Acreage Market Wrap - 7th February 2021

Watch Video On YouTube

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent from McGrath Estate Agents and I specialise in selling acreage properties. Welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market? 

There are a number of factors currently having a positive impact on the acreage sector and I’ll cover some of those in a moment...

Firstly I just wanted to stress the importance that first home buyer incentives and other government decisions can have on the acreage market… for example, this week the Real Estate Institute of Australia identified 12 Priorities that they’ve recommended to the Federal Government ahead of the upcoming budget in May to help assist property customers in what’s now become a CovidNormal Australia. 

One of the recommendations proposed is Interest rates for first home buyers to be made tax deductible because at least six other OECD nations have a similar incentive currently in place.

“The REIA estimates that this initiative would provide a benefit of around $4,000 per annum to Australia’s first home buyers.”

Further initiatives for First Home Buyers are going to much needed as increases in property prices will make housing less affordable and some FHB could be squeezed out of the market again as investors begin to return due to rising prices, positively geared properties (due to low interest rates and better yields than term investments) and the possibility of FHB incentives diminishing.

To see a full outline of the 12 priorities proposed by the REIA, here’s a link to their recommendations

Looking at a snapshot of the differing Sydney Housing Predictions is really interesting, especially when you consider that these same people were the ones who forecasted around 10-30% falls throughout 2020

• ANZ Bank have forecast an increase of 9% in 2021

• Riskwise forecast 8-10% increase

• NAB predicted a 4.4% increase

• SQM forecast an increase of 7-11%

• Westpac forecast Sydney property values could increase by 14% in 2022-23

Regardless of the differing opinions between all of these property forecasters, it looks like 2021 is going to be a year of strong, positive growth within the housing sector and the acreage market.

With vaccines already being rolled out in the US and UK and Australia to follow suit shortly, it seems that Australia’s economy is powering out of the recession and with Scomo putting an end to any debate that the government will be extending or replacing jobkeeper payments due to end 31st March but rather he said some industries, like tourism or hospitality, may benefit from “targeted assistance”, this should ease any concerns of a “fiscal cliff” upsetting the property market.

Also, this week the Reserve Bank kept the official cash rate unchanged at the historic low of 0.10 per cent and many banks are now offering below 2% interest rates on home loans with fixed rates for 4 years, which makes borrowing to move onto acreage at its most affordable right now than it has been for a decade or more.

Changes to lending rules that will make it easier to borrow money, are expected soon which will further propel the market and over the coming weeks the finance sector will see an injection of 3rd teir lenders who will be offering more flexible loan products.

On top of that, there’s also almost 40,000 Australians on a waiting list hoping to return from overseas as soon as possible, which will boost demand for property in the first half of the year and partly make up for the lack of immigration expected in 2021 with the international border still remaining closed to non-citizens indefinitely, however, immigration could kick-off very quickly once a significant percentage of the Australian population is vaccinated.

Within the building sector, the end of last year saw the biggest increase in new home/unit sales in 20 years largely due to new FIrst Home Buyer incentives making new homes more affordable and as a result enquiry from property developers looking for rezoned land has now escalated dramatically and the prices currently being offered per acre by some developers has increased by around 25-30% from what they were paying towards the end of last year.

The overall impact that a CovidNormal lifestyle is now having on our everyday lives is actually enticing buyers to relocate to suburbs where they prefer to live and ability to work from home rather than focusing their priorities on the commute to work.

This shift to focusing on enjoying a better domestic lifestyle is definitely having a positive effect on the price growth within the acreage sector.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 260 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 140 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury plus there are 76 acreages For Sale throughout The Hills district and another 44 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown. 

The total number of acreage properties For Sale has decreased by 34% from this same time last year which means that the market has reverted back to a sellers market since there are now 135 fewer listings available to choose from.

Overall, there were only 9 new acreage listings come onto the market this week, which included 3 new listings in the Hawkesbury, 4 new listings in the Hills and 1 in each of the other areas.

There were a total of 17 acreage properties Sold this week plus there are currently 26 acreages ‘Under Contract’ across the region, with 16 of those properties ‘Under Contract’ located in The Hawkesbury.

Out in the field this week, volume of buyer enquiry was very high compared to this time last year. The stunning home at 10 Nutwood Lane, Windsor Downs was SOLD earlier this week for $2.3m, plus number 9 Avon Place, Windsor Downs went under contract in addition to 2 of my ‘off-market acres’ listings. 

One of them was a 2.5 acre property with a modern home at 96 Royerdale Place in East Kurrajong and the other was a 7.9 acres bush block with an older home located on the main road at 331 The Northern Road, Londonderry. Both of these 2 properties were snapped up before they even got to hit the market at all.

This week I plan launching at least 2 more ‘off-market acres’ listings. 

One of them is a home on a 5,840m2 block in Windsor Downs with a swimming pool and a separate workshop. It’s coming on the market with a price guide starting from $1.55m - $1.65m which has now become pretty much the minimum entry level for a home in Windsor Downs. 

The other property is a really nice, contemporary style homestead on over 5 acres in a great part of Londonderry with potential for a separate dual accommodation. It’s an ideal set up for a large family and for anyone with trucks, etc. The price guide is going to be set just below $2m at around $1.9m mark.

I think there’s going to be a lot of interest for both of these new listings from our existing buyers who are already registered for early access to our ‘off-market acres’.

Plus, I currently have several other ‘off-market’ acreage listings available which includes a superb 9 acres property in Londonderry, a modern home on over 3 acres complete with a motorbike track in a terrific part of East Kurrajong, plus a 10 acre property in Wilberforce, a stunning resort-style home on over half an acre in North Richmond, as well as a fabulous place on 6.7 acres in Glossodia with a spectacular homestead plus it features a massive 360m2 workshop.

To find out more about any of these properties or if you’d like to be amongst the first to know about any of my upcoming ‘Off-Market’ acreage listings, make sure you register for exclusive FREE access right now at... www.offmarketacres.com.au

Now lastly, just before I go, I’m currently putting together some important insights into what else is happening within the acreage market which I’ll be featuring in the upcoming Autumn edition of The Acreage Report 2021 so stayed tuned over the coming weeks for how you can access your FREE copy of this exclusive acreage report.

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 10th January 2021

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent from McGrath Estate Agents and I specialise in selling acreage properties. Welcome to the first Acreage Market Wrap for 2021 where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market? 

This time last year the world was looking forward with anticipation and optimism about what the new decade had in store for us. Well, 2020 certainly turned out to be a unique year full of unexpected changes. 

A once-in-100-year pandemic, lockdowns, border closures, job losses, a new socially-distanced lifestyle, bushfires, floods and the first recession in 29 years and yet, the median house price in Sydney and many regional areas went up.

Buyer enquiry for acreage lifestyle property has increased dramatically, driving a 57% increase in acreage sales in The Hawkesbury during Spring 2020 when compared to the previous year...and The Hills as well as Penrith acreage areas have also experienced a double digit increase in acreage sales taking place.

One of the main things that I noticed during 2020 was how poor the media were at predicting what was going to happen to the market. There was a lot of talk about the market dropping by around 30%, but instead areas like the Southern Highlands, Central Coast have experienced increases of upwards of 20%.

A number of factors are keeping house prices on solid ground. For example...

• Record low interest rates

• JobKeeper and JobSeeker

• Mortgage repayment deferrals

• Various measures to support business

• Early access to superannuation

• No international travel encouraging upgraders (record high owner occupier lending in October*)

• Raft of first home buyer incentives (loans 30% higher than pre-COVID*)

• Extended HomeBuilder program (construction loans up 65.5% since July*) 

• Work from home trend encouraging regional relocations and boosting regional values

• Rising consumer confidence on the back of improved virus cases management

• Very low supply of homes for sale (24% below the 5-year national average^)

• Positive vaccine news and expected approval in Australia in the first quarter of 2021 

The key challenges in 2021 will be virtually no population growth via immigration (except some international students); the scheduled end of JobKeeper and mortgage deferrals; and lack of investor activity. (which we could start to see change considerably as more & more investors look to move towards property to capitalise on the possibility of the double digit growth predicted by several property analysts)

As John McGrath predicted, conditions are likely to remain strong for property, with easier lending from early 2021 due to the anticipated removal of responsible lending obligations likely to boost activity further. 

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 296 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 163 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury plus there are 93 acreages For Sale throughout The Hills district and another 40 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown. 

Overall there were only 7 new acreage listings come onto the market this week, which included 5 new listings in the Hawkesbury, 1 new listings in the Hills. 

There were a total of 3 acreage properties Sold this week plus there are currently 17 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region, with 11 of those properties ‘Under Contract’ located in The Hawkesbury.

With Solicitors and Conveyancers starting to return back to work tomorrow, I predict that we’ll see a lot of the ‘Under Contract’ sales finalised and there’ll be an increase in the number of new listings come onto the market over the next week or two which will gives a greater indication of how much more active the acreage market has really become.

Over the Christmas break and out in the field this week, there’s been a continuous flow of acreage enquiries coming from city dwellers looking to escape to an acreage lifestyle.

In fact, it was reported on The Project TV Show this week that nearly 58,000 city dwellers moved to Regional areas during the June qtr and these numbers are expected to increase even more in 2021.

Also, over the Christmas break I’ve listed 4 new ‘Off-Market’ Acreage properties.

One is a 9 acre property at 246-254 Reynolds Road in Londonderry which is an excellent land opportunity that has been in the family for approximately a century. Plus, I’ve listed 2 acreage properties in East Kurrajong which are both within the hugely-sought after $1.5m and below price bracket and should sell quickly... and if you really love entertaining then just wait until you see the place I have coming up in North Richmond.

If you want to be amongst the first to know about any of my ‘Off-Market’ acreage listings, make sure you check out & register for FREE now at... www.offmarketacres.com.au - it’s where secret places are revealed.

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, Happy New Year, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 1st November 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

The past two months of Spring has been a very active period in the acreage market, especially when you consider how COVID-19 has actually impacted the property market in a number of positive ways, especially amongst the regional markets.

