year. The median advertised weekly rent of a property in the suburb is $390 with a gross rental yield of 5.1%. Houses on average spend around 36 days on the market, one of the lowest in the region and for the state.
And now let’s take a look at the unit market in the suburb of Phillip in the district of Woden Valley, 11 kilometres from the Canberra CBD. The suburb’s population in the 2006 census was 1,910. Phillip is the commercial and geographical centre of Woden and contains many of the districts key facilities including the Woden Town Centre, the Canberra Institute of Technology, Eddison Park and Lovett Tower, the tallest building in Canberra. Phillip also contains many sporting facilities like Phillip Swimming and Ice Skating Centre and Phillip Enclosed Oval.Turning to the figures, the median unit price in Phillip is $383,500 with 84 units sold in the 12 months to December 2009. The median 12 months growth rate for unit’s in Phillip is 10.8%. The advertised weekly rent is $370 taking the gross rental yield to 5%. A unit in the suburb of Phillip spends an average 54 days on the market.
Tax TipAnd now to the Tax Tip of the week from Depreciator. Tax Depreciation Schedule specialists.This week we are having a look at deposit bonds. A deposit bond is a financial product that can enable property investors to pay a deposit on an investment property without having to outlay the money themselves.Deposit bonds are most commonly used by investors who are buying off-the-plan properties and have years before settlement. The advantage of them in these cases is that an investor does not have their own funds tied up for this period.One thing to remember is that you may need the vendor’s permission to use a deposit bond so it is important to get the vendor or their agent’s permission beforehand. Be sure to discuss these products with your accountant before doing anything.
