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VIC Government slashes stamp duty for off-the-plan Townhouses; savings available immediately, 21st Oct 2024.

Dear Fellow Property Investors,

Victorian government's stamp duty cuts on off-the-plan apartments, units, and townhouses offer significant savings for property buyers. Learn more about eligibility, how to benefit, and why now is the prime time to buy with these expanded concessions.

In a significant policy move aimed at stimulating the property market, the Victorian government has announced a major reduction in stamp duty for off-the-plan apartments, units, and townhouses.

Effective from October 21, 2024, the expanded concessions will apply to all eligible off-the-plan purchases and will remain in place for one year.

This initiative, designed to address the state’s housing affordability crisis, opens a window of opportunity for prospective buyers, particularly investors and owner-occupiers, to secure substantial stamp duty savings.

Key Changes to Stamp Duty Concessions;

Previously, stamp duty on off-the-plan purchases was calculated based on the total price of the property, including the construction value. Under the new scheme, stamp duty will be calculated solely on the land value before construction begins. This shift in policy significantly reduces the financial burden for buyers, particularly in metropolitan areas where property prices continue to rise.

For example, a Victorian purchasing an off-the-plan apartment valued at $620,000, with the land component valued at $77,500, will now pay just $4,000 in stamp duty—down from $32,000. This $28,000 saving represents a significant reduction in upfront costs for property buyers, potentially unlocking the market for a wider demographic.

The changes also eliminate the previous cap on concessions, expanding eligibility beyond first-home buyers to include any purchaser of off-the-plan apartments, units, or townhouses within a strata subdivision.

Who Benefits from the Scheme?

The new stamp duty concessions are aimed at boosting sales in Victoria’s off-the-plan sector, which has been slowing due to high taxes and market uncertainty. The scheme covers properties that are part of a strata subdivision. However, it excludes house and land packages or dwellings not part of a strata subdivision.

Existing concessions for first home buyers remain unchanged. Homes valued up to $600,000 will continue to benefit from full stamp duty exemptions, and concessions apply to properties valued up to $750,000.

A Limited-Time Opportunity for Buyers

The stamp duty concession is a time-sensitive initiative, with the expanded benefits available only until October 21, 2025. Buyers who are considering entering the market are urged to act promptly to take advantage of the scheme, as the concession will revert to its previous structure after this period.

For developments currently under construction, buyers are also eligible for reduced stamp duty, although the exact savings will depend on how much of the construction has been completed at the time of purchase.

What Buyers Need to Know;

For those interested in purchasing an off-the-plan property, feel free to contact Konrad Bobilak CEO of www.investrosprime.com.au via 

Summary of Eligibility:

  • Applies to off-the-plan apartments, units, and townhouses within a strata subdivision.
  • Stamp duty is calculated based on land value, not total property price.
  • Available for one year, ending October 21, 2025.
  • No cap on eligibility; open to all buyers, not just first-home purchasers.
  • With the Victorian government’s stamp duty concession, now is an ideal time for property buyers to enter the market while this limited offer remains available.

Interested in getting educated on Australian property investing?

Reserve your place and join me and 55 like-minded property investors for the final Real Estate Investing Fast Track Weekend for 2024!

Click HERE to reserve your seat now!

Dear Fellow Property Investors,

Landlords in the majority of Melbourne rental markets are asking for more rent than this time last year, some by as much as 34 per cent, even as the hot market starts to lose steam.

Houses and units in most suburbs recorded double-digit growth in the year to September, and only seven markets were stagnant or went backwards over the same period.

Melbourne Median asking rents September quarter
Melbourne suburbs where rents rose most over the past year

It comes as the most recent Rent Report from property listings site Domain found median house and unit rents were stable during the September quarter, though they remain at unaffordable and record highs of $580 per week for houses and $550 for units. The vacancy rate was 1.3 per cent, up from 0.9 per cent this time last year, but still low.

Renters priced out of their homes looking for cheaper accommodation would drive up prices in smaller, less popular suburbs, Domain chief of research and economics Dr Nicola Powell said.

