Tim Heavyside – Fletchers Real Estate

𝐌𝐞𝐥𝐛𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐰𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐝, 𝐚𝐬 𝐰𝐞 𝐬𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐚 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐝𝐮𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐂𝐎𝐕𝐈𝐃-𝟏𝟗 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤. 𝐖𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞, 𝐛𝐨𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐧-𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐧-𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐚𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐝.

Despite the lockdown rules, Melbourne buyers were still keen to snap up a property. Whilst a number of properties sold prior to their scheduled weekend auction, several went under the hammer online.

We saw 15 people register to bid for the property at 33 Bolinda Road in Balwyn North, which had just two owners since being built in the 1960’s. The couple who owned the home had a nervous week prior to auction, monitoring conditions with agent Nick Fletcher to determine whether to sell prior or proceed to auction. They were selling to downsize and watched online as the property sold for $2,619,000 to a family now planning to live in the home.

Also in Balwyn North, a sought-after single level villa unit at 2/10 Hatfield Street attracted 8 bidders and sold under the hammer. Director & Auctioneer, Jeremy Desmier, expertly fielded bids from the parties as they whittled down to one-thousand-dollar increments, until the home was declared sold.

With plans and permits ready and no heritage overlay, the property at 18 Milverton Street in Camberwell attracted four bidders online. I facilitated the bidding until the property on a prized corner block sold under the hammer.

The Fletchers Group was thrilled to achieve a 100% auction clearance rate over the weekend and extend our congratulations to all successful vendors and purchasers. Of course, these are very challenging times and we hope our clients and the community stay well and safe. We certainly hope that the current lockdown will end as planned this week.

Success. It’s a Fletchers thing.

Our pre-lockdown auction at 6 Crossman Court in Box Hill South saw 3 bidders get involved after starting with a vendor bid of $1,300,000.

Zoned for highly sought-after Box Hill High and Roberts McCubbin Primary School, the high-set four bedroom home is well-located in a quiet court.

The property sold under the hammer – big congratulations to our vendors and the successful purchasers!

𝐕𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐩𝐥𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐫 𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐲, 𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐧 𝐚 𝟕-𝐝𝐚𝐲 “𝐜𝐢𝐫𝐜𝐮𝐢𝐭-𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐫” 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐎𝐕𝐈𝐃-𝟏𝟗 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤. 𝐀𝐬 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐥𝐭, 𝐢𝐧-𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐝, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞/𝐯𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲.

We saw several auctions moved forward to Thursday night and more still selling prior to their scheduled auctions as agents negotiated sales before lockdown began.

My team and I held our first “twilight” auction for the property at 83 Middlesex Road in Surrey Hills, which was conducted safely and was a great success! The fully renovated Californian Bungalow home sold under the hammer, and both vendor and successful purchasers were rapt with the result.

In Glen Iris, the auction of 10 Florence Avenue was also brought forward, attracting four bidders and selling under the hammer for $1,905,000.Many auctions move online, and now well-practiced in this space, it did not deter buyers looking to secure their dream home.

Over on the Mornington Peninsula, Director & Auctioneer Josh Callaghan fielded 107 bids during the online auction of 11 Maxwell Street in Blairgowrie. The auction resulted in a ground-breaking sales result of $2,562,001.

We await news of whether the lockdown will be extended past 7 days, but regardless of the outcome, we are confident that the property market will continue with strength after this brief pause in normal activity.

Success. It’s a Fletchers thing.

We enjoyed a much more pleasant weekend weather-wise, on a busy auction Saturday which yielded some mixed results. The REIV recorded a clearance rate of 81 per cent, with most properties that sold under the hammer attracting 2-3 bidders each.

The Victorian government’s planned stamp duty and land tax increases in the 2021-22 state budget continues to draw debate, with the REIV determined to work with the government, the opposition and cross-bench to see positive change.

REIV CEO, Gil King, said that “this ill-considered announcement shows a fundamental misunderstanding of the real estate market, and the contribution it makes to the economy including its influence on Victoria’s economic recovery post-COVID”.The Victorian government announced that those buying a home for more than $2 million across the state would pay more stamp duty – with a premium duty rate of 6.5 per cent being introduced. The rates will jump from the usual 5.5 per cent on 1 July 2021.

On the flipside, an economist from the Grattan Institute has suggested that the property tax hikes could actually boost economic growth and put an end to development-related corruption. Mr Brendan Coates said, “Mum and Dad investors made up most of the landlords across the country and owned properties worth way less than $1.8 million, so not many investors would be affected by the new land tax”.

Success. It’s a Fletchers thing.

