National

  • PEXA Plus hopes to streamline the workload for online property transactions

    Property Exchange Australia (PEXA) has announced that PEXA Plus, a new gateway to online property transactions, is available now in three of the five states it operates in. PEXA Plus provides members with tools to manage their digital conveyancing workload, affording them more time to focus on customer service and growing their operations. Studies show that digital conveyancing allows for an average…

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  • Juwai launches education channel to help Chinese buyers study and buy property overseas

    Juwai.com has launched a new Education Channel on its website, dedicated to international education and related properties for Chinese families. Early sponsors and advertisers on the channel include the Overseas Property & Immigration & Investment Exhibition in Shanghai this December; Hopewell Developments, a leading Canadian developer with a portfolio in Alberta, Ontario, Manitoba and British Columbia; Surterre Properties, the leading luxury…

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  • Purplebricks Australia CEO departs

    It has been mutually decided that Purplebricks Australia Chief Executive Officer Ryan Dinsdale will leave the business to pursue new opportunities. Mr Dinsdale will remain with Purplebricks to support a period of transition until 1 March 2019 at the latest. Mr Dinsdale took on the role two and a half years ago to launch the Purplebricks brand into Australia. During his…

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  • Winners announced for the third Annual REA Excellence Awards

    Twenty-one winners were honoured at the third Annual REA Excellence Awards (AREAs) in Sydney last night. Recognising the most innovative, community-minded and highest-achieving individuals and businesses in property and media, awards were presented across the categories of Innovation, Service & Marketing Excellence and Community. This year saw the introduction of three new Gold AREA awards – Agent of the Year,…

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  • Tracey Fellows realestate.com.au

    REA Group CEO Tracey Fellows announces move to New York

    Tracey Fellows, chief executive of REA Group, is stepping down from the role to take on a new position as the head of digital real estate for News Corp. Ms Fellows will leave the company in January 2019 but will remain on the board as News Corp’s representative. News Corp majority own REA. Ms Fellows was appointed CEO in 2014…

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  • Knight Frank makes high-profile national appointment to Capital Markets team

    Knight Frank has appointed Graeme Russell as Partner, Institutional Sales from late November 2018. With 33 years’ industry experience specialising in investment sales, Mr Russell will join Knight Frank from his most recent role as Divisional Director – Capital Transactions at Savills Australia and New Zealand, where he has worked for five years. Prior to that, Mr Russell was with…

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  • World’s largest companies to shift focus towards flexible workspace

    The demand for flexible workspace is set to accelerate as over two-thirds of global corporates plan to increase their use of flexible co-working and collaborative space over the next three years, according to new research from Knight Frank. Knight Frank’s (Y)OUR SPACE report surveys senior executives at 120 global companies, which collectively employ in excess of 3.5 million people worldwide…

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  • LJ Hooker International Awards recognises top performer Jamie Giokaris and inducts Matthew Herbert into Hall of Fame

    LJ Hooker and Harveys has recognised its leading agents across Australia and New Zealand at their International Awards, held last week on Hamilton Island. Jamie Giokaris, Principal of LJ Hooker Lithgow, was awarded the esteemed Sir Leslie Hooker accolade. The award recognises the business owner who creates a thriving office culture, is a leader within the group, gives back to…

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  • What $1.3 Million buys you around the world

    Not all $1.3 million dollar properties are made equal, and depending on where someone is looking to splash their cash there’s a big difference in what they can get. Forgoing the metropolitan lifestyle of bigger cities will definitely get buyers more bang for their buck. Gold Coast Currently, a palatial home set on over two acres of property and yet only…

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  • REA Group posts 17 per cent revenue growth for FY19 Q1

    News Corp-owned real estate listings platform REA Group has posted a 17 per cent revenue growth for the first quarter of FY19. Revenue increased to $221.9 million with the company’s EBITDA increasing by 23 per cent to $130.9 million compared to the previous period. This growth was despite tough market conditions; the platform reported a three per cent decline in…

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  • ABS data shows new lending has dropped to lowest levels in four years

    The latest ABS housing figures show new lending has dropped to the lowest levels since August 2014 and lending to housing investors is at the lowest it’s been since 2013. The seasonally adjusted figures from September show an overall drop in lending of 3.8 per cent from the previous month. Owner-occupiers fell the most, down 4.2 per cent from last…

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  • Link Group to acquire econveyancing platform PEXA for $1.5 billion

    Link Group and its partners, including Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Morgan Stanley Infrastructure, have announced their final bid for PEXA has been accepted. Link, which already owns 30 per cent of PEXA, initially made a bid earlier in the year which was knocked back due to PEXA’s plans to list on the Australian Stock Exchange. However, the company was…

