australian real estate Archives - Page 3 of 4

Elden McDonald February 15, 2016

New Maps for Crime, Zoning and Mobile Coverage

This week on Microburbs we’ve rolled out several new features to make our free reports even better.

The Tranquility panel now maps local land use by colour, showing nearby industrial and commercial zones, which may affect the area. The data tracks each individual building; even finer than the usual microburb level.

On our communications panel we now show coverage maps for all mobile networks. These clearly show whether you will get 3G or 4G data indoors and outdoors.

Finally, NSW reports now have safety scores with heat maps for crime hotspots, as well as a map for each category of crime. These maps again are super fine grained to show you exactly what’s going on in your area.

Explore New Maps on Microburbs

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Elden McDonald January 29, 2016

Mind The Affordability Gap

Come and get taken for a ride on the big city rental markets. This service goes from the city to Whoop Whoop. First stop Exorbitant, then Expensive, Overpriced, and all stations to Whoop Whoop. Please keep your aspirations inside the carriage at all times.

Although drawn from share-house data, these maps from Flatmates.com.au clearly show the high price of proximity in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne.

In Sydney, a room in an inner city share house can quickly climb to $350/week. Finding anywhere under $200 will mean a lengthy daily commute though. Factor in $48.20 for train fares and ten 50 minute train rides to work each week, and the difference between Fairfield ($198) and Sydney ($326) comes down to $16/day rent, or nearly 2 hours each day squeezed in the train

Rent a room in	Work in	Room Rent / Week	Train / Week	Total	Train Time	Travel premium
City	City	$326	$0	$326	0 hrs/week
Ashfield	City	$198	$48.20	$246.20	8.3 hrs/week	$9.60 / hr

Room rates in Melbourne are certainly more affordable than in Sydney, with the most desirable suburbs still under $300. Melbourne’s market doesn’t drop as sharply though, with a wide selection of suburbs in the $250-$200 range.

Brisbane is a little more affordable again, but maintains the trend of being around twice as expensive in the inner city as the suburban fringes.

At Microburbs, all of our convenience reports give commute times to local work centres to help you get to really know an area.

Luke Metcalfe January 18, 2016

realAs Review

realAs predicts property prices to beat underquoting and unrealistic guide prices from agents. Backed by a sophisticated algorithm developed at RMIT, realAs predictions are within 5% of the sale price on average, including auctions as well as private sales. Almost 9 out of 10 of realAs predictions are just 10% off the final home selling price. Armed with realAs.com or the realAs iPhone app, buyers can get right price to pay for a home.

realAs was conceived by David Morrell, a veteran buyers’ agent and advocate responsible for changes in law in his crusade against under-quoters. He has long known that it’s buyers who decide how much to pay and that knowing what a sale price will be levels the playing field – and puts an end to agents’ manipulations.

In addition to the quantitative algorithm, realAs also offers estimates and commentary from agents and buyers on properties. Users input their own estimates, and the algorithm will weight them in determining a price, depending on how accurate the user has been in the past. By comparing the accuracy of past quotes against realAs predictions and selling prices, buyers would also be able to form a view about the market knowledge of a particular agent and whether they underquote.

We think realAs represents another invaluable, and free, tool for buyers and investors. If you like Microburbs for the facts the property ad left out, you’ll love realAs.com for the right price to pay.

Filed Under: australian real estate, housing affordability Leave a Comment

Luke Metcalfe December 17, 2015

Australia’s Most Diverse Dining Suburbs: Report Released

Microburbs today released its cuisine diversity index, ranking Australian suburbs on the uniqueness of their dining options.

Lao Village, Fairfield – Image credit Grab Your Fork

What would cultured urban life be without a new cuisine to try every night? Most major suburbs have a pizza place, a Chinese and a Thai but how many have a Belgian, a Persian and a Moroccan?

The cuisine diversity index is part of our ongoing research into the Microburbs Hip Score – our measure of the elusive cool factor of some Australian suburbs. You probably feel it when you’re in a hip area, but we’re scientifically and statistically quantifying it. You could say we’re putting the genius back into je ne sais quoi.