”People shift suburbs, and they go to the bridesmaid suburb that’s a bit cheaper,” she said. “Previously it was centered on the inner-city locations, but now it’s looking like some inner-urban areas that are doing better than others.”

House asking rents rose the most in the tiny northern suburb of Bellfield, up 33.9 per cent over the year to $643 per week. It was followed by Toorak, where rents rose 30 per cent to a median of $1300 per week. East Melbourne was next, up 29.4 per cent to $1100 per week.

Powell said the two high-end suburbs were outliers in the quarter’s results, however. The next biggest jumps in house rents were in Heidelberg West, Kingsbury and Jacana, each up more than 25 per cent.

Asking rents for units rose the most in Aspendale, up 24 per cent to $608 per week. Next was Noble Park, up 21.6 per cent to $450, and Caulfield South, up 21 per cent to $590 per week.

So let me ask you a question…

Do you have a game plan for 2024?

Or will you watch savvy, educated, market-ready investors snap up all the bargains at the recovery phase of the Melbourne property cycle (which, in my opinion, is RIGHT NOW!)

Or, will you join them?    

The choice is yours!

So, what are you waiting for?

Reserve your place and join me and 55 like-minded property investors for the first Real Estate Investing Fast Track Weekend for 2024!

Click HERE to reserve your seat now!

Don’t miss out, CLICK HERE to get up to date video education from Konrad Bobilak.

Deposit Bond vs. Bank Guarantee: Which is Right for Your Property Purchase?

Securing your next property is an exciting endeavour, but the financial aspects can sometimes be daunting, especially for retirees looking to downsize and transition to a new chapter in their lives. Whether you’re seeking an apartment by the beach, a cozy townhouse, or a penthouse with a view, the path to securing your ideal property should be as smooth as possible.

If you’re in this situation, you may be wondering about the best way to provide a deposit for your new property without tying up your hard-earned cash. Two popular options to consider are deposit bonds and bank guarantees. In this article, we’ll compare these financial tools to help you make an informed decision that suits your unique circumstances.

What is a Deposit Bond?

Let’s start with the basics. A deposit bond is a financial instrument designed to instil confidence in property transactions. It serves as a guarantee to the seller, ensuring that if for whatever reason, the buyer defaults on the property purchase, the insurer will fulfill the deposit requirement. Deposit bonds provide flexibility, ease of acquisition, and can be applied to various property transactions.

What is a Bank Guarantee?

On the other hand, a bank guarantee involves a promise from a bank that it will cover a specific financial obligation should the buyer fail to meet it. In the context of property purchases, a bank guarantee is similar to a deposit bond in that it acts as a guarantee to the seller that the buyer will fulfil the deposit requirement when necessary. Unlike deposit bonds, bank guarantees require the buyer to provide security to the bank usually in the form of a term deposit or property security, therefore tying up their assets as collateral, which can negatively impact financial flexibility.

Benefits of Deposit Bonds;

  • Preserving Your Investments: You may have your wealth tied up in various investments. Deposit bonds allow you to keep your investments intact while securing your property.
  • No Need to Use Superannuation: You won’t need to draw on your super fund, keeping your retirement savings intact and continuing to earn you a return.
  • No Home Equity Required: Unlike bank guarantees, deposit bonds don’t require you to use your home or other assets as security.
  • Peace of Mind: Deposit bonds provide peace of mind to both buyers and sellers by ensuring the deposit is secure.
  • Quick to Arrange: Deposit Bonds can be arranged within one or two days which ensures you are less likely to miss out on your property. On the other hand, bank guarantees take weeks to organise due to the requirements of the bank to have various legal documents and securities put in place.
  • Cost Effective: A Deposit Bond costs around 3% per annum (without the need to provide property or cash security) which is around half the cost of borrowing the money from a bank.

Benefits of Bank Guarantees;

  • Pay as you go: Banks often allow for the payment of the bank guarantee fee to be made on a ‘pay as you go’ basis such as paying 6 months in advance. A deposit bond needs to paid for in advance however you may qualify for a rebate if your property settles early.
  • Access to a wide range of properties: Due to bank guarantees being around for a longer period than deposit bonds, they are currently more widely accepted.