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  • November 2018: Interest rates on hold, Industry reaction

    Yesterday (6 November 2018) the RBA Board decided to leave the cash rate unchanged at 1.50 per cent for its 24th consecutive meeting. “Conditions in the Sydney and Melbourne housing markets have continued to ease and nationwide measures of rent inflation remain low,” says RBA Governor Dr Philip Lowe. “Growth in credit extended to owner-occupiers has eased but remains robust, while…

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  • Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate recruits for Australian growth

    Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate is taking the next steps in its Australian journey with the recruitment of several experienced real estate professionals to the team. The announcement comes as the network gears up for its nationwide launch. Karmen Costigan joins the Queensland team with over twenty years’ experience in the real estate industry, both in the USA and…

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  • OBrien Real Estate Foundation announces first grant recipients

    The OBrien Real Estate Foundation was first created in June this year with the purpose of supporting local charities. OBrien is a strong supporter of local communities and believes giving back is extremely important. The OBrien Foundation was created with a view to take this support to the next step, so the whole team could work together to improve the lives of…

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  • CBRE Group moves into co-working space with the launch of CBRE Hana

    Commercial real estate services firm CBRE has declared a move into the flexible working spaces sector with the creation of CBRE Hana, a new division which the agency says will partner with property owners to provide workspaces. Hana will design, build and operate the co-working facilities and services, in partnership with institutional property investors. In a statement, CBRE president and…

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  • David Young Choi joins ActivePipe as Chief Commercial Officer

    Melbourne-based automated communications platform ActivePipe has appointed former Domain Group Director of Corporate & Enterprise – Asia Pacific, David Young Choi, as its new Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). Mr Choi is a highly qualified and respected Senior Executive with over 15 years’ experience in Corporate and Business Development, Marketing and Strategy. His extensive executive background working with Australia’s largest real estate brands…

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  • Reapit appoints business development specialist

    Reapit has confirmed the appointment of Sam Upleger as Business Development Manager for Reapit Australia. Mr Upleger will be focused on building new business and generating new customers for Reapit’s Property Management and Trust Accounts software. Mr Upleger brings eight years’ experience in real estate sales to Reapit, during which he has worked with companies including Buxton and Kay & Burton…

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  • Kiwi claims Australasia’s best auctioneer title for 2018

    After a tight competition, the Australasian Real Estate Institutes’ Auctioneering Championship for 2018 has been awarded to Andrew North of New Zealand at a gala dinner at the Maritime Room in Auckland last night. Real Estate Institute of Australia (REIA) President Malcolm Gunning said the event, hosted this year by the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ), who stage…

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  • elite agent news room

    CoreLogic appoints new Head of Real Estate

    Fifth-generation real estate veteran Geoff White has taken over the reins as the CoreLogic National Head of Real Estate. A prominent member of the Victoria real estate industry with extensive expertise, Geoff has been CoreLogic’s Group Sales Director since 2017, and previously headed up the Real Estate Institute of Victoria (REIV). Mr White says that his time with CoreLogic Victoria…

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  • Finalists battle it out for the Australasian Auctioneering Crown

    Australia and New Zealand are battling it out again, but this time the two countries are going head to head at the 2018 Australasian Real Estate Institute’s Auctioneering Championships, with the winner to be crowned Australasia’s best auctioneer at a gala dinner tonight. The Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) is playing host this year and the five finalists who…

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  • The Agency partners with MadeComfy

    The Agency has partnered with short-term rental management company MadeComfy in a bid to give property investors and homeowners a short-term alternative. “MadeComfy has a unique market positioning; their company and customer values are in alignment with The Agency – our core focus being customer-centric,” Maria Carlino, The Agency’s National Director of Property Management, said. “We are both rapidly growing companies,…

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  • The Harcourts Foundation’s latest funding round sees over $65,000 donated to nine charities

    The Harcourts Foundation, the charitable arm of Harcourts Group Australia, announced grants to nine Australian charities during its most recent quarterly funding round. A total of $66,268 was donated across Australia to benefit charities serving the communities where Harcourts employees live and work. “Over the past six months, a total of $100,128 has been granted by The Harcourts Foundation,” said…

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  • Banking Royal Commission releases interim report: What you need to know

    The Royal Commission released their interim report last week from the investigation into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry. The report has called into question how buyers are assessed for loans and is likely to mean serviceability will continue to tighten. The report also called ASIC into question for failing to police the banking sector and highlighted…