This week, the 52 page McGrath Report 2021 was released which answers the all important question…

‘HAS COVID-19 CHANGED REAL ESTATE FOREVER?’

The report features John McGrath’s Top Picks, an insight into property trends which also includes a feature article about THE GREAT REGIONAL RELOCATION AHEAD.

If you’d like to grab your Free copy of the McGrath Report 2021, you can access it via this link.

https://www.mcgrath.com.au/advice/guides/the-mcgrath-report-2021

Also, another positive sign for economic recovery was getting to see the pictures last week of hundreds of thousands of vaccine doses rolling off a production line at Pfizer, with the CEO announcing they expect to be ready to seek FDA approval for emergency use in the US in the third week of November, if all goes well with impending trial results.

Watch what happens to the acreage market if that gets the green light!

So, How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 377 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 195 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury plus there are 122 acreages For Sale throughout The Hills district and another 60 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

Overall there were 16 new acreage listings come onto the market this week, which included 8 new listings in the Hawkesbury, 4 new listings in the Hills.

There were a total of 12 acreage properties Sold this week (which was almost double the number that Sold last week) plus there are currently 25 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region, with 17 of those properties ‘Under Contract’ located in The Hawkesbury.

Out in the field this week, the steady flow of acreage enquiries continued from city dwellers looking to escape to an acreage lifestyle.

Also, this week I’m about to launch the brand new marketing strategy that I’ve designed specifically to attract even more acreage buyers to my acreage listings. This is a highly-targeted selling strategy that has been developed exclusively through McGrath and it’s not available via any other agent.

Whether you’d like to part of this new acreage marketing strategy or if you’d like to sell your property via our ‘Off-Market’ acres system, either way we’ve got you covered.

Plus, if you’re looking to purchase an acreage property I currently have a several acreages for sale ‘Off-Market’. So, if you want to be amongst the first to get early access to any of my ‘off-market’ listings, check out... www.offmarketacres.com.au

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe, grab a copy of the FREE Report and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 24th October 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

Following the record-breaking budget announcement on October 6th, the government has made it clear they want to support the housing market at all costs with the removal of responsible lending guidelines which should have a positive impact on the market especially with a suspected rate cut from 0.25% to 0.10% being predicted by a vast majority of analysts at the upcoming Reserve Bank meeting in November.

You see, what’s happened is that lending policy had gone too far after ASIC lost its responsible lending case against Westpac, as the RBA and Treasury both issued warnings against the strict policies causing potential economic impact.

Less than a week later, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced he would overhaul the laws governing mortgages, personal loans, credit cards, and payday lending to streamline decisions on whether customers can afford the loans they seek.

This is promising news for the recovery of the COVID 19 economic recession, as a flow of loans will be encouraged due to less onerous credit rules accompanied by easing interest rates. 

Ultimately, customers will face faster access to loans under simpler rules, taking away the confusion over lending obligations for banks and finance companies.

It will soon be easier for Australians to take out mortgages and refinance their home loans and there has already been a surge in the market with new housing finance data showing a record $16.3 billion in new home loans for owner occupiers.

Combined with record low interest rates, long overdue easing of responsible lending, consistent healthy clearance rates and more new listings coming online, there is good news for both acreage owners and for buyers.

Also, Herron Todd White came out with their October report and it was interesting to see that Sydney, Melbourne & the Central Coast remained in the Declining Market position on the flip-side the lifestyle areas like the Southern Highlands, the Gold Coast, Coffs Harbour and Ballina/Byron Bay are in the midst of a very active, rising market as the working from home flexibility is seeing a flood of buyers are seizing this opportunity to escape away from the city (to a more affordable lifestyle) while they still can.

As I’ve reported previously, I feel that the acreage sector will play a very important role in Australia’s economic recovery, especially after the record levels of investment in infrastructure planned by both the Federal Government and the NSW Government.

Today I spoke to a client of mine who is involved in large scale projects and he said that they have seen a large increase in the number on major infrastructure projects that are planned to commence in these next 12 months.

So with so much construction and housing development planned, the urban sprawl is naturally going to bring forward rezonings around the fringes of existing residential suburbs, plus, there’s going to be an increase in demand for land to store equipment and machinery as industrial property continues to be an expensive option (for example 1/2 an acre of vacant land in St Marys industrial area is currently demanding $95,000 per year and that’s just for an empty block of land) ...then when you add on top all of the people in Sydney who want to move onto acreage for a better lifestyle, we’re going to see the demand for acreage starting to outstrip the supply which will put upward pressure on acreage prices.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 379 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 193 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury (which reduced by over 5% from last week), plus there are 124 acreages For Sale throughout The Hills district (which is off the back of a 7% increase in the available acreage stock in the Hills compared to last week) and another 58 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

Overall there were 29 new acreage listings come onto the market this week, which included 9 new listings in the Hawkesbury, 15 new listings in the Hills.

There were a total of 7 acreage properties Sold this week (none of which were in the Hills area) but a really positive indication that the acreage market is on the move more is that there are currently 28 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region, with a total 17 of the properties ‘Under Contract’ located in The Hawkesbury.

Out in the field this week, we have had a really busy week with 29 Stringer Road, Kellyville, 40 Pitt Street, Richmond selling for a record price of $1.23m to some local buyers downsizing from acres as well as an excellent turn-out witnessed the acreage property at 68-76 Whitegates Road, Londonderry sell under the hammer for $1.9m which was way above the reserve price. Once again Paul Grech our McGrath auctioneer did an excellent job with the 7 registered bidders and a total of 26 bids generating an outstanding result for the owners.

Also, three more acreage properties at 355 Blaxlands Ridge Road, Blaxlands Ridge, 209 Greens Road, Lower Portland and 50A St Marys Road, Berkshire Park went ‘Under Contract’ this week plus I listed 2 acreage properties that should come onto the market this week. One of them is an absolutely incredible ‘jaw-dropping’ property in Windsor Downs and the other is a unique creek front property in Londonderry. Make sure you keep an eye out for them.

It’s going to be a busy selling period between now and Christmas. So, if you’re thinking of taking advantage of the active Spring market right now could be the perfect time to make your move.

Also, this week I’ve been working on a brand new marketing strategy for acreage, which has been designed specifically to attract lots more acreage buyers to my acreage listings. This is a highly-targeted selling strategy that has been developed exclusively through McGrath and it’s not available via any other agent.

Whether you’d like to part of this new acreage marketing strategy or if you’d like to sell your property via our ‘Off-Market’ acres system, either way we’ve got you covered.

Alternatively, if you’re looking to purchase an acreage property I currently have a several acreages for sale ‘Off-Market’. So, if you want to be amongst the first to get early access to any of my ‘off-market’ listings, check out... www.offmarketacres.com.au

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe Go The Panthers and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 5th October 2020

Happy long weekend, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

I hope you’ve enjoyed the sunny weather over the public holiday break. It looks like Summer has started to kick-in a bit earlier this year.

So let’s see what’s been happening this week..

Last week has been very interesting with property expert, John McGrath pointing out the resilience of property values as well as that,

“You might have noticed that two of the big banks upgraded their outlook for property prices this month.

Earlier in the year, Westpac predicted a 10 per cent price fall nationally between April 2020 and June 2021, followed by 4 per cent price rises per annum over the following two years.

They now predict a 5 per cent fall nationally by June 2021 and 15 per cent gains over the next two years.

The Commonwealth Bank initially predicted a 10 per cent fall peak-to-trough but have revised this to a 6 per cent fall.

Australian property is once again proving its resilience, even in challenging economic times.”

It was also very interesting to see a recent report from CoreLogic showed that Bowral in the Southern Highlands had experienced a 10.2% median price increase during the June Qtr and the median sale price changed over the 2020 Financial Year by a whopping 23.4%.

For example, it’s going to be really interesting to see what the upcoming Heron Todd White report says about what’s happening in the residential market and where Sydney’s housing market is currently positioned on the property clock when compared to the Southern Highlands market.

Now you may be wondering what the Southern Highlands market has to do with the acreage market in our area.

Well you see, there are a lot of buyers who have recently brought their decision for a lifestyle-change forward off the back of the Coronavirus pandemic and many are now looking at making a move out the city to more regional areas, and many have been heading down the Hume Highway to the Southern Highlands market.

...and just this week, I spoke with several acreage buyers coming from Sydney who had initially been looking at buying an acreage property in the Southern Highlands, but, now they’ve decided that acreage around the North West parts of Sydney’s fringes is a more appealing option for them due to a number of factors like having access to well established services nearby, the overall affordability of acreage in the area, the proximity/convenience of the acreages as well as the possibility to still commute into the city if/when required.

On top of that, with the prices rising dramatically down in the Southern Highlands, many are finding the market down there too competitive and it’s starting to get beyond their reach.

As I’ve reported previously, when looking at what’s happening in the acreage market, there are a lot of different scenarios which impact the acreage sector and it isn’t just a matter of looking at what’s happening to the housing market of Sydney and expect that we’re simply going to follow that trend, we need to take a broader view of the market.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 369 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 203 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 111 throughout The Hills district and another 55 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

There were 15 new acreage listings come onto the market this week. There were only 4 acreage properties Sold this week but a more positive indication that the acreage market is becoming more active is that there are currently 30 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region.

Out in the field this week, we have had a busy week of enquiries and despite it being the long weekend we had a great turn out at the ‘Halcyon Lodge’ property at 10 Bennelong Place, East Kurrajong which has attracted an incredible amount of interest over the past week with numerous 2nd inspections taking place and a number offers already on the table.

Also, 40 Pitt Street in Richmond went ‘Under Contract’ this week and even though it’s not an acreage property, when I listed the home I said to the owners that I believed that their ideal buyer would be somebody looking to downsize from nearby acreage and that has turned out to be the case.

It looks like it’s going to be a busy buying & selling period between now and the end of the year, with Christmas now only 11 weeks away.

