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RBA Says that Interest Rates Unlikely to Remain the Same in 2015

10/30/2014

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Source: http://www.pinkog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/the-empire-residence-in-australia-by-residential-attitudes-homesthetics.jpg
Most finance experts predict that interest rates won’t stay put in the New Year. Their prediction is based on the heated real estate markets in Sydney and Melbourne and increasing unemployment rates.

But according to Market Economics managing director Stephen Koukoulas, it is the global economy that maybe the biggest determining factor in any rate movement.

Koukoulas expressed worry over the world economy and factors such as commodity prices. He’s not anticipating another financial crisis, but observes that growth is very sluggish.

If rates vary in 2015, Koukoulas expects a downward movement.

He says, “If unemployment is up at 6.5%, the property market comes off the boil and commodity prices are still not strong enough, the next move for rates is down.”

Two other factors that may play a big role in the rate movement in 2015 are wage growth and consumer confidence.

An increase of just 1.5% annually for the next three years for Defence Force personnel is being considered by the Federal Government. According to Koukoulas, such low offer impacts the wider national economy.

He says, “There’s a link between public sector wages and private sector wages.” What this means is that a very low private sector wages growth lowers inflation and hurts consumer’s buying power.

Australia’s annual rate of inflation decreased from 3% in the June quarter to 2.3% in the September quarter, causing the Housing Industry Association (HIA) to reiterate its contention that rates will remain unchanged for some time.

According to HIA senior economist Shane Garrett, the present key measures of key inflation meet the Reserve Bank of Australia’s target range.

He states that “While today’s figures show a rather large reduction in the pace of inflation, this has been assisted by the one-off influence of the carbon tax repeal.”

Look at the housing component of the Consumer Price Index to see the effect of the carbon tax on households. Electric rates declined 4.4% in the September 2014 quarter and by 5.1% over the year.

Moderate increase of only 1.1% has been seen in the value of new homes in the September quarter, which is a glaring contrast to the significant price increase of established homes.

Garrett suggests that policy makers must tackle the steep price of bringing residential land to market if the country is to make significant headway into the housing affordability issue.
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Designing your Spare Room to Serve you Better

10/28/2014

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Homes need to be adaptable to accommodate complex and diverse families, interests and careers. This means making sure every room in the home is useful for everyone all the time.

The spare room is the one area in most homes that can become a mess if left as it is - space that looks like a mix of office, gym and craft room. However, deciding how you want to use your spare room can help you design it accordingly, giving you a space that is called “spare” in name only.

People who work from home want to use the spare room as a home office. Others prefer to use it as a home gym or guest suite for out-of-town family who comes for a visit. Creating a space that is a combination gym/guest suite or home office/gym can be tricky. Here are some options you can consider for your spare room:

The Home Office and Gym Option
This option is one of the easier combinations - hard to believe but true.

Start with placing a desk and chair for your office area. Once this is done, you will see the amount of space left for your gym. If there is plenty of space, place the treadmill or similar equipment far from your work space to avoid distraction.

If the room has a cupboard, use part of it for storing your mats, weights and other smaller gym equipment. In place of a cupboard, use a large trunk or box as a storage area.

The Home Office and Bedroom Option
A spare bedroom doesn't have to be a permanent bedroom. You can combine the spare bedroom with a home office.

You can do this with a sofa bed. The days of uncomfortable sofa days are long gone. Today, you can choose from a traditional sofa bed, a sofa with a fold-down back to convert it into a mattress, and sofas that are actually two beds attached together to form a sofa.

Once you've decided on the right sofa bed, start arranging your office space around the bed. Just make sure the office area is the highlight most of the time.

To achieve a stylish, functional multi-purpose room, choose adaptable furniture and set aside plenty of storage space. Carefully consider your needs for the room, do some research and let your creativity flow to create a room that fits your needs perfectly.




Annette Pinkerton
The Newcastle Real Estate Agent who enables you to turn the key to where you want to be!



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Find Out What the Pest Inspections and Building Reports Say Before Buying a House

10/21/2014

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PictureImage Source: https://flic.kr/p/btZtxm
Buying a house comes with a hefty price tag. For most of us, it would probably be the biggest investment we will ever make in our life. Then there are also related expenses including the costs of hiring a conveyancer and real estate agent. With all these expenses, it is easy to ignore the pest and building inspection as insignificant but this is where you are wrong – deciding not to buy a report is a mistake that could probably cost you your dream house. You need to invest in pest and building inspection. The cost is small compared to the other expenses related to buying a house, and can save you from stress and heartache as well as thousands of dollars in repairs in the long run.


Pest Inspections
Termites can be present in a house without being detected for months – even years, and the cost of putting right the damage that these pesky critters have done can reach thousands of dollars. For your own peace of mind, order a comprehensive pest inspection before purchasing a home.





Pest inspections will normally set you back a few hundred dollars – a paltry sum if you consider you may be inheriting unwanted pests with your new house. Nonetheless, only deal with reputable pest inspectors making sure they are experienced and the company is licensed.

Building Reports
Everything may seem in order in a house during a walk through on inspection day. However, just looking around will not tell you the structural soundness of the house. The structural health of a property will be contained in a pre-purchase or pre-sale building report. The inspection is non-invasive, conducted and prepared in accordance with the Australian Standards and Workcover Safety standards.