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  • Majority of NSW markets in decline as SA and QLD heat up in October 2018: Herron Todd White

    The October 2018 issue of the Month In Review report from independent property valuation and advisory firm Herron Todd White shows that the majority of markets in New South Wales are either at their peak or declining, while Brisbane and Adelaide are still on the rise. Residential According to the firm’s Residential Property Clock, NSW’s North Coast region, including Coffs…

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  • October 2018: Interest rates on hold – industry reaction

    Yesterday (2 October 2018) the RBA Board decided to leave the cash rate unchanged at 1.50 per cent for its 24th consecutive meeting. “Conditions in the Sydney and Melbourne housing markets have continued to ease and nationwide measures of rent inflation remain low,” says RBA Governor Dr Philip Lowe. “Growth in credit extended to owner-occupiers remains robust, but demand by investors…

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  • elite agent news room

    Harcourts National Conference named a finalist in Australian Event Awards

    Harcourts Australia National Conference has been confirmed as among the best events in the country with the announcement of National and State Finalists in the 2018 Australian Event Awards. Recognised as a world leader in real estate events, the Harcourts National Conference is a defining three-day experience both across the franchise network and throughout the real estate industry. The Conference…

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  • REA Group announces finalists for 2018 Annual REA Excellence Awards

    REA Group has today announced the finalists for this year’s Annual REA Excellence Awards (AREAs), to be held in Sydney on Thursday 15 November 2018. The AREAs honour the most innovative, community-minded and highest-achieving individuals and businesses across the property and media industries. Twenty-one awards will be presented across the three categories of Innovation, Service and Marketing Excellence, and Community.…

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  • McGrath agents support local communities with over $1 Million in donations

    McGrath Estate Agents have announced that its agents and offices throughout the eastern seaboard have collectively donated more than $1,000,000 to charities during the 2018 financial year. McGrath Chief Executive Officer Geoff Lucas affirmed the company’s commitment to supporting and giving back to its local communities. “Community is at the core of McGrath’s values and truly ingrained in our culture. We…

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  • elite agent news room

    Australia/NZ real estate tops GRESB global rankings for eighth consecutive year

    For the eighth consecutive year, Australia and New Zealand’s real estate market has been ranked the world’s number one for sustainability in the internationally recognised 2018 GRESB real estate results. GRESB is the global benchmark for environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance of real assets, defining and measuring standards for sustainability performance. In 2018, GRESB assessed 903 real estate companies,…

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  • elite agent news room

    Solar energy likely to drive up home values: HTW

    Sustainable homes will see an increase in value as more and more householders take up solar rebates and reduce household energy consumption, according to independent valuer and advisory group Herron Todd White. HTW’s Managing Director in Melbourne, Tony Kelly, said as homeowners continued to take advantage of solar energy rebates and substantially reduced energy costs, the value of their homes…

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  • Barry Plant Group recognises talent in their network at 2018 Awards for Excellence

    Last week, the Barry Plant Group hosted its 2018 Awards for Excellence at Melbourne’s Crown Palladium, with nearly 900 people attending the black-tie event. The Geelong office had an outstanding night as, apart from their star agent Chari Emirzade taking out so many major sales awards, they also won Franchisee of the Year and Property Management Department of the Year,…

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  • Purplebricks evolves Australian offering with new customer experience

    Purplebricks has announced a new service offering and experience for customers in Australia. Purplebricks Global COO Neil Tavender said the network were ‘excited’ about the changes they were implementing and the way it would drive the network forward in Australia. “In recent weeks, Kenny Bruce (Co-founder) and our leadership team have travelled the country to speak with all of our agents…

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  • elite agent news room

    Harcourts International names new Board Members

    Harcourts International has welcomed Susan Rix AM, Tim Keenan and Graham Mirabito to its board of directors, joining current board members Gilbert Enoka, Mike and Irene Green and Paul Wright. “We are very pleased to have Susan, Tim and Graham join our board and look forward to their contributions,” said Mike Green, Managing Director, Harcourts International. “Each is a leader in…

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  • RE/MAX rewards top performing regions at Asia Pacific Convention

    RE/MAX has acknowledged its top regional performances at the fourth annual RE/MAX Asia Pacific Convention this month, with Australia and New Zealand claiming four awards. Australia and New Zealand join 16 other regions in RE/MAX’s Asia Pacific network – South Korea, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Philippines, Guam, Hong Kong, Macau, China, Japan, Taiwan, India, Sri Lanka, Mongolia, Malaysia and Myanmar. RE/MAX Australia…

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