Dear Fellow Property Investor,

Melbourne homeowners are set for an up to $55,000 windfall that could usher in record house prices in the next year.

New PropTrack estimates have tipped the city for 3 per cent to 6 per cent home value growth, the biggest uplift in the past two years after multiple interest rate hikes since May 2022 put the Victorian capital’s housing market in the doldrums.

For Melbourne’s $921,000 median house price, the growth would mean a $27,630-$55,260 surge.

It would also add $18,500-$37,020 to the city’s $617,000 typical unit.

At the upper end of the forecast, the city’s home values would rise more than seven times the 0.8 per cent uptick they recorded this financial year.

PropTrack economic research director Cameron Kusher said Melbourne buyers have had more choice in stock than other states and the city was becoming more attractive to buyers due to its affordability.

“It’s the first time Brisbane is back in line with Melbourne in terms of affordability and the gap (of affordability) between Sydney and Melbourne, it’s one of the largest on record,” Mr Kusher said. “Although Victoria is still seeing a slightly greater loss of people to other states than it is gaining, housing affordability will drive people to want to come to Victoria.

“If you want to build your career you want to be in Sydney or Melbourne.”

Despite the scope for price rises, Mr Kusher said with the new financial year looming there were positive signs for buyers ahead.

“With the tax cuts coming next week we will see buyers borrowing capacity increase and then provided that we have interest rate cuts as well at some point, Melbourne will start looking more affordable and attractive,” he said.

“The state government in Victoria is still seeing investors selling out of the market which is creating space for first home buyers.

“It’s getting more expensive to rent and there is a lot of stock on the market.”

Ray White Craigieburn auctioneer and sales consultant Trish Orrico said 50 per cent of her sales lately had been landlords selling up due to tax hikes for investors, with first home buyers snapping up the residences.

“While these projected figures are positive, we shouldn’t be making assumptions on the property market, we don’t have a crystal ball,” Ms Orrico said.

“The market is the market we are guided by things that are happening within the economy now.”

The analysis from PropTrack revealed national home prices are expected to rise by up to 5 per cent in the new financial year in line with slowing price growth forecast for several capital cities, though more substantial price growth is still possible in Sydney as well as Melbourne.

Let me ask you something…

Do you have a game plan for 2024?

Or will you watch savvy, educated, market-ready investors snap up all the bargains at the bottom of the Melbourne property cycle (which, in my opinion, already bottomed out in November 2022), again?

Or, will you join them?

So, what are you waiting for?

Reserve your place and join me and 55 like-minded property investors for the first Real Estate Investing Fast Track Weekend for 2024!

Click HERE to reserve your seat now!

Dear Fellow Property Investor,

New figures show significant growth in Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth with many suburbs seeing increases of more than 15% and Sydney up by 7.5%!

Australia’s property prices have soared to record levels in several capital cities as limited sales volumes and rising populations more than made up for the dampening effect of higher interest rates, two data groups say.

The new figures show significant growth in Brisbane, Adelaide, and in Perth, where five areas have recorded annual gains of more than 15%, while prices in Sydney are 7.51% higher than a year ago.

Overall, national home prices crept 0.36% higher in October, bringing the rise to just under 5% for 2023, according to PropTrack. Sydney, Perth, Adelaide and Brisbane values are all at record peaks.

Annual change in home prices

“We’ve seen national prices have now risen for 10 consecutive months,” PropTrack’s senior economist, Eleanor Creagh, said. “It’s certainly a daunting increase for someone [who’s] yet to enter the market.”

Rival data provider CoreLogic said its national home value index rose 0.9% in October alone, accelerating from September’s revised 0.7%. The 7.6% increase from a trough in January left the index just 0.5% below the peak recorded in April 2022, the group said, citing slightly different tracking methods.

“There’s an increasing diversity of capital growth performance,” the head of residential research at CoreLogic, Eliza Owen, said.

“Sydney and Melbourne are loosening up a little bit. Hobart, Darwin and Canberra have been flat or falling in recent months and remain down quite substantially year-on-year,” Owen said. “But then when you look at Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth – those cities are performing quite differently with [price] growth trending at over 1% a month, inventory levels very low, values at peak, and showing little sign of slowing down.”

