Homebuyer Real Estate Magazine
Print Media in Subiaco

REIWA President Hayden Groves said it was effortless to get caught up in general Perth market talk, but it was imperative to look deeper to see how individual suburbs were performing. However, if we dig a small deeper and look at usual selling days at a suburb level, there are considerable areas of Perth selling significantly quicker now than they did in the boom, Mr Groves said. These results disclose the quickest sales are happening in the suburbs that predominantly cater to the trade up sector of the residential property market. This represents the second quarter in a row affordability has declined. The appropriate news is WA remains one of the most affordable states in the country for housing. Here in WA, home ownership is quiet very much attainable. In fact, we have the highest proportion of beginning home buyers in the market out of any state or territory in Australia, with the Housing Affordability Report revealing 21 per cent of all owner occupier home loans in WA in the December quarter were to beginning home buyers. To put that into perspective, home loans to beginning home buyers in Fresh South Wales made up only 8.2 per cent of all loans during that alike period less than half the proportion of WA. While the fresh Labor Government faces a difficult fiscal environment, REIWA quiet believes an incremental reform of property taxes will foster both owner occupation and investment. The residential property market is a key contributor to state revenue, specifically through transfer duty one of the maximum inept and ineffective taxes. In the long term, we would like to see the Government transition to a broad based land tax instead of relying on transactional taxes for revenue. We call on the McGowan Government to commit to conducting a state tax review, to look at more sustainable ways to fund essential services in WA that doesn’t impact so heavily on affordability. Western Australia’s property market has softened considerably over the end couple of years. If lending conditions are made tougher for existing home owners, fresh home buyers and investors in WA, this will have a detrimental effect on our local housing market which is impartial starting to disclose signs of stabilization, Mr Groves said. USIA WA CEO Allison hailed said imposing further lending restrictions may be viable on the east coast where the market is heated, but in WA it will do more damage than good. Improved housing diversity needed for the tomorrow of WA. Combined with the amplify in population and requirement for additional housing stock, these findings clearly identify the need for more appropriate, diverse and affordable housing across the state. At present, the focus on higher density infill in WA does not face the stylish and tomorrow social and economic needs of our community. BIA Executive Officer Emma de Jagger says promoting and facilitating the provision of different dwelling types and densities in good locations is becoming increasingly important, to ensure that the housing needs of residents are catered for at all stages of life. Although density creates some tensions, the reality is that we need to bear a variety of housing forms across WA to cater for our changing society. Planning needs to consider the community of the future, and affordability is about access and services as much as price. This requires leadership and delivery of appropriate examples, she said. In conjunction with BIA, we will be submitting a number of recommendations to government at both a federal and state level, advocating for a series of legislative changes to encourage measures that support the efficient supply of well located different housing in WA. Housing diversity is an essential component for any community, and we need to look to the tomorrow and prepare adequately.