If we were to consider the sheer number of restaurant types in a suburb, we would be strongly biased to suburbs with simply a lot of restaurants. Instead, we look at the ratio of interesting options to commonly available cuisines. The higher the proportion of unique cuisines, the higher the ranking.

Some of these suburbs may not look all that hip, but cuisine diversity makes an area a destination for dining, which brings vitality into an area in the evenings. Good local restaurants are a big part of urban lifestyle, making diverse dining suburbs ones to watch.

Sydney

Rank	Sydney	Go for…
1	Fairfield	Laotian
2	Strathfield	Burmese
3	Marrickville	Peruvian
4	Glebe	Polish
5	Enmore	African
6	Bankstown	Egyptian
7	Kingsford	Russian
8	Brighton-Le-Sands	Greek
9	Newtown	Balkan
10	Balmain	Turkish

Melbourne

Alpha Ouzeri, Brunswick – image credit Chasing A Plate

Rank	Melbourne	Go for…
1	Brunswick	Greek
2	Footscray	Ethiopian
3	Coburg	Pakistani
4	Brunswick East	Persian
5	Fitzroy	Cuban
6	Prahran	Nepalese
7	Sunshine	Afghani
8	Collingwood	Laotian
9	Doncaster	Greek
10	Elsternwick	Russian

Brisbane

Tibetan Kitchen, West End – image credit Weekend Notes

Rank	Brisbane	Go for…
1	West End	Tibetan
2	South Brisbane	Peruvian
3	Fortitude Valley	Filipino
4	Paddington	French-Vietnamese
5	South Bank	Crepes
6	Upper Mount Gravatt	Malaysian
7	New Farm	Tibetan
8	Brisbane CBD	Indian

Perth

Meeka Moroccan, Subiaco – image credit Meeka

Rank	Perth	Go for…
1	Subiaco	Moroccan
2	Mount Lawley	Indonesian
3	Northbridge	Vietnamese
4	East Victoria Park	Szechuan
5	Perth CBD	Korean
6	Fremantle	Nepalese
7	Hillarys	African
8	Joondalup	Pakistani

Adelaide

Norberto’s Buenos Aires Brasserie, Adelaide – image credit @timyerrell

Rank	Adelaide	Go for…
1	Adelaide City	Argentinean
2	Glenelg	Peruvian
3	North Adelaide	Tibetan

Canberra

Banana Leaf Sri Lankan Restaurant, Canberra – image credit Banana Leaf Restaurant

Rank	Canberra	Go for…
1	Canberra City	Sri Lankan
2	Belconnen	Cambodian
3	Woden	Ethiopian

FIND YOUR IDEAL SUBURB

Having trouble choosing between your city’s hot restaurant districts? Our sophisticated suburb finder uses all of our collected data and analysis to find your ideal suburb.

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Luke Metcalfe December 8, 2015

The 10 Fools of Property Inspections. Are You One?

We’ve all seen the guides on what to remember going to a property inspection. But what about the flipside, how to be a stupid buyer? There’s so much stupidity out there, we’d be remiss in not covering it.

1. Ask yourself what you enjoy more: looking for a house or living in one?

You can’t step into the same river twice. Likewise, you can’t count on being able to inspect the same house twice. Maybe it’ll take you many weeks to find the right place, but there’s nothing to say the houses you see will get better each week. For all you know, the first house you inspect could be the best you’ll ever get. Don’t let your dream home slip through your fingers just because you’re hell-bent on a 12 week inspection marathon. Do you want to live with that kind of regret for the rest of your life? You might find another house nearby but that dream home will always be there, rubbing your face in the lifestyle you missed out on. It would be like having a hot ex-girlfriend as a next door neighbour. Don’t go there. Awkward.

To avoid lifelong pain and regret, be open to making an offer on the first place you inspect, because if you pass, there’s no going back.

2. Breathe in the beautiful musky aroma

Sniff around for scent candles and let the aromatherapy do its work on you. Smells work on a powerful unconscious level. Let that calm, rested, homecoming state of mind define you as the agent guides you through the process right until you move in.