The rise in property values during 2023 has caught many analysts by surprise, given the Reserve Bank has been lifting interest rates at the fastest pace in three decades including four rate rises in 2023 before a pause in past four months.

For many people housing is their biggest asset. When home prices fall, it tends to dim households’ sense of wealth, cooling their spending, a trend the RBA had been factoring into their economic models.

With most economists now predicting another interest rate rise next Tuesday, CoreLogic and PropTrack expect some of the real estate fizz to diminish.

“I think the re-acceleration in housing [price] growth might be short-lived, given the increasing prospects for a rate rise next week,” Owen said.

A revival in new listings – including a 10.7% rise in Melbourne and 9.3% in Sydney since the start of spring – will also put a brake on the pace of price gains in some markets, she said. A renewed drop in prices can’t be ruled out.

“New listings added to the market across Sydney in the past three months is about 23,000 properties as opposed to 21,000 sales,” Owen said. “The supply/demand position is shifting.”

Creagh said other cities such as Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide may take a lot more to slow them down.

Home prices in the Western Australian capital rose 0.52% alone in October, a 16th month in a row of gains, and are now 10.9% higher than a year earlier. Rental vacancies are less than 1% and landlords average just 16 days to rent out a property.

Top 10 Greater Melbourne suburbs with the highest 12 month value growth

Let me ask you something…

Do you have a game plan for 2023 and 2024? 

Or will you watch savvy, educated, market-ready investors snap up all the bargains at the bottom of the Melbourne property cycle (which in my opinion by the way has already bottomed out in November 2022), 

Or will you join them? 

So, what are you waiting for? 

Reserve your place and join me and 55 like-minded property investors for the last Real Estate Investing Fast Track Weekend for 2023!

Click HERE to reserve your seat now!

Dear Fellow Property Investor,

CoreLogic’s daily dwelling values index, which tracks value changes across the five major capital city markets, rose 1.0% in August on a 5-city aggregate basis.

This was the sixth straight monthly increase in property prices, with values also accelerating from the 0.9% increase recorded in June:

Graph: CoreLogic Home Price Indices

Brisbane (+1.4%), Adelaide (+1.1%) and Sydney (1.1%) led price growth in August, whereas Melbourne (+0.5%) and Perth (+0.9%) recorded smaller increases.

Yet despite these incredible gains, most people never invest in residential property, only a small fraction, some 72.8% only end up buying one investment property?

Sounds crazy…doesn’t it?

But there is a very logical reason behind this…from my personal observations and involvement in the real estate market over the last 20 years, I have identified that most property investors tend to fall into the following 4 broad categories of behaviour;

1. The analytical compulsive information gatherer; usually coming from a technical industry such as engineering, science, or medicine, these property investors will spend months and years conducting market due-diligence, crunching numbers and analysing charts.

They tend to read lots of property books, attend workshops and frequent property investing forums and chatrooms….

Most experience ‘analysis paralysis’, due to so many opposing views that exist in the industry on what constitutes the best way to invest, and in most cases, they end up not investing at all…spending years in the sidelines waiting for the perfect time to invest…which never eventuates. 

2. The ‘get rich quick’ gambler; this group of people usually come from a direct selling background, or multi-level marketing, and have a general interest in ‘alternative’ medicine, alternative energy healing, health and fitness, green drinks and love conspiracy theories.

This group is very open minded, and has a great sense of urgency built to get results NOW!, many of these people have undertaken extensive personal development, and hence believe that anything is possible…including becoming a multi-millionaire overnight!

This group of people tends to make impulsive investing decisions and in most cases is not afraid to jump in first! 

In a lot of cases they end up losing money by investing in Gold Coast properties, Cash flow positive properties in Mining towns, US properties, European holiday apartments, etc.

3. The comfort zone investor; makes up the vast majority of the property investor market in Australia today, or the 72.8% of investors who only own 1 investment property. 

