http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/ onthehouse.com.au - Latest Property and Real Estate News and Gossip http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2178 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2178 Fri, 3 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST Our federal politicians haven't been shy in giving the independent central bank advice on interest rates in the past couple of weeks. So it will be interesting to see if the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) heeds the thoughts of these monetary policy fans when it holds its first board meeting of the year next Tuesday. The flurry of recommendations kicked off in late January following the release of another set of benign inflation numbers, which have helped fuel expectations the RBA will deliver a further cut in the 4.25 per cent cash rate. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2175 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2175 Fri, 3 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is expected cut its interest rate for a third consecutive meeting as inflation eases, local employment growth slows and fears over a European recession grows. Thirteen out of 14 economists surveyed by AAP say the RBA will cut the cash rate to 4.00 per cent from 4.25 per cent on February 7. The central bank cut the rate at both its November and December board meetings, taking the rate from 4.75 per cent to 4.25 per cent, due to fears the eurozone government debt crisis will cause a recession. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2174 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2174 Fri, 3 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST Westpac boss Gail Kelly became the latest bank executive to try to soften up the public to the prospect of banks not passing on the central bank's expected interest rate cuts next week. Speaking a day after Westpac showed 400 employees the door, Mrs Kelly refused to speculate on whether the lender would pass on any rate cut by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) next Tuesday. Mrs Kelly on Friday echoed other bank executives in stressing that Europe's debt crisis has pushed the cost of raising term funds in offshore wholesale markets to fresh post global financial crisis highs. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2177 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2177 Fri, 3 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST Skilled labour in the residential building industry remained in moderate surplus for the last three months of 2011, in a soft building market, according to an industry study. The Housing Industry Association (HIA) trades report, released on Friday, showed a trend of modest over-supply in the December quarter. The HIA trade availability index was at +0.04 in the December quarter, following a reading of +0.06 in the September quarter, suggesting that slight over-supply was still an issue, but was moderating. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2176 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2176 Fri, 3 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST Westpac boss Gail Kelly has refused to speculate whether her bank will pass on any cut to the official cash rate next week. But Ms Kelly did stress on Friday that funding costs were higher now than at any time during the global financial crisis. The Reserve Bank of Australia holds its first board meeting of the year on Tuesday when a further cut in the central bank's 4.25 per cent cash rate is widely expected to be announced. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2171 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2171 Thu, 2 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST Economists expect Australia's housing sector to remain soft for a while longer after new data showed building approvals continue to decline. Data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) on Thursday shows residential building approvals fell 1.0 per cent to 11,443 units in December. In the year to December 2011, building approvals were down 24.5 per cent, the ABS said. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2169 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2169 Thu, 2 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST A mortgage specialist is urging borrowers to hunt around for a better home loan deal if their lender does not pass on official interest rate cuts in full, as the banking industry tries to explain how rate decisions are made. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) holds its first board meeting of the year next Tuesday when a further cut in the central bank's 4.25 per cent cash rate is widely expected to be announced. But the major banks have already warned that due to rising funding costs they may not be able to pass on any reduction in full. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2165 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2165 Wed, 1 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST Prime Minister Julia Gillard believes the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has scope to cut interest rates, given her government's pledge to maintain fiscal discipline. Delivering a speech on Wednesday, Ms Gillard gave an unqualified commitment to bringing down a budget surplus in 2012/13. "Putting the budget into surplus when domestic economic growth is around trend means that we are well positioned to deal with further global financial and economic uncertainty and crises if that should occur," she told an Australia-Israel Chamber of Commerce lunch in Melbourne. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2167 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2167 Wed, 1 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST Official data showing further falls in house prices have lent fuel to the case for another interest rate cut, economists say. Capital city house prices fell 1.0 per cent in the December quarter, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) said on Wednesday. That followed an upwardly revised 1.9 per cent fall in the September quarter. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2173 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2173 Wed, 1 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST Major investment projects have continued to progress through the planning stages and will provide a buffer against uncertainties in the global economy, an independent forecaster says. Deloitte Access Economics says that importantly for current economic activity, much of the growth in investment projects has been in definite projects - either under construction or committed to commence soon. "The value of projects underway provides a healthy buffer against a potential global slowdown in 2012," Deloitte Access Economics partner David Rumbens said on the release of the forecaster's Investment Monitor for the December quarter on Wednesday. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2172 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2172 Wed, 1 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST Add stagnating housing prices to the list of reasons not to be hopeful of strong economic growth this year. On Wednesday, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released data showing the price of established houses in capital cities fell 1.0 per cent in the December quarter and by 4.8 per cent through 2011. The figures echoed a report on Tuesday by RP Data and real estate firm Rismark, showing a quarterly fall of 0.5 per cent in December for an annual drop of 3.6 per cent. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2166 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2166 Wed, 1 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST Successive interest rate cuts failed to halt a decline in new home sales in December, a survey shows. The Housing Industry Association (HIA) on Wednesday said new homes sales fell 4.9 per cent in December, seasonally adjusted, following a 6.8 per cent rise in November. HIA Chief Economist Harley Dale said new home sales for the quarter were "essentially flat", rising by just 0.2 per cent in the last three months of calendar 2011. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2170 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2170 Wed, 1 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST The dream of buying a home and raising a family is now within reach of workers in the social and community sectors granted an eventual $20,000 a year pay rise. One of them is 32-year-old Deb Batterham, one of 150,000 workers in the field, most of them women. Although she adores her work as a researcher at a homelessness service in central Melbourne, Ms Batterham says she recently considered turning her back on it after nine years. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2168 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2168 Wed, 1 Feb 2012 00:00:00 EST More than 25 per cent of all construction in Australia is occurring in the mining state of Western Australia, where almost $90 billion worth of projects are currently underway. A report by Deloitte Access Economics released on Wednesday said one third of projects committed to or under consideration in Australia were in WA, valued at $140.1 billion. Including potential developments, WA has $267.2 billion worth of projects in the pipeline, the investment monitor report for the December quarter said. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2162 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2162 Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Prime Minister Julia Gillard remains determined to return the budget to surplus in 2012/13 as promised, saying the local economy was a "pillar of strength" in the world. She said Australia was in a very different position to the United States and Europe. "We are experiencing growth. We have got low unemployment. These are such important things for Australians, the opportunity to get a job, the opportunity to work in a growing economy," she told reporters in Sydney. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2161 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2161 Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Total credit provided to the private sector by banks and other lenders rose by 0.3 per cent in December. It was the second monthly 0.3 cut in a row. Figures released by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) on Tuesday also showed annual growth in credit slowed to 3.5 per cent. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2164 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2164 Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Australian taxpayers reaped tax breaks for housing, superannuation and fresh food worth some $112 billion in the latest financial year, a Treasury report says. The tally of tax concessions, benefits and incentives in 2010/11 represented a drop from $116 billion in the financial year before. A breakdown of Treasury figures released this week shows capital gains tax concessions accounted for most of the real dollar total in the year to June 2011. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2160 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2160 Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Two-thirds of Australians are expecting an interest rate cut when the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) board meets on February 7, with some anticipating a large 50 basis points reduction. A poll by mortgage provider Loan Market found 39 per cent of respondents expect a 25 basis points rate cut at the first central bank meeting of the year, with no sign of improvement in the European debt crisis. The online survey of 572 respondents also found 27 per cent expecting a 50 basis points cut, while 28 per cent expect the RBA to keep the cash rate steady at 4.25 per cent. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2159 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2159 Tue, 31 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Australian capital city home prices fell by half a per cent in the December quarter, according to a private sector index. The RP Data-Rismark Home Value Index found prices fell by 0.2 per cent across capital cities, seasonally adjusted, in the month of December and 0.5 per cent for the quarter. Perth was the worst performing capital over the quarter with home values falling 2.1 per cent. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2156 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2156 Mon, 30 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Australia's banks need to better explain to their customers why their funding costs are increasing and what impact that will have on their customers, opposition treasury spokesman Joe Hockey says. He also said that while leading banking figures may be concerned that political interference will hurt the banking system, there will always be "full and frank" public discussion between governments and oppositions, and financial institutions. The major banks have already warned that they might not be able to pass on future official interest rate cuts by the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) because of rising funding costs, setting the scene for another round of bank bashing. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2157 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2157 Mon, 30 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST The NSW government has declared five natural disaster zones in the state's north after days of severe flooding. Emergency Services Minister Mike Gallacher declared the zones for the Bellingen, Byron, Kyogle, Lismore and Richmond Valley local government areas on Monday evening. The announcement unlocks government funding to help pay for repairs. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2163 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2163 Mon, 30 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Federal Treasurer Wayne Swan has no plans to follow France's lead by introducing a financial transaction tax. Doing so would slow down economic growth because it would hit all Australian businesses, not just banks, he said. French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Sunday announced plans to introduce a 0.1 per cent tax on financial transactions to come into effect from August this year. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2155 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2155 Mon, 30 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Australian banks are among the most profitable in the world and Treasurer Wayne Swan says he won't let global financial turmoil stop him talking about interest rates. A PricewaterhouseCoopers survey to be released on Monday finds political interference is one of the top threats to the banking system, The Australian newspaper reported. But Mr Swan said he would continue making "frank and fearless comment" about the important issues associated with interest rates. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2154 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2154 Mon, 30 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Premier Barry O'Farrell has denied reports that the NSW government will bypass councils and rezone sites nominated by developers. Media reports had claimed the government would remove councils from the decision making process in a bid to boost home building in NSW. But Mr O'Farrell has dismissed the story as a "beat-up". http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2158 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2158 Mon, 30 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Residents in flood-affected areas of northern NSW are being urged to practise good personal hygiene to protect themselves from floodwaters contaminated with sewage. Thousands of people affected by floodwaters after almost a week of heavy rains should be mindful of bacteria, viruses and parasites when they begin cleaning up, NSW emergency services say. The greatest risk of infection during flood clean-ups is bacteria picked up through cuts and abrasions. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2153 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2153 Fri, 27 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Make a note in your relatively new 2012 diaries for two o'clock, February 7. It marks the first federal parliamentary sitting day of the year ... and the first hour or so of question time could be explosive. Given the events over the long summer recess, including independent Tasmanian Andrew Wilkie's withdrawal of his support for the minority Labor government over pokies reform, there is every possibility Opposition Leader Tony Abbott will stump up a "no confidence" motion. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2149 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2149 Fri, 27 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST The federal opposition believes the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA), and not the government, should do much of the heavy lifting if the local economy needs a boost in the face of a souring global economy. An International Monetary Fund (IMF) briefing note shows Australia did not miss out on a new round of global economic growth downgrades, with the agency now forecasting three per cent growth in 2012, down from the 3.3 per cent forecast in September. The G20 briefing note, which has only just come to notice, was published ahead of the IMF's World Economic Outlook Update released earlier this week which made no specific reference to Australia. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2152 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2152 Fri, 27 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Sales of new homes in the United States skidded in December, bringing to a close the worst year on record, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. Only 302,000 new houses were sold during the year, the lowest level in records dating to 1963, as a tsunami of foreclosures, high unemployment and tight mortgage lending has kept buyers sidelined since the housing price bubble burst in 2006. "Last year was the worst year on record for the new single-family home market," said Patrick Newport at IHS Global Insight. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2151 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2151 Fri, 27 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Stormwater drain devices that reduce the impact of flooding are set to be fitted in two Brisbane suburbs that were among the hardest hit during last year's devastating inundation. Brisbane City Council is poised to install backflow valves in stormwater drains at Moray Street, New Farm, and Cribb Street, Milton, Lord Mayor Graham Quirk revealed on Friday. The valves are attached to the end of stormwater drains and allow water to exit the pipe but not re-enter. http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2150 http://www.onthehouse.com.au/news/article/?ArticleId=2150 Fri, 27 Jan 2012 00:00:00 EST Former NSW Liberal leader John Brogden has been named the new chairman of state land development body Landcom. It follows the retirement of incumbent William Kirkby-Jones. Planning Minister Brad Hazzard on Friday announced Mr Brogden's appointment, saying the Lifeline Australia patron and chief executive of the Financial Services Council was "eminently suited to the chairman's role".