A building report will also tell you things that you can use to negotiate a better price for the house. If you are the seller, a building report will provide peace of mind when negotiating with potential buyers.

Moral of this story - always order a pest and building report on any property you purchase.




Annette Pinkerton
The Newcastle Real Estate Agent who enables you to turn the key to where you want to be!

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A Guide to Finding Affordable Art for the Home

10/14/2014

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A piece of art such as a painting can be expensive, but you can find a great investment piece that is affordable. Finding affordable art is not some insurmountable quest - the secret is to look for pieces that capture your attention and evoke positive feelings from you.

Choosing art that fits your taste is also important, and arming yourself with information about what you’re buying can also help if you’re trying to find something that may increase in value in the long term.

The Importance of Art in the Home
“Layering” a home can be achieved with art – it’s not just a piece of square hanging on the wall or a statue in the corner of a room. An art piece has the ability to transform a room and bring your personality into it. Accordingly, this gives room a feeling of being well loved and lived in, thus turning a house into a home.

Through art, you can let your creativity out adding colour or mood, and even displaying the flair for art of yourself or the members of your family on the wall.

Where Do We Begin with Art?
Most people believe they need to follow a set of rules when buying art. There aren’t rules – the only important thing is you enjoy the experience of seeing your art collection grow. Don’t stress yourself out, and more importantly, don’t let yourself go broke.


Does a piece move you? Do you like? These are the first questions you should ask yourself when looking at art. You may like not just one style or one of medium – and that’s okay. You may find yourself moved by a combination of photography and originals, or you may be attracted to vintage posters.
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Take stock of what you already possess, chances are you already own a small collection over the years. Find ways to use these to grow your collection over time.

Hang on to the best – the ones you like the most – and get rid of the rest. This is where you begin with your art collection.

Where Can You Find Affordable Art?
You can pick up inspired originals or reproductions at reasonable prices at affordable art fairs held in Melbourne or Sydney every year. You can also find varied originals, surplus stock, vintage posters and more at designer and artist markets. Find out from your local events pages what art event or fair is coming up near you.

Galleries are the most obvious source of art. However, the pieces in there often come with hefty prices. If you love a particular artist’s work, ask the staff whether they sell smaller versions or prints of the artist’s work. They may also know of other places at sell affordable pieces.

And don’t forget to drop by stores like IKEA and Typo, which actually stock unique, interesting, and inexpensive pieces of statement art.


Another alternative is to create your own affordable artwork like these geometric prints above made from scrape book paper or the print at the bottom of the page created from one of your own most loved photo.

Finally, visit websites like Hard to Find, Etsy and Temple & Webster and spend hours looking at hundreds of pieces – including originals – from art sellers around the world.

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What Do Architects Look for When Purchasing a Home?

10/7/2014

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Location, location, location – this is what a buyer’s main criteria when buying a home, according to real estate experts. This is true, but there are other important factors to consider to help buyers invest in the right house.

Architects look for five things that they believe will deliver lifestyle and returns to home buyers over the long term. Here they are:

1. Aspect
A home with a backyard positioned to the north allows for the living area to be placed to the back of the home and to receive direct sunlight. You can easily control direct sunlight coming from the north – allow it in during winter and keep it out during the summer.

This orientation also allows for easy access to the outdoor area from the living areas, allowing you to maximise the use of your outdoor areas as part of your living spaces.

2. Air Flow
The type of window determines the amount of ventilation a house gets. Awning windows allow for limited ventilation compared to a casement window or louvers. Noise from outside the house, such as heavy traffic, can prevent the window from being used to let air in and out of the house.

A home with good cross ventilation would not heavily depend on air conditioner during the hotter months and would have a lower chance of getting mould. This will make the home a healthier place to live in the long term.

3. Flexible Layout and Structure
Homeowners will likely want to make alterations or renovations sooner or later. Any home improvement project will be carried out without fuss if the house has an adaptable layout and structure.

It is essential that bathrooms and kitchens are placed in the right areas of the house. Otherwise, you may be looking at complex and expensive projects to move the bathroom or kitchen to a place that will better serve you and your family.

4. Character and Integrity 
Pay attention to low quality renovations if you are looking to purchase an older house. These may reduce the value of the property because of the amount of work that needs to be done to fix the badly planned and badly constructed owner build projects.

Alternatively, don’t be quick to turn your back on a house that is small due to the lack of improvements but well maintained. These houses can offer potential. Homes with high ceilings will appear larger than it is and will be cooler, especially in summer.

If you are looking at new builds, watch out for the quality of workmanship and ask questions to gather more information about it.

5. Neighbours 
Consider the impact of the properties that are located to the one you are considering. Do they darken your entire backyard and make it gloomy and humid year round? Will they prevent you from making renovations or makeovers of your property in the future?

These factors can significantly affect your lifestyle, if you decide to live there, and cannot be easily changed to suit your needs. These are the things to you need to pay more attention to – not furnishings or paint colours that may not likely be there in the years to come.


Annette Pinkerton
The Newcastle Real Estate Agent who enables you to turn the key to where you want to be!


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    Annette Pinkerton

    helps over 55's who are afraid of not having enough money for their retirement. She does this by selling their family home for a premium price using her proven marketing plans.  Often her clients end up with more money than they expected allowing them to buy a new car or go on a dream holiday. 

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One Agency Pinkerton Properties specialise in the following suburbs in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie 

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