This group of people tend to be the PAYG middle class, they are skeptical about attending or spending money on seminars or any type of personal development, books or courses as they claim it’s ‘just common sense’….or you can just ask your accountant or financial planner for advice…

Most of these investors are structured incorrectly, and have no idea about how to conduct any type of property or market due-diligence or cash flow analysis and end up buying one property, within 3 to 5 kilometers to where they live…their ‘comfort zone’, and in most cases the property is comparable to the one they live in themselves.

4. The active savvy property investor; makes up a small percentage of the the entire Australian population, in fact only 0.9% of all property investors end up owning more than 6 investment properties.

The active savvy property investors come from all walks of life, have varying amounts of income, education, and age groups…but they do have 1 thing in common, and that is a SYSTEM!

You see, developing and implementing a SYSTEM is the single difference between success and failure when it comes to the world of property investing.

By Attending the 2 Day Live Real Estate Investing Fast Track Weekend you will learn a proven system that has worked for thousands of successful property investors to successfully build large property portfolios….

So, what are you waiting for? 

Reserve your place and join me and 55 like-minded property investors at the next Real Estate Investing Fast Track Weekend!

Click HERE to reserve your seat now!

Dear Fellow Property Investor,

A recent Domain analysis shows that Australia will need to add 497,984 dwellings to Australia’s housing stock to accommodate the 1,235,000 projected net overseas migrants projected to arrive in Australia over the four years to 2022-26:

That equates to 341 new homes required every day for four years!

In reality, Australia would need to build more than this level to account for homes lost through demolition.

Interestingly, the ABS’ population clock shows that Australia is currently growing by one person every 47 seconds, driven by one person arriving to live in Australia every 42 seconds via the Albanese Government’s extreme immigration program:

Blind Freddy can see that the chances of Australia adding enough homes to meet this extreme population growth are slim, given construction rates are falling amid widespread builder failures and skyrocketing material and financing costs.

At this month’s Senate Estimates hearing, Treasury Secretary Steven Kennedy stated that the reduction in building approvals is projected to continue until 2025, with investment in new dwellings expected to fall by 2.5% this year, 3.5% in 2023-24, and 1.5% in 2024-25.

All this is great news for Landlords who will see rentals skyrocket in ‘Key’ suburbs around Australia over the next few years. 

At the same time, it’s bad news for tenants, and first-time home buyers.

Remember that the risk always lies with you, not with the market. 

The market is simply a vehicle that transfers wealth from the uneducated to the educated. The sooner you gain the necessary skills and education to take advantage of the property market, the sooner you will be making money and taking advantage of rare opportunities such as what the current property and share markets are presenting right now.

Let me ask you something…

Do you have a game plan for 2023? 

Or will you watch savvy, educated, market-ready investors snap up all the bargains at the bottom of the Melbourne property cycle (which in my opinion by the way has already bottomed out in November 2022), 

Or will you join them? 

So, what are you waiting for? 

Reserve your place and join me and 55 like-minded property investors at the next Real Estate Investing Fast Track Weekend!

Click HERE to reserve your seat now!

Book Real Estate Investing Fast-Track Weekend

Seats are strictly limited so book NOW in order to avoid future disappointment…

Don't take our word for it...see what our past attendees have to say about the event!

Dear Fellow Property Investor,

Did you know that new modelling from ANU’s Centre for Social Research and Methods predicts the Reserve Bank of Australia’s (RBA) most recent 0.25% rate hike will make Australia’s mortgage repayment burden the heaviest in history.

Home owners will, on average, be forced to stump up a quarter of take-home pay towards mortgage repayments.

Last week’s rate hike means that mortgage holders will be paying on average 50% more than they did pre-pandemic.

ANU Associate Professor, Ben Phillips, said that “mortgage costs as a share of income are at their highest since 1984”, despite mortgage holders coming off “a few years of very low interest rates”.

Graph - housing cost as a share of disposable income

Mortgage costs have risen most aggressively for lower-income households:

Graph - mortgagor household housing cost share of income

There has been a very large increase in debt servicing costs over the past year due to the combination of 4.0% of interest rate hikes by the RBA and rising average debt levels.

