It is so hard to read long term trends in the industry’s January results. Relatively few properties are promoted thus we are given little indication of the strength of the bidding market. During the month political turmoil was building in Australia and, for the first time for a long while, questions were being asked over the inherent strength of our markets.
Thus the group’s total result of $2.05billion was satisfactory, seeing it slightly ahead of January 2014. Perhaps the highlights were the remarkable success in New Zealand, New South Wales and Queensland.
In Queensland it was action time in the resort areas. The major “The Event” auction organised by Ray White Surfers Paradise saw over 100 properties auctioned on the Australia Day long weekend with an impressive clearance rate. Signs of consolidating demand and increasing prices.
The commercial property markets were unseasonally active in the new year period. Developers remained focussed on securing their next development sites, to take advantage of strengthening house and apartment values as well as a stable outlook. The sale of two development sites in Western Sydney for $27million by Jeff Moxham and Scott Timbrell is confirmation that both property values and sales activity have not weakened. Of particular interest has been the number of major redevelopment sites sold in Sydney to Chinese developers.
A recent visit to the Group’s offices in Asia and the Middle East confirmed the continuing interest in Australian property assets and the high regard that Australia has an appropriate economy and community in which property can be safely and productively acquired.
Typically a slow month for mortgage brokers, January home finance market indicators still showed nine per cent growth for the financial year to date, with the month of January 11 per cent up on the same time last year.
Loan Market’s settled loans continued to grow year on year in January, continuing the trend we have seen with a 12 per cent growth rate. Western Australia and South Australia outperformed the market as did Queensland and New South Wales.The recent drop in interest rates in Australia, though a sign of a slowing economy, always breathes oxygen into our residential markets
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