IntroHello and welcome to this week’s Real Estate Report on the Finance News Network. I’m Emma Pearson. We’re continuing our look at house and unit markets with the lowest days on market this week focusing on QLD.In our interview we speak with Leon Cupit, founder of Independent Property Inspections, about pre-property inspections. And in our tax tip we look at how to value your investment property when you transfer a property into another entity, or to a family member or friend and need to calculate capital gains tax.
NewsThe Australian housing sector continues to face supply and demand pressures. In seasonally adjusted terms, new residential building activity fell 2.5% in the December quarter.In particular, the Australian Bureau of Statistics says work on new houses fell 1.1%. But in the renovations market, work was up 2.6% at the end of last year. Queensland and the ACT were the only exceptions with new residential work done rising by 1.5% and 14% respectively.Meanwhile the latest housing finance data shows that loans for new dwellings were effectively flat in February while loans for existing properties fell 2.8% to the lowest level since September 2008. The number of loans for building construction fell for a fourth month in a row, sliding 3.1%.The Housing Industry Association Australia has again warned that the nation faces a housing shortage of over 100,000 dwellings - which would only put upward pressure on rents and house prices.
Suburb in FocusIn our suburb in focus section, we are taking a look at suburbs with the lowest days on market in QLD. First up the house market in the suburb of Mansfield, located approximately 11 kilometres south-east of Brisbane’s CBD.Mansfield lies between Mount Gravatt East and Bulimba Creek. The suburb’s population in the last census was 8,349. There is a shopping centre in Mansfield and regional facilities in upper Mount Gravatt. Extensive parklands extend along Bulimba Creek, including Cresthaven Park, with a large industrial estate on the suburb’s western boundary. Over 3% of the population speak Greek as a first language.For the 12 months to December 2009 Mansfield recorded a median house price of $453,000. There were 123 homes sold in the area, with the median price rising 1.9% for the year. The median advertised weekly rent was $385 with a gross rental yield of 4.4%. Houses on average spent around 52 days on the market.And now let’s take a look at the unit market in Ashgrove around 4 kilometres north-west of the Brisbane CBD. The suburb’s population in the 2006 census was 11,450. Ashgrove is a leafy suburb characterised by its Ashgrovian style houses, a variation of the Queenslander, built in the early 20th century. Ashgrove is home to many professionals and high-income earners and considered a fairly affluent suburb. Turning to the figures, the median unit price in Ashgrove is $389,768 with 56 units sold in the 12 months to December 2009. The median growth rate for units in the suburb during the 12 month period was 8.3%. The advertised weekly rent was $340 taking the gross rental yield to 4.5%. A unit in the suburb of Ashgrove spent an average 48 days on the market in 2009.
Tax TipAnd now to the Tax Tip of the week from Depreciator. Tax Depreciation Schedule specialists.Let’s look today at how to value your investment property when you transfer a property into another entity, or to a family member or friend and need to calculate capital gains tax. The ATO says that a property needs to be valued at ‘market value’. So what does the ATO accept as a market value estimate?The ATO fact sheet on transferring property to family and friends states that you can obtain the market value of a property by either obtaining a valuation from a professional valuer or working out the market value yourself. If you choose to value the property yourself, you will need to back up your value with objective documentation such as the price paid for a very similar property that was sold at the same time in the same location. You could also ask for a real estate’s valuation although you will still need to have supporting data to substantiate the value.It is a good idea to check with your accountant or tax professional before planning any asset transfer to make sure you are minimising tax and adhering to the ATO’s rules.
