The Rapid Recovery Should NOT Come as a Surprise

YOU MAY RECALL back in May and July, I foreshadowed a quick recovery would occur – as soon as we emerged from lockdown.

You see, what we’ve just been through, is a medical crisis with financial implications. NOT a total financial collapse – like we had during the GFC.

As such, “Demand” didn’t disappear … it simply got deferred. And you’ve already observed that with consumers now engaging in “Retail revenge” – as depicted in the graphic below (AFR, front page: 3 Dec 2020).

During the pandemic my clients seemed to fall into two camps:

  • Those who feared a total collapse, with a prolonged recovery.
  • Those who listened and saw the opportunity to secure a good property, while the market itself remained confused.

Already you are seeing eager buyers re-entering the property market (both residential and commercial) – with prices on the rise once more.

Therefore, those who did buy during the pandemic are now having their faith vindicated. And now, the strength of this renewed demand is bringing more properties onto the market.

Therein, Lies Your Next Opportunity

Not all the properties coming onto the market during November & December can be absorbed before Christmas.

Naturally, this will make those vendors somewhat unsettled – because the commercial market doesn’t officially reopen again until February/March.

So, if you are cashed up and able to move quickly … there should be a number of good choices for you early in the New Year.

Bottom Line: What I’m planning to do is compile a list of those unsold properties for my clients. And then, we’ll quietly sift through these opportunities together – to help clients secure several genuine bargains.

If that could be of interest to you … just let me know.

Smashing The 5 Myths About Commercial Property

RIGHT NOW everyone is rather confused because of COVID. And what I generally find is that when investors are confused … they tend to do nothing. 

Yet despite the dire predictions of market collapses, that’s NOT what has occurred. Sure, the share market has been rather volatile. However, the property market has basically held up well. [Read more…]

What’s the New Normal for The Post-COVID Office?

BEFORE COVID, Australians worked less from home than their counterparts overseas. However, now things have apparently been reversed.

And even though Australian office workers say they’ve been far more productive at home … there is a keenness to return to an office environment. [Read more…]

Australia’s Job Recovery Post COVID-19

DESPITE A RECENT surge in positive COVID-19 cases for Victoria, the infection rates detected by its testing blitz have remained at a very low 0.2%.

And so, that would suggest the virus is not widespread within the community.

Furthermore, there hasn’t been any marked increase in the number of cases actually requiring hospitalisation.

Half of the Job Losses to be Back by Christmas

[Read more…]

The Stimulus Packages: What Business & Property Owners Need to Know

AMID THE COVID-19 pandemic, the government has announced several stimulus packages to help Australian businesses. If you’re a business or property owner, here is what you need to know.  [Read more…]

How Quickly Can Australia’s Economy Recover?

SEVERAL CLIENTS have been asking about how long until things start to get back to “normal”. And what changes investors need to watch for, after we emerged from lockdown.

During times of economic uncertainty, you should focus on the underlying fundamentals driving demand and investment. And these still remain strong.

In my view, you should see a stronger than expected recovery – provided various states don’t unnecessarily delay the steps needed to restart the economy. [Read more…]

Economy Continues to Grow

IN REALITY, the Australian economy is showing solid growth in the metropolitan areas. And there is a flow-on effect into most regional cities – the only exceptions being those areas recently struck by drought and bushfires.

While not buoyant (and there may be a short-term pullback from natural disasters) … overall, the economic fundamentals look fine.

Therefore, we need to steer clear from unwittingly talking ourselves into recession. Because, as soon as confidence returns (and it will), consumers will start spending again. [Read more…]

The True Impact of US-China Trade Wars

THERE WAS A FAVOURABLE response to the so-called Phase 1 breakthrough in the Trade Talks, between the US and China. And there’s been further positive developments this week.

However, it is actually worth reviewing where things stood before these recent events.

Despite political tensions, there has been little adverse impact on Australia’s trade with China. And the rapid increase in China’s share of our exports has been principally driven by higher iron ore prices. [Read more…]

Likely Impact of the US/China Trade War on Property

ACCORDING TO JP MORGAN, the expected trade war should only shave about 0.07% off Australia’s GDP over the next couple of years. [Read more…]

The Pendulum Has Swung

WHAT AN AMAZING election result … although, I had always felt it would be a lot closer than everyone thought. Now many people are now asking how the pollsters could have got it so wrong?

In actual fact, they weren’t that far out. Rather, it was more a heavy bias in media coverage which fanned the Labor fever.

So, How DID the Coalition Manage to Win?

[Read more…]

Servicing Your Commercial Property Investment Deals

THE FINANCIAL INDUSTRY in general (and the major banks in particular) have been under the microscope recently as a result of the Royal Commission. And that has provided a steady stream of negative headlines for the banks over the past 12 months.

As a result, the banks have instituted a number of changes including: [Read more…]