𝐀 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐬𝐧𝐚𝐩 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐝, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐞𝐥𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐢𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐞 𝐚𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐬𝐞𝐭 𝐢𝐧. 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫, 𝐚𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐚 𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐝 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝟖𝟏 𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭.

In property news, the Victorian government announced that those buying a home for more than $2 million across the state would pay more stamp duty – with a premium duty rate of 6.5 per cent being introduced. The rates will jump from the usual 5.5 per cent on 1 July 2021.

Further tax hikes will also affect investors, with land tax to rise by 0.25 percentage points for land holdings worth between $1.8 million and $3 million and 0.3 percentage points for holdings above $3 million from the start of 2022.
The Real Estate Institute of Victoria (REIV) has hit out against the changes, saying they would harm the industry and buyers and investors alike. REIV President, Leah Calnan said, “property already accounts for more than 40 per cent of government revenue…there is not much more capacity [for] any one sector to absorb further tax burden”.

Despite the news, a Super Saturday was still in play over the weekend, with over 1,000 auctions called.

Success. It’s a Fletchers thing.

𝐖𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐤 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐧𝐞𝐰𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐨𝐟 𝐀𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐚 (𝐑𝐁𝐀) 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐡 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐤𝐞𝐩𝐭 𝐚𝐭 𝟎.𝟏%.

RBA Governor, Philip Lowe said that the RBA board did not expect the required economic conditions to increase the cash rate would be met until 2024 at the earliest. The confirmation provides greater certainty for borrowers that mortgage rates will stay low for several years.

The Federal Government’s 2021 budget measures to help Australians into home ownership include first home buyer’s being able to release up to $50,000 as part of voluntary contributions into their superannuation under the First Home Super Saver Scheme (an increase from $30,000). Single parents will also be able to access the Family Home Guarantee, which will allow 10,000 applicants over four years to purchase a home with as little as two per cent deposit. The government will also provide an additional $124.7 million to states and territories to help build their public housing stock.

Over the weekend, the REIV recorded a clearance rate of 81 per cent. The Fletchers Group was thrilled to achieve a similar success rate of 82 per cent for our clients. A number of properties auctioned on Saturday attracted at least 3-4 bidders.

Success. It’s a Fletchers thing.

We saw strong, confident bidding at the auction of the quality home at 9A Ruyton Street in Camberwell.

Bidding started at $1.8 million the competition was really between two parties, both determined to secure the home. With direct rear access and breathtaking views across Lynden Park, it’s no wonder!

Congratulations to our vendor Sandro and the successful purchasers, who have bought a quality home in a fantastic neighbourhood.

With a multitude of opportunities on offer to the successful buyer, it’s no surprise that three parties bid strongly to secure the home at 28 Guildford Road in Surrey Hills.

Suitable to live in, renovate or build new in a prized location the property, built in 1967, is a developer’s dream with a planning permit in hand. Bidding began at $2.3 million and the home went on to sell under the hammer – much to our vendor’s delight!

We enjoyed beautiful Autumn sunshine over the first weekend of May, with another ‘Super Saturday’ in which more than 1,000 auctions were scheduled.

The Real Estate Institute of Victoria [REIV] recorded a clearance rate of 81 percent, with Fletchers results from the day closely aligned with the industry at 80 per cent.

Domain Group data shows that in addition to a soaring median house price in Melbourne, house prices have also risen across 51 suburbs, pushed forward by owner-occupiers looking for larger homes. The Mornington Peninsula has led much of the charge, with suburbs in the sought-after stretch of coastline rising by 30 per cent in just one year. Domain senior research analyst, Dr Nicola Powell, notes that with the change in working habits, the possibility for people to work and live more remotely has opened up the possibility of the Mornington Peninsula as more than just a destination for holiday homes.

Supply is similarly tight in the inner-eastern suburbs of Melbourne, with house prices in the area jumping by 8.5 per cent across the year to March to a $1,615,000 median. “There’s an absorption rate at the moment…there are definitely more buyers than there are sellers, so any homes for sale are just getting snapped up”.

Success. It’s a Fletchers thing.

Thrilled to be recognised as the #21 agent in Australia (#2 from Victoria) for REB’s 2021 Top 100 rankings.

The annual, independent list sets the benchmark for Australian real estate agent success, so it’s a real honour! The ranking highlights excellence across the board – using the number of properties sold, the total dollar volume of properties sold, and the average sale value across a 12-month period to definitively rank the brightest and best agents operating across the nation.

As always, thank you to my team, clients and colleagues in the Fletchers Group.