If you’re thinking of buying or selling acreage this year, right now could be the perfect time to make your move.

Plus, if you’re looking for an acreage property I currently have a number of acreages for sale ‘Off-Market’. If you want to be amongst the first to get access to at any of my ‘off-market’ listings, make sure to check out... www.offmarketacres.com.au

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 27th September 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

Firstly to all the Victorians, we're all thinking of you and hope you're getting towards the end of your lockdown restrictions during this pandemic. After today’s announcement by Premier Daniel Andrews, it looks like Victorian lockdown restrictions will slowly become relaxed and with private inspections of properties now allowed I anticipate that we will see a significant increase in the number of buyers not only looking to move out of Victoria but they’ll also be looking to escape away from the city life and head out in search of an acreage lifestyle.

We are already experiencing an increase in enquiry from city-dwellers looking to get away from suburbia. Recently I’ve been speaking with a lot of cashed-up buyers who are coming from affluent parts of Sydney like Eastern Suburbs, Lower North Shore, Northern Beaches and The Shire and they are really keen to move onto acres. So if you’re thinking of selling your acreage, please get in touch because I currently have a lot of buyers on my books waiting for the right acreage property to come available.

The surge in activity is due to the affordability and perceived convenience of acreage around Sydney’s fringes for the large number of city dwellers who are heading to the countryside because of COVID-19 lockdowns changing workplace flexibility which is now allowing many to work from home, and yet they still want to be able to commute to their workplace if and when required...and acreage within this area ticks a lot of those boxes for them.

In other news, even though interest rates look set to remain at historically low levels, the banks have recently been very stringent with their lending due to the Coronavirus and loan processing was taking a lot longer than usual. Major lenders had been behaving very similarly to how they were back at the beginning of 2019 when the Banking Royal Commission recommendations were handed down.

There is a real threat that stemming the flow of lending along with increases in unemployment could see the current single digit correction in the Sydney housing sector continue into the first half of next year and possibly beyond.

Thankfully, on Friday, The Federal Treasurer, Josh Freidenberg announced “Simpler lending rules for home loans and credit to free up the economy” which should help remove one of the biggest financial choke points that’s been holding the flow of money back from the property market over recent months.

As David Crowe of the Sydney Morning Herald reported, “Customers will be promised faster access to loans under simpler rules that aim to free up credit and lift the economy by ending confusion over lending obligations for banks and finance companies.”

Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that these new rules are going to get implemented fast enough to help homebuyers in 2020, as “the government prepares to unveil tax cuts and spending measures in the October 6 budget, the lending reforms are intended to improve access to credit from March next year if Parliament approves the changes to the Credit Act.” But, it is a move in the right direction and if the writing is on the wall that these changes will come into effect it’s likely that some of the 2nd tier lenders may become a bit more relaxed with their lending in anticipation of the decision.

Freeing up the money flow will have a positive impact on the acreage market.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 380 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 208 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 115 throughout The Hills district and another 57 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

There were 26 new acreage listings come onto the market this week. There were only 9 acreage properties Sold this week and there are currently 27 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region.

Out in the field this week, the exclusive acreage property ‘Dadirri’ at 83 Serpentine Lane, Bowen Mountain was Sold for $2.1m which must be a suburb record for Bowen Mountain. Also, the E4 zoned acreage property at 25 Stringer Road, Kellyville has gone ‘Under Contract’ plus we held the first Open Homes for 3 new listings this week which includes the enormous 10 bedroom home on 5 acres at 4-8 Dodford Road, Llandilo, a stunning resort-style dual accomodation home at 355 Blaxlands Ridge Road, Blaxlands Ridge and the spectacular ‘Halcyon Lodge’ property at 10 Bennelong Place, East Kurrajong which has attracted an incredible amount of interest in only a few days of being on the market.

It’s been a busy week with acreage enquiries increasing dramatically and it looks like October and November are going to be an even busier time to be selling acreage properties this Spring.

If you’re thinking of buying or selling acreage this year, right now could be the perfect time to make your move.

Plus, if you’re looking for an acreage property I currently have a number of acreages for sale ‘Off-Market’. If you want to be amongst the early-bird buyers to gain the first look at any of my ‘off-market’ listings, make sure to check out... www.offmarketacres.com.au

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 19th September 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market? 

As I’ve said previously, don’t believe everything you read in the newspapers and don’t get sucked into the media hype. Anyone can manipulate the stats to make things look better or worse than they actually are. It’s important if you’re looking at making a move onto acreage that you make the decision based on your life first & foremost and take a much broader view of what’s happening in the market.

The reason I wanted to remind my viewers about taking a broader view and looking at acreage more from a long term basis is because you may get fooled into all the negative talk about what’s currently happening within the property market in the major cities, but, at the moment the opposite seems to be happening in the regional segment of the market.

Lots of people are getting out of the city because their work has become a more flexible environment along with a combination of both the Coronavirus and Gentrification, many Aussies are literally heading for the hills in search of a better, more affordable, more relaxed, rural lifestyle.

Whilst reports show that the Sydney market has experienced a correction, the single-digit adjustment to prices is nowhere near the double-digit collapse in property prices that the doomsayers were predicting about 6 months ago.

In fact, Australian property expert, John McGrath’s report earlier this week provided a detailed outline of What’s keeping property prices stable? I

t’s an eye-opening article and I highly recommend you check it out if you’re interested in what’s happening within the housing sector.

Here’s a link to John McGrath’s article

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 367 acreage properties For Sale across the region (which is a 4% reduction in available acreage stock overall when compared with than last week). This total includes 203 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 107 throughout The Hills district and another 57 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

There were only 11 new acreage listings come onto the market this week which is a drop of nearly 1/3 of the volume of new stock hitting the market when compared to last week. There were another 16 acreage properties Sold this week which almost doubled last week’s sales results and there are currently 25 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region which indicates that there’s definitely been an increase in sales activity occurring within the acreage sector.

Out in the field this week, the 5 acres property at 114 Fisher Road, Marayla SOLD for $1.6m and lots of buyers contacted me earlier in the week to check on the 5.9 acres place at 1-5 Dodford Road, Llandilo which was SOLD at last Saturday’s auction for $1.7m.

Also, it looks like both parties have reached agreement on an offer for the unique E4 zoned acreage property at 25 Stringer Road, Kellyville and contracts for the stunning ‘Dadirri’ property at 83 Serpentine Lane, Bowen Mountain look like being exchanged unconditionally sometime this week.

It’s been another busy week fielding acreage buyer enquiries and getting prepared for 3 new acreage listings to enter the Spring Market.

If you’re thinking of buying or selling acreage settled into your new place ahead of Christmas, right now could be the perfect time to make your move.

Plus, if you’re looking to secure an acreage property and want to be amongst the early-bird buyers who gain the advantage of getting the first look at my ‘off-market’ listings, make sure to check out... www.offmarketacres.com.au

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 13th September 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

As I’ve reported previously, the NSW Government predicted that Sydney will need another one million homes within the next 21 years, and on Friday the Hawkesbury City Council launched the…

EXHIBITION OF THE DRAFT HAWKESBURY LOCAL HOUSING STRATEGY.

Hawkesbury City Council has recently prepared the Draft Hawkesbury Local Housing Strategy in order to set a clear plan for housing in the Hawkesbury Local Government Area for the next 10 and 20 years.

Key recommendations of the Draft Hawkesbury Local Housing Strategy include:

*Maintaining a long term supply of residential land by investigating potential new urban areas

*Develop a program to monitor housing land supply and housing delivery

*Consideration of the provision of Detached Dual Occupancies and Secondary Dwellings through a place based approach that considers the recommendations of the Hawkesbury Rural Lands Strategy

Along with other items that need assessing

Further details including an online submission form can be found on the link below...

www.yourhawkesbury-yoursay.com.au/lhs

If you'd like to have your say, submissions can be made up until Monday the 12th of October 2020.

It will be very interesting to see what impacts this new local housing strategy will have on acreage properties throughout The Hawkesbury district.

Also, this week I caught up with John McGrath for a training session at our Rouse Hill office. He said that after our meeting he could really sense that the momentum was building stronger and stronger within the acreage sector.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 381 acreage properties For Sale across the region (which remained exactly the same as last week). This total includes 210 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 115 throughout The Hills district and another 57 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

There were 16 new acreage listings come onto the market this week. There were another 9 acreage properties Sold this week and there are currently 24 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region which shows that there’s significant buyer activity currently occurring within the acreage sector.

Out in the field this week, one of the ‘Off-Market’ acreages that I mentioned last week at 9 Avon Place, Windsor Downs was snapped-up very quickly and went Under Contract this week.

Plus, the 45 acres at 235 Stannix Park Road, Wilberforce was SOLD for $3.725m and at yesterday’s auctions the 5.9 acres property at 1-5 Dodford Road, Llandilo was SOLD for $1.7m, plus the 11.7 acres property with a lucrative equestrian business was passed-in with a couple of buyers now showing interest outside of auction conditions.

This week, I listed 3 more acreages plus a house on The Peninsula in Windsor. One is a lush 5.5 acres property in Wilberforce with a Contemporary-Style home, dual-access to suit trucks and a high-quality equestrian set up. The other is a resort-style dual-accommodation property in Blaxlands Ridge on over 5 acres situated in one of the most picturesque locations you’ll ever see with access to an additional 15 acres and the Wollemi National Park.

The other acreage property is in Llandilo and features a commanding homestead with multi-family accommodation, an enormous shed with plenty of parking area and it boasts a highly-lucrative additional passive income opportunity.

The 3BR brick home on the Windsor Peninsula features one of the biggest sheds I’ve ever seen on a residential property and it’s ideal for anyone looking to downsize from acres who wants to be within walking distance of Windsor shops and needs a large workshop for extra-storage.

It’s been a very busy week for acreage buyer enquiries and the Spring Market activity has definitely kicked into top gear. If you’re thinking of selling your acreage, right now could be the perfect time to make your move and get settled into your new place ahead of Christmas.