Ben Phillips says that his modelling is a “conservative” estimate and only factors in one additional interest rate hike from the RBA.

Phillips warns that “for some households such increases [in mortgage costs] are likely to mean significant financial stress or the need to rearrange household expenditure priorities”.

The modelling comes amid predictions that Australian house prices will experience a ‘double-dip’ price correction.

TCorp Chief Economist Brian Redican believes that unless interest rates begin to fall, house prices could reverse in the next six months.

“The rate increases, including as recently as May, are still running through the system”.

“So people will be facing higher mortgage rates over the next couple of months, including those that are coming off their fixed rate loans”.

Redican believes that the property market is “very much driven by sentiment at the moment”.

“But the thing about those kinds of sentiment indicators or animal spirits is that they can turn quite quickly, particularly when we look ahead at those affordability issues, which are likely to get worse rather than better”.

The next few weekends of auction results will be the litmus test and should indicate whether the RBA has broken the will of home buyers, which could lead to a possible double-dip correction.

So, what are you waiting for?

Reserve your place and join me and 55 like-minded property investors at the next Real Estate Investing Fast Track Weekend!

Book Real Estate Investing Fast-Track Weekend

OUR PAST ATTENDEES RAVED ABOUT THIS EVENT… SEE WHAT THEY HAVE TO SAY.

Dear Fellow Property Investor,

Watch this recently aired 9 News story about Melbourne house prices jumping by more than $1000 a week.

Click Here to Watch Now

Notice that the Bayside area is leading the recovery, with an estimated recent increase in median house prices of $30,000 followed by the Eastern suburbs which increased $15,000 to $19,000.

Map of Melbounre house prices

Guess where I have been sourcing 80% of all properties for my clients since November 2022?

You guessed it!

The Bayside area and the Eastern suburbs of Melbourne!

So, what are you waiting for? 

Reserve your place and join me and 55 like-minded property investors at the next Real Estate Investing Fast Track Weekend!

Real Estate Investing Fast-Track Weekend
Book Real Estate Investing Fast-Track Weekend

Seats are strictly limited so book NOW in order to avoid future disappointment…

I look forward to meeting you at the event!

Yours in Success,

KONRAD BOBILAK

Dear Fellow Property Investor,

Let me get straight to the point…

The best time to BUY from a ‘market timing’ perspective is NOW…

When the market booms in 12 to 24 months from now, don’t say I didn’t tell you so! 

So, let me ask you; what’s really stopping you from investing in real estate, right now?

See, for most people it’s simply a lack of knowledge and lack of financial literacy.

Basically, it’s all a matter of education!

What you need to take heed of, is that in order to take advantage of opportunities and prevailing market trends, you must first become EDUCATED!

So, here are two of the smartest and cheapest ways to do that…

1. Access my 10-hour online video real estate investing course called; The Real Investing Fast Track Weekend valued at $497.00 for absolutely Zero! 

That’s $0.00!

That’s the entire course, plus the full 265-page manual, no strings attached, no upsell, and nothing to pay ever!

Online course instant access button

The 10 Hour Real Estate Fast Track Weekend Online 
Video Home Study Valued At $497.00!

3 Speakers, 2 Days, and Over 10 Hours of Real Estate 
Education delivered by some of the sharpest minds in 
Finance and Real Estate Investing in Australia.

Both options are an excellent use of your time. 

Always remember that the risk always lies with you, not with the market. The market is simply a vehicle that transfers wealth from the uneducated to the educated. 

The sooner you gain the necessary skills and education to take advantage of the property market, the sooner you will be making money and taking advantage of rare opportunities such as what the current property and share markets are presenting right now. 

So, what are you waiting for? 

Reserve your place and join me and 55 like-minded property investors at the next Real Estate Investing Fast Track Weekend!

Book Real Estate Investing Fast-Track Weekend

Seats are strictly limited so book NOW in order to avoid future disappointment…

To your success!

KONRAD BOBILAK

Investors Prime

Interested in learning more about property investing in Australia? Please visit our main website InvestorsPrime.com.au for loads of free resources, articles, videos and more to help you on your investing journey.

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