3. Listen out for whether it’s a good time in the market to buy

Find out from the agent if now is a good time to get in the market. It often is! Residential property has two main phases; the growth cycle and the stall, or cooling cycle. Like a runner up a mountain, the market needs to occasionally cool down and re-energise for the next long uphill climb. If you’re in a growth cycle, it’s a great time to buy, as prices are moving up right now. If you’re in a cooling cycle, it’s a great time to buy because the market is going to tighten their laces and start on up that slope again at any moment.

Also ask the agent if it’s a good time to sell. There’s a good chance it might be both! If it is one of those uniquely beautiful times in the property market, don’t hesitate, or the moment will pass.

* Data source: Every BBQ and dinner party you’ve ever been to

4. Check for visual signs of status

If the vendor just happened to have left Perrier out with a few glasses, you know a high status life awaits you. If it’s Champagne, you can deduce that every day will be a celebration of your new found wealth. Remember, if you include the value of the mortgage, you’re sort of about to be a millionaire!

image:stonerealestate

5. Make sure there’s a fresh paint job

What’s the difference between a new house and a newly painted one? Not much! Beauty, as they say, is only skin-deep. If it’s been freshly painted, it’s even better because what’s under the paint – is more paint!

Some negative skeptics say that fresh paint hides damp, cracks and termites but don’t be one of those people. If it looks great with a fresh coat of paint now, you can rest assured that all it will take to keep it in mint condition is another coat of paint.

6. Check the grooming and attractiveness of the agent

Real estate agents are among the most good looking of occupations, so your expectations should be high, particularly for the young junior agent who greets you at the door.

Do be realistic that a senior female agent will have some wrinkles and perhaps signs of aging. This is the 21st century after all! As long as they use enough layers of beauty products and you can tell they would have been a catch when they were younger, give them a pass. But much higher standards should apply to the door girl. When a beautiful 19 year old girl ushers you in the front door, you know something good is going to happen.

Studies show that attractive agents sell for higher prices and are thus more successful (like you), so don’t let an ugly agent try to rope you into an ugly life.

6. Let the agent know you’re a serious big-money player

This is the Australian property market. According to the latest CoreLogic reports, it’s worth $6.2 trillion. You’re playing with the big boys here. Are you the kind of person who says they’re 20c short at the local store when buying a bottle of milk? I would hope not, because if you are, you have no business being in the Australian property market.

This new home is your big step up, so don’t blow it by letting the vendor sense a shred of fear or weakness. You’re a success, aren’t you? Keep face in negotiations by making them an offer they can’t refuse. If you’re prepared to spend $950,000 (the November 2015 median house price in Sydney), then what difference does an extra $100,000 make? It’s not even worth mentioning.

Remember the vendor has welcomed you into their home and even cleaned it up for you. In a strong market, Australian suburbs might be increasing in value by thousands of dollars a week. To start haggling over price would be the height of rudeness. You’re making a major investment, not buying cheap souvenirs on Kuta Beach, you dope!

Remember also that the price you paid for your house is an important status symbol. You don’t want to look like a cheapskate who bought a dud house for a bargain, do you? Don’t even try to lie, because sale prices are on the public record, easily found online these days.

So always do the agent the courtesy of answering honestly when they ask if you want to buy the property. Look them in their beautiful blue eyes and say “I do”.

8. Share your passion

Likely you aren’t the only one who will call this property home. Be sure to bring your partner and kids along with you to inspect the property as a family. Let your imaginations run wild as you move through the home imagining what your new life will be like.
“This is my room mummy!” “Oh honey, we’ll sit here and watch the kids play on the lawn.” If your little daughter falls in love with the pink bedroom, who are you to destroy her dreams? What price is too high for a parent to pay for their child’s happiness?

Don’t be self conscious about other people at the inspection. Besides, the place is practically yours. Make yourself at home! If you do find your family falling in love with a property, don’t forget to let the agent know, so they don’t accidentally accept a premature offer from some po-faced loner.

9. If you see loads of other buyers at the inspection, grab it quickly!

Remember, no one does property inspections for fun. Do you think they’re fun? Not even a next door neighbour would be nosy enough to attend an inspection. Obviously if they wanted to see a neighbour’s house they would be invited round for dinner as is customary!