Plus, if you’re looking to buy acreage and want to be amongst the first people to get early-bird access to my ‘off-market’ listings, make sure to check out... www.offmarketacres.com.au

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 5th September 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market? 

A lot changes in a week in 2020. Last week I reported that the 20 people rule for auctions had been enforced in NSW...and now less than a week later, the Minister of Health and Medical research provided the real estate industry with an exemption under the Public Health (COVID-19 Restrictions on Gathering and Movement) Order 2020 in NSW. 

From September 4th 2020, a person is exempt from clause 11 of the Order if they are at a place of residence for the purpose of; 

a. viewing or inspecting the premises for the purpose of the sale or lease of that residence; or

b. conducting or participating in an auction for that residence

The exemption is subject to the following condition; 

i. the occupier of the place of residence must take reasonably practical steps to ensure that the real estate agent conducting the auction, viewing or inspection of residence has and complies with a COVID-19 Safety Plan. 

Also, this week it was reported that property listings in Australia continued to decline in August and Louis Christopher from SQM Research feels that this could be attributed to two reasons, but actually I really believe that there’s a third reason which the research companies have completely ignored. I’ll share my take on that in a moment.

The number of listed properties declined in August by 6.3% on a monthly basis and 10% on an annual basis. This was largely driven by the significant dip in Melbourne at 13.2% as the lockdown restrictions in Victoria have become one of the biggest causes for the drop in listings across Australia in August.

The second factor that Louis Christopher believes could be driving the drop in listings is the increasing demand for homes in regional markets.

He recently reported that “We continue to record falling supply in Australia's regional areas. Our take on that phenomenon is that demand has boomed for regional real estate as more of our populations looks to remote living”. Which is yet again another positive sign for the acreage sector.

Now the third reason that I believe has been totally overlooked is the growing number of properties which are being sold ‘off-market’ which means that those properties don’t add to the tally.

You only have to see the recent realestate.com.au TV ads that have been specifically created to try to discredit the ‘Off-Market’ approach, purely because having lots of agents selling properties ‘off-market’ is bad for their business model and it’s bad news for their shareholders.

REA Group posted a 6% decrease in revenue for its 2020 financial year and a 9% decrease in profit to $268.9m

Just a word of warning. Don’t be tricked by their TV ads. They have purposely hired a stereotyped male actor who is made out to look like an idiot in front of his family. If you haven’t seen the ads as yet, here’s REA’s new campaign against off-market selling. 

Nowadays there are lots of different ways that you can sell your property and every person’s circumstances need to be assessed individually.

There’s no One-Size-Fits-All approach to selling your home, especially if it’s an acreage property.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 381 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 207 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 116 throughout The Hills district and another 58 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown. 

There were another 22 new acreage listings come onto the market this week to kick-off the Spring market. There were only 7 acreage properties Sold this week which and there are currently 22 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region which shows that there’s a lot of buyer activity in the acreage market at the moment.

Out in the field this week, the 5 acres property at 114 Fisher Road, Maraylya went Under Contract and four other properties have been negotiated which should exchange during this week or early next week.

I launched 2 off-market acres properties yesterday, one at 10 Bennelong Place, East Kurrajong and the other at 9 Avon Place, Windsor Downs which looks like it’s already been sold. 

Plus yesterday I listed 2 more amazing acreage properties which are going to be launched ‘off-market’. One is an incredible dual-accommodation property which is seriously like living in a resort and the other is an incredible opportunity for equestrian buyers looking for a quality home on top-quality acres.

It’s been a hectic week and it looks like it’s only getting busier between now and Christmas. If you’re looking to sell your acreage, I’m currently working with heaps more buyers looking to move onto acres than there were this time last year.

Plus, if you’re looking to buy acreage and want to get in early for any of my ‘off-market’ acres listings, make sure to check out... www.offmarketacres.com.au

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe Happy Father’s Day and bye for now.

.Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 29th August 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

In BIG NEWS this week, the REINSW have advised members that NSW Auctions do not have an exemption on the Heath Order governing public gatherings. This means that when conducting an auction we must contain the amount of people to a maximum of 20 (excluding the Vendor(s), Agent(s) and Auctioneer). 

For example, we held an auction today at 40 Pitt Street, Richmond where there were 5 registered bidders and we had to turn several onlookers away. The home was passed-in at $1.2m. There have been several other interested parties who I’m currently in discussions with who are keen to negotiate outside of auction conditions.

Anyway, so getting back to this new 20 people rule. The Office of Fair Trading have been advised that they are only to take an advisory and assistance measure on this new ruling today - meaning that no fines can be issued today. 

It is important that all agents in NSW adapt to these changes where possible from today. From Monday onwards, the OFT will be able to issue on the spot fines for those agents who do not adhere to this new rule.

For many of our future auctions we will be recommending the use of Live Streaming or other purpose-built online platforms like Auction Now where required. We may also have no option but to only allow registered bidders to attend the auction and ask anyone else to watch the auction from the comfort of their home via the Auction Now platform. 

The requirements for in-room auctions and open for inspections do have an exemption from the Health Order governing public gatherings, however agents must adhere to the 4sqm density and social distancing requirements at all times for this exemption to remain. 

REINSW are working hard to see what exemptions can be in place by next weekend, if any and I will keep you up to date on any changes that occur. 

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate in reaching out to me.

In last week’s edition I shared our current Covid Safe guidelines for open homes and auctions. Here’s a link to them.

They have now been updated to include the latest Maximum of 20 people rule (excluding vendor(s), agents (s) and the auctioneer) at auctions. Note: It doesn’t matter if the auctions are held inside or in a paddock outside, the ruling of 20 must be adhered to where possible this weekend and it’s compulsory for all auctions from Monday onwards.

Something else that happened this week, is a place at 22 Galvin Road, Llandilo made it onto the Channel 7 News. You see I had a number of buyers tell me about this 5 acres property which was being advertised with a price guide of $1.15m - $1.25m, which was ridiculously below market value. Apparently there were over 80 groups inspect the property last weekend and the agent had 40 offers on the property. A sale for the property is believed to have been negotiated for over $1.6m.

The agent may find themselves in a bit of hot water for under quoting, but, it certainly goes to show that there are lots of acreage buyers out there looking to grab a bargain. It also means that there are currently 39 buyers out there who missed out on the property.

If you’re agent has been saying that there’s no acreage buyers out there, then I’m sorry but they’re simply not working this current acreage market effectively enough.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 386 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 212 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 119 throughout The Hills district and another 55 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown. 

There were another 21 new acreage listings come onto the market this week as we start to head into early Spring. There were 10 acreage properties Sold this week which is up by over 20% on the past 2 previous weeks, and there are currently 18 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region which is a good sign for the market ahead.

Out in the field this week, 26 Wavehill Avenue, Windsor Downs was sold for $1.95m and the sale of 22 Kimberley Lane, Windsor Downs looks like going through later this week and contracts were issued for the sale of the 45 acres property at 235 Stannix Park Road in Wilberforce. 

There’s been numerous offers submitted this week and there were lots of buyers out & about today, especially after over 50 enquiries this week about the 5 acre property at 114 Fisher Road, Maraylya. 

It’s been a busy week and it looks like getting even busier. I have 4 private inspections booked to show buyers through a couple of acreage properties tomorrow. One of the places is an ‘Off-Market’ Acres property.

If you’re looking to buy acreage and want early access to any of my ‘off-market’ listings too, make sure to check out... www.offmarketacres.com.au

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 22nd August 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

Buying or Selling real estate this Spring could be a very different experience this year.

You see, we’ve been advised that the Office of Fair Trading will commence conducting audits this weekend at both open for inspections and auctions. They will be closely monitoring social distancing and all other Covid Safe practices.

The Fair Trading inspectors will be ensuring that each agent has a copy of the businesses COVID Safe Plan and they’ll be making sure that agents are following the COVID Safe Plan.

For example, if you have queues leading into your home that are not 1.5m in spacing, if there are queues of people passing each other in stairwells and hallways, if there are groups of non-related parties bunching up at auctions agents may receive a fine or warning this weekend.

Other important items to consider are; 

- The 4sqm density requirement is a room by room requirement. For example, if a bathroom is only 7sqm, you may only allow 1 person into that area at a time...and this must be regulated. It is important to note that an agent is included in this density requirement, for example if a bedroom is 16sqm, the room is allowed 4 people in it at a time, if an agent is in the room then only 3 attendees can be in the room with the agent, and they must be socially distanced. 

- Agents must register every client for tracing purposes. 

- It’s important to avoid having any items available for clients inspecting the property that multiple people may touch. For example, having a display contract for multiple parties to look through is not hygienic, it would be better to provide access to a digital copy of the contract.

- When talking with clients, agents need to ensure that they are keeping at least 1.5M away from any party including team members. If social distancing isn’t possible, a mask and disposable gloves are good options.

- Displaying Covid19 safe signage throughout the home is advised to keep the requirements top of mind for the clients inspecting the property. 

- An agent and businesses have responsibility to keep their staff and clients safe, it is isn’t compulsory but it’s suggested that our teams use masks and gloves to mitigate any risk and have masks and gloves available for customers if they would like to use them. 

- We provide hand sanitiser upon entry and ensure all clients use this before entering the home. 

- Bidding cards should be disposed of after use and wiped with disinfectant before handing over to each registered party. 

- Agents can’t just assume that the auctioneer asking people to space 4sqm is enough at an auction; having team members at high traffic auctions and open homes directing social distancing is another part of the COVID Safe Plan.

UPDATED 29/8/2020 : Maximum of 20 people rule (excluding vendor(s), agents (s) and the auctioneer) at auctions. Note: It doesn’t matter if the auctions are held inside or outside, the ruling of 20 must be adhered to where possible this weekend and it’s compulsory for all auctions from Monday onwards.

Fair Trading Inspectors are authorised officers under the Public Health Act 2010 and will conduct inspections of agencies, including checking COVID-19 Safety Plans. Agents who do not have an active COVID-19 Safety Plan can face a fine of $5,000.

