In our series looking at capital city suburbs with the longest hold periods, we take a look at two suburbs in Canberra. And in our tax tip we look at the tax benefits of having a swimming pool.
News In property news, data released by the Housing Industry Association showed that residential land values fell 3.6 per cent in the June quarter, although the figure is still 2 per cent higher than a year earlier. Sydney continues to be the most expensive market with the price for a block of land fetching an average $280,000. The Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast in Queensland took the second and third spots respectively.
HIA says the most affordable land in the country is the Mallee region of Victoria, with a median value of just over $72,000, followed by the Murray land and South East regions of South Australia and the Mersey-Lyell and Southern regions in Tasmania.
Suburb in Focus In our suburb in focus section, we continue a series looking at suburbs with the longest hold periods in capital cities around Australia. This week we look at two suburbs in Canberra.
First let’s look at the unit market in Melba, located 14km north west of Canberra’s CBD. According to figures from RP Data, units in Melba are held for 11.1 years. Will a population of 3,267 in the last census, the leafy suburb of Melba is located north of Canberra’s centre and was named after the country’s first internationally-recognised opera soprano, Dame Nellie Melba, while streets bare their names from Australian’s with a notable musical background. Melba hosts a government run primary school and the Melba Copeland secondary school as well as the Melba Tennis Club. The neighbourhood is also well catered for with an oval and district playing fields, nature reserves and a bike track. The same bike track can also be ridden along to access nearby Lake Ginn-in-derra and to reach the edge of the Mount Rogers Reserve. Turning to the figures, the median unit price in Melba in the year to May 2010 was $365,000. The average hold period for a unit in the suburb was 11.1 years. 11 properties were sold in Melba for the 12 month period.
Our next suburb is the unit market in Red Hill, located just over 9 kilometers south of Canberra’s CBD. RP Data figures reveal that units in Red Hill are held for an average of 10.6 years before being sold. With a population of 3,143 in the last census, Red Hill rests to the east of Canberra Nature Park and is named after the northernmost hill of a ridge that is within the nature park, the name also reflects the red soil found in the area. The suburb is one of the oldest in the Capital Territory, with residential land sold in the first Canberra land auction of 1924. The Mugga Way road runs between the suburb and neighboring Nature Park, and is thought to be one of the most sought after home locations in the Territory. Popular recreational areas in Red Hill include the hill itself as well as nearby Capital Golf Course. Education facilities in Red Hill include St Beads Catholic Primary School and Red Hill Primary School as well as primary and secondary school, Canberra Grammar. Taking a look at the figures, the median unit price in Red Hill for the year to May 2010 was $370,000. The average hold period for a property in the suburb was 10.6 years with 19 units sold in the 12 month period.
Tax Tip And now to the Tax Tip of the week from Depreciator - the Tax Depreciation Schedule specialists.
With summer just around the corner, we look at the tax benefits of having a swimming pool. While the year round cost of maintenance makes many investors wary of pools, depreciation can be claimed on the asset. An in-ground pool qualifies as capital works and if the pool was installed after 18 July 1985, it is eligible for depreciation at 2.5 per cent for 40 years. Above ground pools have a shorter effective life and the depreciation rate will need to be determined by an accountant, considering when the property was bought and the specifications of the pool. Depreciation rates also vary for the swimming pool’s assets, such as cleaning and filtration devises.
Of course, this is general information only and you should always speak to your accountant or tax depreciation expert for specific details.