If there are one or two other people flitting between rooms, you might be ok – they might need some time to get their finances in order or just confirm with a partner.

If there’s more than a couple of other people at the inspection though, it’s time to panic. If you like a place, move boldly with a strong offer, maybe slightly above the asking price. If some timewaster is troubling the agent with unimportant questions, feel free to interrupt them and make the offer right then and there. The agent is there to sell, and you’re there to buy, so get straight down to business!

10. And now for the big secret: 66W is your power play!

There’s a secret weapon being wielded all over Sydney and Melbourne right now – the 66W Certificate. Every smart buyer uses it in every hot market, and let’s face it, everywhere in Australia right now it’s a great time to buy.

Our government, in a misguided attempt to coddle indecisive or incompetent buyers, enforces a statutory mandatory cooling off period when buying a home. This law gives the buyers the right to back out even after they’ve made an offer. Although well intentioned, this wastes the time of the vendor and other serious buyers.

You, on the other hand, as a self-assured soon-to-be-wealthy individual don’t need such a chicken-out clause. You know what you want and you’ve seen it.

Be a considerate buyer and waive those statutory rights. First, show the vendor that you’re for real and won’t need a cooling off period. Take the “66W certificate” straight to the agent and lock in the good life before someone snatches it from you!

Filed Under: australian real estate, satire 3 Comments

Luke Metcalfe December 2, 2015

Ghost suburbs: How the elderly are emptying our cities

Empty nests make for empty streets and shopping malls. When children grow up and need to move away, they leave ghost suburbs behind. The retired, and the retiring, are holding on to family homes in spite of the families who desperately need them, and ultimately in spite of themselves.

A recent report by the Australian Population Research Institute confirms that baby boomers occupy more than 50 to 60 per cent of freestanding houses in the middle suburbs of Sydney and Melbourne, and they hold on until at least 75 before they consider moving. “Few of these older households show much interest in downsizing or any need to do so because of ill health, care needs or partner death.”

It’s a mannequin world. You can leave the TV running all day to hear a human voice. You can even talk to an old neighbour on the footpath. But that doesn’t make up for the fact that where before we had lively communities, we now have empty yards, and empty streets.

In a previous era, their big backyards and little houses were great for the kids playing outside. Today, they may have some flower gardens around the edges and a washing line, but most of the land is just empty, unoccupied grasslands.

Our elders collect knick knacks and photos to remember good times with family and friends. Their generation holds particular regard for objects as symbolic mementos. Their children don’t have time, or space for nostalgia though. With their own kids now, they spend longer hours at work, desperately trying to finance astronomically priced houses, and further hours stuck in traffic to get home.

It’s the parents of today that are wearing the cost of our best suburbs becoming ghost suburbs. They raise the children, they work the longer hours than their parents and pay the bigger mortgages. Young families can choose to raise their children in a flat, as the APRI report indicates 1 in 3 Sydney mothers already do, or move to the city fringes and endure ever increasing commute times.

We’re quick to blame Chinese investors, immigrants or even refugees for our housing woes, but the data is in, and it’s our parents and grandparents who are hoarding the housing stock.

The National Seniors Australia lobby group has described any suggestion that retirees make way for families as “offensive”, and suggested that a better solution would be for unit block developers to find space for one yard which could be shared by the dozens of families in a block of flats. “Have planners thought about a community garden area?” This is even harder to swallow when the lobby has cited seniors’ need for backyards for their grandchildren to play in as a reason they can’t possibly downsize.

You could accuse suburban empty-nesters of being selfish but the sad thing is, they’re not even acting in their own interests. They hold onto their quarter acre until the bitter end, but they can’t take it with them when they go. Like frogs being slowly boiled, they see less and less of their friends and slip into self-imposed prisons. Studies have found that social isolation is the leading concern for older people living at home, that reduced mobility and fear of crime is isolating them in their houses and that socially isolated seniors have an increased risk of early death regardless of their health and demographic background.