I see this as a really good thing for our industry, especially as we start to head into the busy Spring market, because if there’s an outbreak which is traced back to an auction or an Open For Inspection, then the Government would flick the switch and we’d likely see restrictions imposed like we previously experienced during lockdown which would mean no auctions and no opens during the busiest time of the year.

So if any agents are watching this or if anyone is out there looking to buy or sell a property please make sure that there’s a COVID Safe Plan in place so we can all do our bit to keep the market moving forward.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 384 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 210 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 122 throughout The Hills district and another 52 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown. 

There were 19 new acreage listings come onto the market this week. There were only 8 acreage properties Sold this week which was the same number as last week, and there are currently 21 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region which shows that the market is definitely moving forward.

Out in the field this week, we launched 3 acreage properties this week. 

I was out early this morning and grabbed a couple of photos of the sunrise over the  equestrian property at 201 Willeroo Drive, Windsor Downs. This 11.7 acres property with a modern-style 5BR home has already had a number of buyers showing some strong interest, especially because of its well-established agistment business which is currently under-capitalised, yet it provides an excellent passive income. 

I’ve received a lot of enquiry about the 5.9 acres property at 1-5 Dodford Road, Llandilo and we had a steady flow of buyers through the Open Home for the 5 acre property at 114 Fisher Road, Maraylya today with a couple of contracts already issued after only being launched online yesterday. 

At this stage, it looks like there’ll be a good turn out at next week’s auction of 40 Pitt Street in Richmond. We are suggesting that all interested parties pre-register to ensure that they’re opportunity to purchase isn’t impacted by onlookers.

I have another ‘Off-Market’ Acres listing becoming available to inspect this week and more coming up to kick-off the Spring season.

If you’re looking to buy acreage and want early access to any of my ‘off-market’ listing, make sure to check out... www.offmarketacres.com.au

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 15th Aug 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

In this episode I’ll be sharing the number one thing that you absolutely must do if you’re thinking of selling your acreage property this Spring.

But, before I tell you about that, I’d like to cover off on a couple of other important things that have happened this week.

Firstly, the Herron Todd White Report for August came out this week, and it was interesting to see on the property clock that the Sydney market had moved from last month’s 1.30 spot on the clock (which is the Starting to Decline position) and it has moved to the Declining Market 3 o’clock position.

Now at first glance, this may sound like more bad news for the acreage sector, but actually it’s not. In fact, when you take a closer look at the property clock, you’ll see that the opposite is actually happening to acreage lifestyle property with the Southern Highlands firmly position at the 7 o’clock position which is the Start of Recovery phase.

This is why it’s important not to get too caught up with the negative media reports and updates about Sydney’s auction clearance rates when looking at trying to understand what’s happening to the acreage market, especially when you see that coastal lifestyle areas like the Central Coast and Coffs Harbour have now moved up to the 9 o’clock Rising Market position on the property clock. Buyers looking in these areas are often looking to escape the city.

...and as property expert, John McGrath said earlier this week,

“Working from home is becoming an accepted option for many workers as we continue life with COVID-19.

This is prompting many city dwellers to consider relocating to leafier, more affordable suburban areas of their capital city or regional areas where they can enjoy a better lifestyle.

The great news is the buying power of homeowners in inner city areas is much greater in the middle to outer suburbs and especially strong in popular seachange and treechange regional areas.”

...and as further lockdowns are imposed and Social Distancing becomes the new norm, there will be even more Sydneysiders ‘heading for the hills’ to escape the confinement of city life, which means that right now is a perfect time to ride the upward trend and invest in acreage.

Something else that’s been positive after all this recent rainfall is that all the dams are nice and full for all the farmers across the region, and Warragamba Dam is now at 99.3% capacity.

Recently the government announced that they’re now looking at raising the dam wall by 17 metres instead of the original 14 metres proposed for flood mitigation.

While we’re still waiting for the Environmental Impact Statement to be released and for the cabinet to approve the design & construction, the potential downstream impacts to the Hawkesbury & Nepean Valley if we get another deluge of rainfall could mean significant flooding across the local region.

Yet, even with Warragamba Dam sitting at close to 100% capacity, according to Sydney Water we are still under Level 1 Water Restrictions which is absolutely absurd. In fact the NSW Government should actually be encouraging us to use more water, because they’re only going to have to open the flood gates and have megalitres of water pouring out over the spillway, which will cause localised flooding and see the water go to complete waste as it ends up running out into the ocean.

They should lift the restrictions immediately and be doing an advertising campaign encouraging people to enjoy longer showers or have a soak in the bathtub, use the full flush on the toilets instead of half flushing, hose down pathways & essentially encourage consumers to waste water until the dam level drops back down to around 80 per cent, but, unfortunately I don’t think any politician will have the common sense or the guts to do it. Anyway, it will be interesting to see if they actually do anything at all.

Now here’s my big tip for you this week. It’s the number one thing that you absolutely must do if you’re thinking of selling your acreage property this Spring

...and that is ‘book the stylist now’.

You see, I’ve spoken with a number of property stylists this week and some of them are now completely booked out weeks in advance and if you don’t book them in advance, then it will have a domino effect and can hold back the professional photo-shoot which could delay the launch of your property online.

If your place doesn’t need property styling then this won’t be an issue, but if your place needs some sprucing up to help attract more buyers, then you’re best to contact a property stylist sooner rather than waiting.

If you need the details of a couple of local property stylists that I’ve worked with recently and simply can’t recommend highly enough, then simply get in contact with me and I’ll send you their information.

If you’re worried that your place is a bit messy and needs too much work before getting it ready to sell, but you’d like to take advantage of the current market and get moving this Spring, then starting off with our ‘Off-Market’ Acres strategy might be a really good option for you to consider.

If you’d like some more information about how selling your acreage ‘Off-Market’ works, simply visit www.offmarketacres.com.au

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 378 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 207 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 118 throughout The Hills district and another 53 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

There were 13 new acreage listings come onto the market this week. There were only 8 acreage properties Sold this week but a really positive sign is that there are 19 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region.

Out in the field this week, we’ve already had over 30 groups through the home at 40 Pitt Street in Richmond with several interested parties looking to downsize from nearby acres. It’s definitely worth checking out if you’re looking for something a bit special.

Also this week there was a lot of activity happening in Windsor Downs with 45 Archer Lane selling for $1.8m, both 22 Kimberley Lane and 26 Wavehill Avenue going ‘Under Contract’ as well as the equestrian property at 201 Willeroo Drive set to come onto the market with some information about the property having been emailed out to my acreage database yesterday plus I recorded a walkthrough video which was featured on Facebook on Thursday afternoon.

I have several ‘Off-Market’ Acres listings coming up over the next few weeks.

If you’re looking to buy acreage and want early access to any of my ‘off-market’ listing, make sure to check out... www.offmarketacres.com.au

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 8th August 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market? 

This week, property expert John McGrath listed the stimulus programs that are keeping our property prices stable.

It’s interesting to see how the Coronavirus pandemic is impacting the housing market in different areas and how each of the Stimulus packages like Jobkeeper, Jobseeker, Early access to superannuation, Loan deferrals, Help for small business, HomeBuilder and Big stamp duty breaks in NSW are playing a critical role throughout the property sector.

If you’d like to get more detailed information about the article from John McGrath, here’s the link.

Currently we are experiencing a pre-Spring surge of activity and it looks like a lot of people are getting in ahead of the traditionally busy Spring market in an effort to secure their next move.

These first few weeks of August look like being a great time to capitalise on an early-mover advantage, especially if further restrictions start to be imposed in NSW.

With the NSW Government finally deciding to impose compulsory 14 day isolation for people coming in from Victoria as well as overseas travellers, we may be able to keep lockdown restrictions to a minimum.

However, if we start to see a significant increase in COVID-19 cases in NSW, we may see similar restrictions to conducting Open Homes and On-site Auctions as we experienced earlier this year.

So if you’re thinking about buying an acreage property and you need to sell your property to buy, then you might want to consider getting everything prepared like, doing your agent interviews and getting a couple of Market Appraisals (it’s always good to get a 2nd opinion), get contracts prepared and even have all of your professional photographs and video taken so that you can be ready to go onto the market when you find the right acreage home.

The same goes with anyone thinking of selling their acreage, right now could be the time to get the ball rolling with a similar preparation process so that you can be ready to strike while the irons hot. 

...and speaking of striking while it’s hot.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 380 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 212 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 117 throughout The Hills district and another 51 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown. 

There were 24 new acreage listings come onto the market this week (that’s nearly 3 times the number of new listings than there were this time last week, which makes me think that the Spring market may be arriving a bit earlier than expected this year).

There were only 5 acreage properties Sold this week but a really positive sign is that there are 25 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region.

Out in the field this week, negotiations have been happening thick & fast as several properties are currently in the process of going ‘Under Contract’ after competitive bidding amongst numerous buyers with multiple offers put forward to my clients on several acreage properties and several sales are now underway.

Also, this week I listed an off-market acreage property in Windsor Downs which is set on 8 acres, with an existing equestrian business and a modern-style homestead which has potential for dual accommodation which could also provide additional income potential.

It’s an excellent opportunity for someone looking for extra income as well as a relaxing acreage lifestyle where you can simply sit back in style and count the money rolling in. I’ve already had a number of buyers inspect the property within the first 24 hours and I don’t think it will be available for long.

If you’d like to know more about this property, get in contact with me.

So, if you’re looking to buy an acreage property and would like to get early access to any of these places that I list ‘off-market’ , make sure to visit... www.offmarketacres.com.au

Also, if you’re thinking about downsizing from acres, make sure you check out the video we did on Thursday for the property at 40 Pitt Street, Richmond. It’s going to be ‘hot property’ when we officially launch that amazing home to the market early next week.

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 2nd August 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market? 

