photo credit: _temaki_ Buyers look for existing houses as land prices soar rolls out all the old chestnuts: Economic forecaster BIS Shrapnel says the demand for newly built houses is dropping off as the cost of land soars. It says the limited supply of new land has led to the growth in land prices outstripping the growth in house prices … Read More
Bursting the Bubble – SBS Insight
Last night’s Insight focused on the tragedy unfolding in the housing market and it’s effects on the rest of the economy. It was good to see that Housing Supply side issues got some time on air, but again the property lobby had large numbers in the crowd, no NGO’s got a guernsey, the omnipresent Ross Gittins took the softly softly … Read More
Land Supply & Housing Affordability – more details
The real issue forcing land prices up are the huge economic rents available to land speculators. With Jeff Kennett’s move away from Site Value rating to Capital Improved Value (CIV) rating, land speculators can purchase land, sit on it and wait for the property to grow in value. The constant attack on State Land Taxes ensures a continuing trend for them to be weakened, sending the signal to the marketplace that hoarding land is appropriate.
On a local level, the combination of these 2 factors has seen a growth of vacant land in inner urban areas in Melbourne. We believe the reduced supply of land from this speculative trend has applied greater pressure on land prices than Melbourne’s 2030 boundary. The huge upward trend in land prices happened well before the 2002 announcement of 2030.
I Want to Live Here Report released
Land Supply Strangled by Speculators Earthsharing Australia has released the first ‘I Want to Live Here’ Report, demonstrating the extent to which speculative vacancies are the hidden issue in the housing affordability debate. The ‘I Want to Live Here’ report found that 1058 people could live on vacant sites within the Bluestone Ward (City of Maribyrnong). This Google Earth photo … Read More