The property boom has been kind to our seniors, and they can afford space in a free market that young families cannot. They don’t want to risk their pension eligibility by liquidating their houses and they don’t want to pay the cost of stamp duties in downsizing. It’s their children and grandchildren who are paying the cost though. It costs parents time with their children. It costs the young in high rents and being priced out of the property market. Perhaps the biggest cost is truly paid by the elderly themselves – it costs them a community. Hanging on to their ghost suburbs has repeatedly been linked in studies to social isolation and, in turn, an increased risk of earlier death.

Maybe you’d like to live among Australias’ most generous communities? Are you one of Australia’s most generous people?

Have you seen our report on Is the “forever home” a thing of the past? How this new housing trend can hurt you and your community.

Filed Under: australian real estate, housing affordability 3 Comments

Luke Metcalfe November 25, 2015

To Nab a Property Bargain, Master the Art of Reverse Feng Shui

We all know the Chinese have a large presence on the Australian property scene today. Chinese buyers snap up nearly 1 in 5 new properties in Sydney, and 1 in 7 in Melbourne, according to research by Credit Suisse. Sometimes they pay very high prices for seemingly average places, like the unremarkable house in Eastwood, a Sydney suburb with a large Chinese community, which sold for a million dollars over its reserve.

Chinese areas have also experienced strong growth in recent years, with popular areas like Chatswood and Epping outpacing the Sydney median price growth rate. We have the stability, land, convenience and timezone that many Chinese buyers crave. This situation is pretty scary to a buyer. You could pay for building inspections, get a solicitor and then be trumped by more money than you’ll ever earn in your life.

Luckily there’s a whole selection criteria for homes that means nothing to ordinary Australians. That discipline is known as Feng Shui and it’s something that buyers in Chinese influenced markets should know, simply so they can do the opposite. Studies by the Asian Real Estate Association of America have found that 79% of Chinese investors there will pay more for a house with good Feng Shui, so avoiding this premium is critical in finding a bargain.

Reverse Feng Shui is actually quite zen. It’s a science of disbelief – it’s the yang to the Chinese yin. It is to hold knowledge without accepting its truth and, in actual fact, do the exact opposite. It’s about harnessing negative energy to get more home for your money.

1. Make for the Curves
The bendy, winding roads that are so popular in modern suburban developments are said to bring bad health. The same is true for T intersections and cul de sacs. In general, if headlights are flashing in the front room, you can feel that negative energy coming through in the form of downward price pressure.

2. Street Lights Shine on a Bargain
Homes just above street lights might make those final steps to the front door safer, but to Feng Shui masters that’s a no-no, even if your windows are not made of paper. A quick look at Google Street View can reveal these “bargain beacons”

3. Follow the Pointers
Anything pointing at your home, from building corners to TV antennas are said to bring a pointy stabby vibe to your house. So although they also provide a slight risk to running children and drunk homecomers, embrace the apex and let these objects point you to your new bargain home.

4. Good Things Come in 4’s
The number 8 is very auspicious, associated with good fortune, so steer clear of the 8th floor, and head to the 4th floor, where the number 4 sounds like ‘death’ and is very bad luck. If the views are no good from the 4th floor, the 14th or 24th will work just as well.

5. Go With the Flow
The main door should never be aligned with the back door, say the masters. This is a particularly good one for buyers, as no amount of strategic arrangement of plants and waterfalls can compensate for this fundamental floor plan flaw. Find a place with the front and back doors aligned, and you can rest easy knowing that the only thing flowing out will be competing buyers.

6. Be Open Minded to Open Plan
The kitchen should not be visible from the front door, nor should the entrance to the bathroom. This leaves most open plan layouts wide open to practitioners of Reverse Feng Shui.

7. Embrace your Inclination
Ground sloping steeply away from the house is a big no-no for Feng Shui, and is another hard fact that can’t be overcome with decorating or renovations. Sloped blocks are actually a bargain when it comes to square meters of yard space though, and can offer some terrific vistas.

8. Take all Necessary Steps
A staircase leading down to the entrance is said to carry all good fortune down from upstairs and out the front door. This is a very common feature, though, of the grand Victorian terraces that crowd the inner suburbs of Melbourne and Sydney. A conveniently located staircase could be the feature you need to bring a chic urban townhouse within your grasp.