I’ve had a lot of people contact me after last week’s episode where I answered the important questions “Should I buy acreage now? Or should I wait?” and some of the announcements made by the NSW Government during this week have only helped to reinforce some of the topics I raised in last week’s Acreage Market Wrap. If you’d like to watch that episode, you’ll find a link to it here.

So, without further a do, here’s this week’s update...

Well, something else that’s about to change is that I predict you’ll be hearing the catchphrase ‘Green Star Homes’ a hell of a lot more into the future, after the recent announcement about a proposed new greener standard for Australian homes.

You see, with it reported that something like 90 per cent of our time is being spent indoors, and two thirds of this is at home, a healthy home environment is critical to wellbeing and it’s the main reason for this new draft Standard of dwelling construction being proposed within the housing sector.

Green Building Council of Australia’s CEO Davina Rooney said the with the release of a draft Green Star Homes Standard for consultation, it will lift the bar on current regulatory settings and proposes an ambitious suite of minimum construction criteria.

“To achieve Green Star certification, as a minimum, homes will need double glazed windows and doors, air filtration and LED lighting, good access to daylight in living areas and bedrooms, sufficient renewable energy generation to support the home’s operations and no fossil fuel use,” Ms Rooney said.

The Green Star Standard is being developed collaboratively with rigorous consultation and input from industry, consumers, builders, banks, investors and insurers to ensure it is fit for purpose and the plan is for this new Standard to achieve widespread change throughout the building industry.

Also, as I mentioned earlier, this week the NSW Government made a couple of important announcements to help inject added incentives into the housing construction sector.

Firstly, the NSW Government have announced a new Build-To-Rent initiative which will encourage major developers, more institutional investment capital as well as increase the prospects of bringing offshore investment into Australia’s building sector which will help boost the economy and support employment growth.

Secondly, the NSW Government raised the threshold above which stamp duty will be charged on new homes for first home buyers. They’ve increased the free stamp duty threshold from the current $650,000 and as of yesterday it’s now 800,000, but it’s only for new homes.

The government has anticipated that more than 6,000 first home buyers will benefit from the changes.

The housing sector and property developers will also benefit from this initiative, but Planning NSW need to start rolling out the rezoning of housing development or the initiative is pointless if First Home Buyers can’t find any vacant land to build on.

I anticipate that we’re going to see a lot of announcements coming out of the NSW Planning Department about land releases between now and Christmas.

Plus, this week work commenced on the new Shopping Centre in the Elara estate, which will include 20 shops including a Coles Supermarket.

This will become the closest shopping centre for acreage suburbs like Windsor Downs, Berkshire Park, Shanes Park and it’s likely to become a popular drop-in destination for lots of commuters travelling to and from work along Richmond Road.

You can never underestimate how important convenience and ease of access to local shopping centres and other services can impact acreage values.

For example, I predict that the future opening of shopping centres & schools in Box Hill are likely to have a similar positive impact on acreage values around Oakville, Maraylya, Cattai, Vineyard and Pitt Town.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 375 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 211 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 115 throughout The Hills district and another 49 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown. 

There were 9 new acreage listings this week (which meant that during the month of July there were a total of 61 new acreage listings come onto the market, however, interestingly there’s been an overall reduction in available acreage stock levels by 6.25%. There were 9 acreage properties Sold this week which increased the tally to a total of 47 Sold in July, which was a reduction from the 62 acreages sold back in June, and there are currently 19 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region.

Out in the field this week, the numbers of buyers out looking was slightly down on the previous week, but, I was impressed by the number of highly-qualified (ready-to-buy) purchasers who are currently actively looking for an acreage property to buy right now and I’m currently in negotiations on a couple of properties.

Also, this week I shared videos taken from 3 new ‘Off-Market’ properties. One at 50A St Marys Road, Berkshire Park which is an excellent ‘land-bank’ opportunity comprising a four acre parcel with a 18m x 12m Workshop.

The 2nd one is a 25 acre riverfront property at 23 Rose Street, Wilberforce which features an enormous single-storey homestead, 3 huge workshops, a separate 2nd accommodation, private boat ramp plus a water licence and is uniquely located within walking distance of the shops & the Heritage Hotel. It’s a perfect set up for riverside entertaining.

The third property is at 40 Pitt Street, Richmond which is an ideal place to move into if you’re considering downsizing off acres. It’s been beautifully renovated throughout and features 4 bedrooms, large separate entertaining area with outdoor kitchen, plenty of room to move, dual street frontage, plenty of car accommodation and lots of storage area including a shipping container. It’s an amazing place located within walking distance of Richmond shops, restaurants, schools, the golf course and East Richmond train station. 

So, if you’re looking to buy an acreage property (or may be considering downsizing from your acres) and would like to get early access to any of these places, make sure to visit... www.offmarketacres.com.au

Also, for anyone out there who maybe thinking of selling your acreage and want to get a head start on the Spring market, give me a call on 0410 526 901 to discover how to avoid underselling your property by adopting the 12 Simple Steps that I’ve recently developed to help you Maximise The Value Of Your Acreage.

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 26th July 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

Recently, I’ve had a couple of people ask me “should I buy an acreage property now or should I wait?”
So, this week I’ll share some insights that may help to answer this important question...

Figures out this week showed that Sydney’s north-west is the sole pocket of the city that has escaped house price falls despite the pandemic taking a toll across the property market, with new infrastructure and blocks of vacant land luring home-buyers. Domain’s latest House Price Report found that House prices rose 3.4 per cent in the region – which takes in suburbs from Epping to Kellyville Ridge – with the median price rising to $1.35 million in the three months to June.

Typically there are a lot of homeowners living within this North West area who feel crammed in and are confined to a smaller residential blocks who aspire to move onto a larger parcel or an acreage property in search of more space and a quieter lifestyle.

As the value of their property has increased by over 3 per cent, and acreage hasn’t experienced a similar increase as yet, making a move onto acreage has become a more achievable option and with historically low mortgage rates, making the lifestyle change onto acreage is currently at the most affordable levels that I’ve seen in years.

Also, as Peter Switzer reported, Australia’s economic outlook is so good that The AFR says the three credit ratings agencies have reconfirmed our AAA-rating at the top of the list, ahead of Canada, Denmark, Finland & Germany.

And as economist from Goldman Sachs, pointed out: “The silver lining is that Australia’s relatively strong fiscal position means that there remains scope for a significant further increase in fiscal support should it be required.”

“Australia has experienced 29 years of economic growth without a recession and has the longest economic growth amongst the major developed world.

One final point needs to be made. Given what this damn virus has done to economies and people worldwide, the fact that it looks like our economy will contract by only 0.25% for last financial year (that ended on June 30) and then only a further 3.75% for 2020 before growing at 2.5% next year, it shows how good our economy is.

To put the economy into a bit of perspective, as Switzer also reported back in May, the Government’s rescue plan from the massive economic effects of the Coronavirus will create a huge budget deficit of $143 billion this financial year, followed up by $133 billion. But the cost to the taxpayer will be, wait for it, $3!

Sure it is $3 a week — so that’s around $150 a year or one cup of coffee a week! That’s not a bad price to pay considering how bad this damn virus could’ve been if the Government had gone cheap on the rescue plan.

These figures come from Chris Richardson, an economist at Deloitte’s Access Economics and being an ex-Treasury guy in a past life, his numbers are credible.”

If you'd like to know more about these stats, here’s a link to Peter Switzer's article.

Now, not only have we seen median price growth happening within the North West which will drive acreage buyer activity, but on top of that, it’s important that you are aware that there’s a number of other factors, and today I'll share 5 of them with you which I believe will have a positive impact on acreage property prices and you may want to seriously reconsider how each of them will play out before deciding to sit on the sidelines waiting to see how this all plays out.

1. The upcoming release of Marsden Park North & Schofields West will see an influx of cashed up acreage buyers who end up having no choice but to sell up their existing acreage to developers and many of these displaced property owners will be looking to relocate onto nearby acreage

...and because it’s likely that a large percentage of these buyers will enter the acreage market at around the same time, they will end up creating a very competitive environment and will likely end up having to pay a premium to secure acreage properties in fringe suburbs like Windsor Downs, Llandilo, Berkshire Park, Londonderry, Oakville, Maraylya, Kenthurst & Annangrove. These buyers will end up setting new record benchmarks for acreage prices and acreage prices throughout other suburbs across the region should also benefit from price increases.

We experienced a similar influx of cashed up buyers from other development areas in 2015/2016 where the acreage prices climbed dramatically.

Plus, as more and more development is released, we will also experience an influx from a lot of similarly displaced acreage buyers moving across from the acreages around the aerotropolis in suburbs like Badgerys Creek, Rossmore & Kemps Creek.

2. When a vaccine is found for COVID-19, along with the increase development & roll-out of the 15 minute Coronavirus testing, the confidence in the Australian economy and demand in the property market will strengthen, especially in the acreage sector as foreign investment increases, the NSW Government rolls out more construction projects along with Social Distancing providing more flexibility in the workplace which will enable less people to be stuck working in city office blocks and plenty of people will take this opportunity to consider better work-life choices, which will increase demand for more relaxed surroundings for those working from home.

3. You may not be aware, but the acreage market previously missed out on the positive turnaround that the housing sector in the Inner City & The Hills district experienced immediately after the 2019 Federal election. The kick-on effect of the double digit median price growth which occurred during late 2019 to early 2020 was literally only a matter of weeks away from increasing prices in the acreage sector, but the price growth stalled when the Coronavirus Stage 3 level lockdowns were imposed on Australia.

4. There was a significant shift that happened during the lockdown period. You see there were a lot of people reassessing where and how they live, and as lockdowns eased, I witnessed a dramatic increase in enquiry for premium lifestyle property from people who want to escape away from the hustle & bustle of the city. If NSW or parts of Sydney end up going into a 2nd wave of lockdowns like Victoria has, I believe that the appetite for acreage lifestyle property will only increase further once the lockdown restrictions are lifted.

