It’s an age old question. Which generation had it better? The debate over whether older generations faced unfair advantages to purchase property has soured family gatherings throughout the world. The answer is complex. Baby Boomers and Gen Xers faced different hurdles to homeownership, with the Australian cash rate sitting at 17% in 1990 and the…
What resources do you use to make your financial decisions? Surprisingly a third of Aussies turning to social media to help make financial decisions. Households across all corners of Australia are dealing with a financial crisis like no other, and alarming data from Compare the Market’s new Household Budget Barometer reveals that a staggering number…
The Australian government has just released the latest iteration of its Intergenerational Report, the sixth since the first was published in 2002. Each provides a snapshot of the sort of Australia in which future generations will find themselves in 40 years’ time, should current government policies continue. Previous reports have dealt mainly with the impact…
The number of distressed sales – where sellers put their homes on the market because they can’t afford mortgage repayments – is falling around the country, even despite worsening inflation and interest rate pressures. A new Domain report shows that the number of distressed listings has declined in each capital city between January 2021 and…
The flow of new listings added to the Australian housing market has been rising since mid-June, in contrast to the usual seasonal trend where new vendor activity would be trending lower through the colder months. Historically, based on the pre-COVID decade average, new listings added to the national housing market drop by 5.2% between autumn…
The tenancy regulatory landscape is constantly evolving – and it’s important that landlords and agents keep on top of changes to ensure that they meet their obligations. Of course, meeting legal obligations is a condition of landlord insurance coverage. Changes to legislation can also have a flow-on effect on landlord insurance, so that’s why we’re…
Yes, you read it right, 1.2 million homes in the next five years. The headlines have been filled with the Australian Labor Party’s ambitious plan, but if you look closely, the numbers just don’t add up. The Grand Mirage Firstly, let’s clear the misconception: the government isn’t going to lay down the bricks and mortar…
What should you do in the current “interesting” property markets? Is it time to be fearful or is it the right time to be greedy? I know many investors are confused with the many mixed messages the media and many commentators are delivering. On the one hand, the property market bottomed early this year…
There’s lots of talk about mortgage stress and the risk of loan defaults, but a recent study showed that certain outer suburbs are twice as likely to have loan arrears. Homeowners in Sydney’s southwest, Perth’s northwest, and Melbourne’s northwest suburbs are the most financially stressed across the country, with the highest number of households at…
In the wake of Australia’s ongoing rental housing affordability crisis, policymakers have mooted a series of interventions, including a freeze on rents and various forms of rent controls. Of course, we know that one political party particularly of a particular colour is pushing for rental freezes. While this might seem attractive solutions to the immediate…
