Will the record breaking
trend continue?

We hope you all enjoyed the holiday season and time with family and friends. A quick look back over the past 12 months again sees Melbourne as the auction capital with a record breaking 40,000 auctions- a new record, up from 34,500 last year and beating the
previous record of 34,619 set in 2010.

The spring auction market was the strongest ever. October 25, known as Super Saturday often sees over 1000 auctions held but last year, with 1682 auctions it became Mega
Saturday! This was followed closely by the 1660 auctions held on the weekend of December 6-7.

Our last quarter provided some exciting local results with sales exceeding $1 million for established homes in Hughesdale and Murrumbeena, and a corner site ripe for development in East Bentleigh. Our final sale was a commercial holding in Richmond selling for $5.2 million. We auctioned over $34,650,000 worth of property last year
at an average sale price of $787,500. Our clearance rate finished at 88.64% well
above the Melbourne average of 71%.

It would seem the auction activity is set to continue as the Reserve Bank cut the cash rate from 2.5% to 2.25%, for the first time since August 2013 and is now the lowest since the 1950’s. Two of the major banks forecast that the rate will fall further to 2.0% as early as April 2015. Either way, the immediate reduction should continue to bolster housing
markets and 2015 is looking bright for continued healthy capital growth.

MPS - Carnival of Cultures We are proud to be supporting Murrumbeena Primary School with promotional boards for its 2015 “Carnival of Cultures”. It is taking place on Saturday 14th March between 11am - 7pm. Too big to be called a fete, the school holds its carnival every two years and it’s definitely worth the wait! Save the date and pop along to Hobart Road for a fun filled day. To find out what’s on offer go to: murrumbeenapscarnival.weebly.com

Rent report

The demand for rental properties in Murrumbeena/Carnegie is as strong as ever. As a result investors and developers continue to buy into the area. Our office took on 14 new
managements last November alone and new apartment blocks are under construction everywhere. For those of you that do not live locally it’s worth a drive to understand the changes taking place. The likes of Murrumbeena Road, Neerim Road, Railway Parade and Kokaribb Road have numerous examples.

This can only be good for the overall prosperity of the area and a continuing trend of solid capital growth, particularly with the level crossing upgrades in the area now going ahead.

It must be said, however, that the increasing number of brand new accommodation now competes with those of an older vintage. It is becoming increasingly important for owners of older properties to update them to remain competitive, maintain rental yields and minimise vacancy periods.

It is clear from our daily dealings with prospective tenants that the three things at the top of their check list are: effective heating/cooling, updated kitchens (with gas) and
bathrooms, and undercover parking.

If you think your property could be in need of an upgrade to meet the market demands, speak to your Property Manager or our Director, Anthony Lee. They will be pleased to review it with you and advise the best ways to invest in improvements to achieve this and to maximise your rental return for the future.