5. Lastly, with the lowest interest rates in history, there are a lot of acreage owners who have had their property for sale for long periods who have a very realistic understanding of the current market. I sincerely believe that a vast majority of the acreage properties in this region are currently undervalued, especially when you consider the high prices being achieved and the strong demand for residential homes on small blocks of land that are currently selling amongst the North West housing sector of Sydney.

In fact, making the move from a residential home onto an acreage property could currently be at the most affordable changeover levels that they may ever see and with a large selection of acreage properties to choose from, right now could be the perfect time to finally make that dream lifestyle move onto acres.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 389 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 214 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 124 throughout The Hills district and another 51 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

There were 13 new acreage listings come onto the market this week, and there were another 9 acreage properties Sold this week, plus, there are currently 17 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region.

Out in the field this week, there was an increase in enquiry compared to last week and we had lots of interest at yesterday’s Open Homes. The properties at 45 Archer Lane, Windsor Downs and 6 Kingsley Close went ‘Under Contract’ this week and I’m currently in negotiations on a couple of other properties.

This week I will be launching a couple of places ‘Off-Market’. If you’re actively looking to purchase an acreage and want to get early access to any of these ‘Off-Market’ listings, make sure to register your interest at www.offmarketacres.com.au

If you’re thinking about selling and would like to discover the 12 Simple Steps designed specifically to help you maximise the value of your acreage property, don’t hesitate to give me a call on 0410 526 901.

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 18th July 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

This week, “State governments across the country have been dusting off plans and boosting decision-making frameworks to speed up the rollout of projects to keep people in work and restart the economy.

The NSW Treasurer, Dominic Perrottet said “Now is the time for us to all work together to make decisions quickly and decisively to help create more opportunities for jobs and investment, right across the state,”

The NSW government has formed a new unit within the Department of Planning tasked with unblocking and fast-tracking state significant developments stuck in the system.

The new planning delivery unit (PDU) will act as a central point of escalation and acceleration for development projects alongside government agencies to streamline the state’s planning processes.

Planning minister Rob Stokes said the unit would now focus directly on resolving issues in major development applications so that decisions could move ahead faster.

The news follows a spate of announcements by the state government during recent months, which has seen upwards of 48 major projects having assessments finalised and fast-tracked.

The NSW government estimates that $13 billion in economic benefit will be injected into the economy through these rapid-fire construction initiatives, lifting the economy out of an expected coronavirus-triggered recession.

Policymakers explained that assessments under the acceleration program would not skip normal checks, balances or community consultation processes, but would instead focus on projects that could commence within six months.”

For example, the Marsden Park North and West Schofields final precinct plans are about to be released which will add another 10,000 homes to the local area, and yesterday I went to see an acreage property out at Mulgoa and whilst I was in the area I drove out to see how construction of the Western Sydney Airport was coming along.

It was such an incredible hive of activity and Premier, Gladys Berejiklian announced this week that the airport is currently well and truly on track to be ready to open as scheduled in 2026.

Both the aerotropolis and the release of land for housing development will have a big impact on acreage prices over the remainder of this decade and beyond.

Also, this week it was positive to see Housing Industry Association's Chief Economist Tim Reardon advise that new home sales have risen by 77.6 per cent in June, from a record low result in May.

"(This is) off the back of the Government’s HomeBuilder program announced at the beginning of the month,”

This result is a positive sign for acreage owners amongst the growth sectors as well as for developers plus the home construction industry.

In other news, “Australia always has been, and is perhaps now even more so, an extremely attractive place to invest money and due to Covid-19 there have been some recent changes which will impact Foreign Investors.

The key changes that affect foreign purchasers are:

* All proposed foreign investments into Australia, subject to the Act, will require approval, regardless of value or the nature of the foreign investor.

* Foreign Investment Review Board will extend timeframes for reviewing applications from 30 days to up to six months.”

I recently sold an acreage property to some buyers from overseas and I anticipate that there will be a lot more investment in blue chip acres by foreign investors in the near future.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 388 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 218 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 120 throughout The Hills district and another 50 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

There were 21 new acreage listings this week (which makes me think that there are some owners who are trying to get a head start on the Spring market), and there were only 9 acreage properties Sold this week, however, on a more positive note there are currently 22 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region.

Out in the field this week, there was really good numbers of groups out looking at today’s Open Homes with several parties already showing strong interest and the property at 11 Pitt Street, Windsor has just gone ‘Under Contract’.

This week I have appointments with a number of acreage owners who want to promote their property ‘Off-Market’, so if you’re looking to buy an acreage and want to get early access to any of these places, make sure to check out and register your interest at www.offmarketacres.com.au

If you’re thinking of selling and want to get a head start on the Spring market, you might also like to check out www.offmarketacres.com.au or give me a call on 0410 526 901 to see how we can best help you to maximise the value of your acreage.

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 12th July 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

This week there’s been a lot of concerns about the spread of the Coronavirus in Victoria and the 6 weeks lockdown imposed by the Victorian government. We need to be very careful to do whatever we can to avoid a 2nd phase of the pandemic occurring in New South Wales, because it would be another massive blow to our local economy.

Even though the 6 weeks lockdown has only just been imposed on a number postcodes of Melbourne, earlier this week a buyer wanted to fly up from Melbourne to inspect an acreage property but we had to politely decline the inspection and postpone the appointment until we can be sure that our clients are not going to be put at any risk.

It’s going to be very interesting to see how this next phase of Covid-19 plays out here in Australia over the next six weeks.

In the meantime, it was good to see the decision by the Australian Banking Association to extend the loan repayment deferral period for another four months, which allows more breathing space for mortgage holders after September.

In other news, a couple of weeks ago the NSW Government announced that they predicted Sydney will need another 1 million homes by 2041 to keep up with the population growth...and when you consider the news this week that Hambledon Park (known locally as Peels Dairy), the 253 hectares (625 acres) farm on The Terrace in North Richmond has been sold for $60 million to businessman John Camilleri, I predict that before this decade is over there’ll be development approval for a couple of thousands homes on this property.

You see, the new owners were involved with getting The Gables development in Box Hill approved through State Planning and the same developer has recently gained approval for the 580 lot subdivision in Glossodia, and Hawkesbury City Council will have very little control over stopping the housing development of ‘Hambledon Park’ in the near future.

To get the subdivision through faster, it's likely the developers will have to contribute millions of dollars towards the proposed 2nd river crossing at North Richmond on top of the $200 million allocated towards the construction of a new river crossing in last year's Federal budget. Developer funding towards projects will continue to play a huge role in driving Sydney's economy.

There's plenty more that's going to be said about this matter over the coming months, however one thing is for sure, the proposed 2nd river crossing at North Richmond is still several years away from being completed, and the crossing needs to be designed and built to allow for future traffic volumes, not just based upon the current issues experienced by the commuters trying to cross the river.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 391 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 221 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 122 throughout The Hills district and another 48 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

There were 11 new acreage listings this week, and there were only 11 acreage properties Sold this week (which is creating more of a balanced market). Plus, there are currently 19 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region.

Out in the field this week, enquiries for acreages increased slightly and there was some very competitive bidding between buyers for both 6 O’Dell Street, Vineyard and 51-55 Cherrybrook Chase, Londonderry.

Both of these properties were Sold over the past few days.

Vineyard

6 O’Dell Street

Londonderry

51-55 Cherrybrook Chase

The auction campaign for the property at Londonderry generated over 100 acreage enquiries and there were 7 registered bidders, which means that with these 2 properties now Sold, the underbidders who missed out are now actively in the market and are searching for a suitable acreage property to buy.

So, if you’re thinking of selling your acreage property I may already be working with your ideal buyer, and we could match them to your property with a $Zero marketing investment via my hugely successful ‘Off-Market Acres’ system.

For buyers on the look out for an acreage property, keep a close eye out over the next few weeks because I have a number of ‘Off-Market Acres’ listings that I’ll be promoting exclusively to my database of acreage buyers. If you’d like to get early-bird access to any of my ‘Off-Market Acres’ you can find out more and register for FREE at www.offmarketacres.com.au

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 4th July 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

The Real Estate Institute of Australia has welcomed, the draft report of the Independent NSW Review of Federal Financial Relations. Supporting the road to recovery.

In summary, the report noted a strong case for reforming the GST which is now 20 years old, and scaling back inefficient taxes, which includes stamp duty on property transactions.

“The REIA supports the call for the newly formed National Cabinet to commence the long overdue discussion to adjust the GST and remove inefficient taxes such as stamp duty on property transactions to boost economic growth at this crucial time and not let this report gather dust on the bookshelf as others have,” said Mr Adrian Kelly, President of the Real Estate Institute of Australia.

At a Glance:

• Taxes are one of the factors determining investment in housing

• The housing sector is one of the most heavily taxed sectors of the Australian economy

• Stamp duties on the transfer of property are the second-largest source of state tax revenue (generating 24 per cent of state tax revenue) yet they are a highly volatile tax, with revenue fluctuating by over 50 per cent

A notable earlier review, the Henry Review stated stamp duties on conveyances were inconsistent with the needs of a modern tax system and should be replaced with a more efficient means of raising revenue.

“Economic analysis shows that economic activity in Australia can be lifted by shifting the composition of taxes from high economic cost State taxes to lower cost Australia-wide taxes, without changing the overall level of tax revenues.”

For more information about possible changes to Stamp Duty, you may like to check out the following links...

https://www.therealestateconversation.com.au/news/2020/07/03/strong-case-reforming-gst-and-reducing-reliance-harmful-taxes/1593738072

https://www.mcgrath.com.au/advice/articles/john-mcgrath-stamp-duty-pay-upfront-or-yearly-tax

https://www.gregvincent.tv/blog/Why-NSW-Govt-Proposed-Changes-To-Stamp-Duty-Need-To-Be-Rolled-Out-Retrospectively

Since Wednesday, another ten thousand first-home buyers are now able to apply for federal government assistance that could shave years off their mortgages.

The second intake of the much-anticipated First Home Loan Deposit Scheme is designed to give first-home buyers a leg-up in the property market by providing banks with a guarantee for up to 15 per cent of a property’s value.