To start your search, jump on to Microburbs.com.au, where we score every property in Australia.

Filed Under: australian real estate, cheap 3 Comments

Luke Metcalfe November 22, 2015

Surprisingly, Real Estate Agents Are Our Friends

I’ve learned a positive thing about humanity doing startups. People aren’t as threatened by your products as you might think.

On a previous startup, I published Wikipedia articles with mouseover links to similar citable sentences, so students could get around the rule that you can’t cite Wikipedia. I expected an outcry from teachers and lecturers but instead I had a whole lot of progressive teachers supporting the site. They saw it as a bridge to help their students jump out to other sources.

On NetComber, I published reports showing domains connected by ownership. When companies spun off sites that they didn’t want associated with their legitimate business, they were exposed. Our most common complainant were law firms like smithandpartners.com creating domains like getoutofjailfree.com. But I spent many sleepless nights worrying about the real bad guys. How far would they go to get these links taken down? Instead, the contact usually went more like this: “So, how did you work it out?” Once I told them, they’d change the site to try to avoid detection and come back politely asking us to update their records. We never did oblige, but I was pleasantly surprised that the response was mostly “we need to lift our game”, not “Let’s kill Luke Metcalfe”.

Now with Microburbs, I first thought we were just for buyers. We’re not beholden to listing fees from agents, like most portals, so we give just the facts while agents give just the gloss. ‘Buyers will love us, but agents will hate us’, I feared. Talking to agents, though, has been a pleasant surprise. In fact they’re really a lot like us. They understand it’s not enough any more to just pump out ads. People are ignoring it. Agents too are up against RealEstate.com.au. They too are struggling to be heard in an attention economy. What can agents provide that buyers can’t get on RealEstate.com.au? They know they need to be local experts. They fully understand the character of different microburbs within their area, and they are keen to be the first to introduce their clients to Microburbs.com.au.

It’s a lesson not to be fearful. The world is moving fast and small businesses, and players hitting up against real data every day, have to be pragmatic. It’s a great time to be a startup.

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Caroline Bellinger October 19, 2015

Looking for love? Then move to these cities ASAP

person-couple-love-romantic-large

You’ve hit the bars, been bullied into blind dates and dabbled in online dating. You’ve scoped the gym, prowled the park and signed up for every singles’ dance/pottery/book/crocheting group in your neighbourhood. You’ve even navigated the tumultuous waters of Tinder. Yet, no matter how much you swipe right, you’ve still not found Mr/Miss Right.

So far in the game, the score is true love: 0, dating duds: too many to count.

There’s a very good chance, however, that it’s not you — or even them — but where you live that’s preventing you meeting ‘the one’. Instead of waiting for the guy/girl of your dreams to make the first move, you might need to move. Like, actually, literally need to move.

New data compiled by Microburbs ranks all Australian suburbs, from those with the most eligible men and women, to those with the least. That is, those areas in each state where you have the best chances of getting lucky, and those where, statistically, you’ll have to look much harder for love.

The data looks at all men and women aged 15-44 and ranks each neighbourhood according to what percentage of that group are not living with a partner. And yes, we know everyone is very progressive and independent these days, resulting in all sorts of living situations that might not reflect their relationship status — but you have to agree that, statistically, you have a much better chance with those who are not living with a partner, than those that are.

Overall, if you are a man looking for a woman, the ACT has the high percentage of single ladies with 13% of all females in that age group not cohabiting with a partner. Ladies hoping to nab a bloke should consider a move to South Australia, where 18% of all men aren’t shacked up with a better half.

Tasmania, Queensland and Western Australia have the least singles overall.

Here’s the best — and worst — suburbs around the country to mingle with single.. Some might consider moving to seek out love an extreme measure, but that might be what it takes if you are truly hoping to meet that girl or boy next door.

Australian Capital Territory

For those in the ACT, Braddon, Canberra’s most densely populated suburb, is a good area for both men and women looking for love.

If you are a man seeking a woman:

Chart by Visualizer