It means struggling savers can secure their first mortgage with a deposit as little as 5 per cent and avoid paying costly lenders’ mortgage insurance.

Under the eligibility criteria, borrowers who have been approved for the scheme have 90 days to exchange contracts on a property, so we should see a lot of sales happening in the bottom end of the housing market over the next quarter.

For more information, see the link below...

https://www.domain.com.au/news/thousands-to-purchase-first-property-in-federal-governments-second-first-home-loan-deposit-scheme-intake-965808/

Also, this week, John McGrath answered 3 important questions for anyone looking to invest in property, like:-

1. What’s happening with property prices?

2. What’s happening with weekly rents?

3. What should investors do now?

One of John’s tips was,

“Consider regional satellite cities or desirable lifestyle areas. They should get a great boost from more people working from home, which will incentivise regional relocations in coming years.”

...and I’ve already noticed an increase in enquiry from investors looking for quality ‘land-bank’ acreage opportunities around the fringes of Sydney.

To find out more about John McGrath’s tips check out…

https://www.mcgrath.com.au/advice/articles/john-mcgrath-rents-investments-and-what-to-do-next

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 402 acreage properties For Sale across the region. This total includes 230 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 123 throughout The Hills district and another 49 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

There were 20 new acreages come onto the market this week, and there were only 4 acreage properties Sold this week (but that’s on top of the 36 acreages that were Sold over the past fortnight). Plus, there are currently 21 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region.

Out in the field, there were a lot buyers out & about looking at acreage properties this week. We had a good turn out at today’s Open Homes, even though it’s start of the school holidays and lots of people have been anxious to get away after home-schooling and the recent Coronavirus lockdown. Plus, there were quite a few buyers attending the midweek Twilight Viewings we held earlier in the week. Enquiry level for acreage continued to be strong but it was down slightly on last week.

Coming up this week, it will be very interesting to see what happens at this Saturday’s auctions of 11 Pitt Street, Windsor and 51-55 Cherrybrook Chase, Londonderry. There’s been lots of interest in both of these properties with several contracts issued. If you’re in the area on Saturday feel welcome to come along and check out either of these live auctions.

Finally, as I’ve mentioned previously, if you want to stay up-to-date with what’s really going on out there in the Australian property market make sure to follow the #OZpropertyAlive hashtag.

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 27th June 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

Whilst there’s been a bit of uncertainty about the possibility of a second wave of COVID-19 restrictions in the media this week, it certainly hasn’t stemmed the flow of interest from buyers in the acreage sector. In fact, there seem to be a lot more people now looking to escape away from the city life and they’re seeing this North West part of Sydney as a convenient & affordable rural lifestyle option for their family.

Speaking of affordable, I caught up with a client the other day and we got talking about the current interest rates and some of the incredibly low home loan deals on offer today.

He was saying that he was recently quoted a fixed mortgage rate of only 2.19% and some lenders are even offering cashbacks of up to $2,000 to help you refinance.

There are some incredible deals available at the moment and if you’re planning to stay put for the next few years a home loan health check is definitely well worth your time & effort in the present climate, because chances are that you might be missing out on some substantial savings.

For anyone watching this who may be considering an upgrade from a residential block to an acreage lifestyle on Sydney’s fringes, you’ll find that acreage prices are currently about their most affordable level that they’ve been for the past 5 years.

…and if acreage buyer activity keeps increasing at the current rate and available acreage stock levels continue to decrease, the affordability gap looks like it will widen very quickly as upward pressure starts to drive price growth within the acreage sector.

You see, this next week is going be very interesting to watch what happens in the housing sector after the injection of an extra 10,000 first home buyers enter the market across Australia.

Many of these first home buyers have been hanging out for the 1st of July to hurry up and arrive so that they can try to snap-up the next batch of the Federal Governments First Home Loan Deposit Scheme allocations, and we could start to see activity increase in the market like we saw back in January when the first 10,000 became available.

We are already starting to see more activity in the acreage sector and when comparing the acreage stats, with where they were a few weeks ago, it’s now quite noticeable that acreage stock levels are steadily reducing during these Winter months and acreage sales are now on the increase.

How’s the Acreage Market?

Currently there are 399 acreage properties For Sale across the region (the first time there’s been less than 400 available for months). This total includes 234 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 114 throughout The Hills district and another 51 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

There were 12 new acreages come onto the market this week, and there were another 20 acreage properties Sold this week (and that’s on top of the 16 acreages that were Sold last week). Plus, there are currently 19 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region.

Out in the field, there were a lot buyers out & about looking at acreages this week. We had a great turn out at today’s Open Homes, plus I was really surprised by the volume of buyers who attended our midweek Twilight Viewings earlier in the week, plus enquiries levels for acreage was still very strong and was up slightly on last week’s levels.

Coming up this week, I’ll be launching the 2 ‘Off-Market Acres’ properties to that I mentioned briefly last week. One’s an exclusive landmark riverfront 25 acres property on the Hawkesbury River. It’s an amazing property. The other is a very unique acreage opportunity that’s located in a prime position just on the outer fringes of the North West Growth Centre.

If you want to be among the first to see either of these 2 new ‘Off-Market Acres’ listings or would like access to the other ‘Off-Market Acres’ properties that I currently have available, simply register at www.OffMarketAcres.com.au

Finally, if you want to stay up-to-date with what’s really going on out there in the Australian property market make sure to follow the #OzPropertyAlive hashtag.

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent

Acreage Market Wrap - 20th June 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

This week, Deborah Cullen, from Knight Frank Australia, explained how “COVID-19 has changed many aspects of our lives, but one, perhaps less expected impact, has been a significant rise in demand for prestige rural and coastal properties.”

Plus, Matthew Fleming, CEO of Contemporary Hotels Group said that, “they have seen an explosion of demand for holiday homes since restrictions have eased.

As demand for prestige rural properties rises, values are strengthening. But amid a global pandemic, buyers are realising that a rural retreat is not just a sound investment, and a place to unwind. It can also be a valuable safe haven that protects the wellbeing of the whole family in uncertain times.”

In addition, this week property expert, John McGrath shared a number of trends that he sees for the future as we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic.

1. More multi-generational households

Job losses and financial stress will bring families together. We’re already seeing many young renters moving back home with mum and dad.

2. Empty nesters to downsize earlier

Some empty nesters will downsize earlier because their businesses won’t survive. With their superannuation also diluted, cashing in the family home might be the most appealing option.

3. Working from home in lifestyle locations

A large contingent of permanently home-based workers will likely head to the regions for a better lifestyle within commuting distance of the city.

4. Technology makes it easier and more efficient

Covid-19 forced every agent to adopt high-tech work tools overnight.

Online auctions, greater use of virtual tours, meetings via zoom and streamed inspections are now the way of the future. This will make it easier than ever before for people to research, buy and sell property.

5. More overseas buyers

Our agents sold half a dozen or so properties to people overseas who couldn’t inspect them during the lock down, which shows just how good the buyer experience has become online.

6. Work from home will influence design

Designated home offices, home gyms and multi-purpose spaces will be the new must-haves. Home owners will be more mindful of creating safe, adaptable environments that are pleasant to work in. Those who depart cities for affordable regional areas will want big houses with lots of extra rooms.

If you’d like to see more of John McGrath’s predictions for the future, here’s a link to his insights.

What’s Ahead For Acreage?

Something else to consider that I sense will have a significant impact on the property market over the next few weeks is that we’re now only 10 days away from the roll out of the next phase of the Federal Government’s First Home Loan Deposit Scheme which will be available on the 1st of July to another 10,000 first home buyers.

This should have a similar impact on the market as it did back in January and we will start to see a lot more activity at the bottom end of the housing market as thousands of first home buyers enter the property market, and the good news is that we should see a ripple effect which will in turn increase buyer activity in the acreage sector.

So if you’re thinking of selling your acreage property, the remaining winter months of July and August could be a great time to sell, especially if you want to get sold before the potential September cliff-edge and the likelihood of more economic uncertainty that many have been predicting may occur as the Government initiatives start to cease.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Currently there are 419 acreage properties For Sale across the region (13 less than last week), which includes 241 acreage properties For Sale throughout The Hawkesbury, 125 throughout The Hills district and another 53 acreages For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

There were only 7 new acreage listings come onto the market this week, and there were 16 acreage properties Sold this week. Plus another positive sign that the market is improving, there are currently 21 acreage properties ‘Under Contract’ across the region.

Out in the field, there were a large number of buyers out looking at acreages at today’s Open Homes and enquiry numbers increased dramatically this week.

This week I launched two properties, the large 5 bedroom homestead at 51-55 Cherrybrook Chase, Londonderry is set amongst a three acre property in an excellent ‘flood-free’ location and the cars were lined up down the street for this property at today’s Open Home.

The 2nd property at 11 Pitt Street, Windsor also had a lot of interest because it’s located amongst the exclusive peninsula area of Windsor with a spectacular acreage outlook, within a short walk of the cafes, restaurants and shops in the town centre. If you want to downsize from acres and move closer to town, with the feeling of acreage but without the maintenance then this one is the perfect place.

Also, yesterday I listed two more ‘Off-Market Acres’ properties.

One is an excellent land bank opportunity on prime, ‘flood-free’ acres in Berkshire Park (located right on the fringe of Sydney’s North West Growth Centre)

…and the other is a landmark riverfront 25 acres property complete with boat ramp, water licence, 3 large rural sheds and a huge 5 bedroom home in one of the best positions along the Hawkesbury River.

If you’d like to get early access to either of these 2 new ‘Off-Market Acres’ listings or want to find out more about the other ‘Off-Market Acres’ properties that I currently have available, simply register at www.OffMarketAcres.com.au

Finally, just remember don’t get fooled by the Fake News headlines about the housing market. If you want to see what’s really going on out in the Australian property market make sure to follow the #OZpropertyAlive hashtag.

So, that’s it for this week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching, stay safe and bye for now.

Regards

Greg Vincent