EXPERIENCED renovators settled on a St Kilda house three months ago, completely revamped its interior and have now resold it for $310,000 more than they paid for it.
CoreLogic records show the vendors bought the semi-detached pad at 26 Chapel Street for $1 million in July and settled on it in September.
1950s weatherboard house in Sunshine on a 697sqm block sold as a development site for $13,000 above reserve, Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler said. The buyer, who outlasted one other bidder, planned to either keep the house and build a second property behind it or demolish and build two new properties in the medium- to long-term, she said. Read more
Buyer’s advocate Miriam Sandkuhler, from Property Mavens, said the market was slowing down in the lead up to Christmas.
Among the high-end properties that have changed hands quietly in the past few weeks is a large Queen Anne-style residence at 23 Barry Street, Kew, which sold for $7.1 million at a private auction.
“Crowd attendances in the north and the west appear to be shrinking, however good quality stock is being absorbed when vendors’ reserves are realistic and agents don’t underquote,” she said. Read more
Real estate expert and Property Mavens founder Miriam Sandkuhler said the principle of the bond and the processes surrounding final inspections and condition reports was the same across the country.
“If there is a dispute and you can’t agree on the circumstances you have the right to appeal to a body or organisation, but you have to understand if you’ve caused damage to a property, whether intentionally or not, absolutely your bond can be held,” she said. Read more
BUYING off-the-plan has long been a popular option for Aussie homebuyers — but what happens when things don’t go to plan?
Property Mavens founder Miriam Sandkuhler, who has written extensively about the pitfalls of off-the-plan sales, said buying off-the-plan was risky, and a conveyancer who specialised in off-the-plan properties was essential.
“Most people don’t understand that buying off-the-plan is one of the highest-risk strategies you can do. Everyone sells the benefits ... but independent, unbiased advice is really important,” she said. Read more
HUNDREDS of thousands of dollars beyond reserve were splashed on Elwood properties as the inner-bayside suburb shone under the hammer at the weekend. A three-bedroom house on an irregular-shaped block at 29 Ruskin St fetched $255,000 more than reserve with a $2.455 million sale.
A couple of streets away in Selwyn Ave, an older-style two-bedroom apartment sold for $721,000 after being called on the market at $620,000, reported Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler. But the property was “nothing special,” she said. Ms Sandkuhler said a lot of first-home buyers, including “double-income, no kids,” were active at the auction, which also attracted investors. Selwyn Ave runs between Ormond Rd and the beach in a blue-chip Elwood location.
It was one of the busiest auctions weeks in Melbourne this year, with just one proper weekend left to go before the market slows dramatically for Christmas. Read more
Property Mavens head Miriam Sandkuhler said the Nelson Alexander-listing was quoted at $590,000 to $640,000. It was on the market at $645,000 and sold for $690,000.“The buyer paid a premium on the day because it sold under competition,” she said. “I’m finding that there is not a lot of good stock around.” Read more
A PERIOD home in Albion has sold for more than $100,000 above its reserve price, following a record price set in Sunshine West last weekend as big results are posted in the west. The four-bedroom house on 641sq m at 66 Adelaide St fetched $965,000 under the hammer after competition between multiple bidders. The auction was among 1727 auctions held across Melbourne last week, according to CoreLogic, which returned a clearance rate of 69 per cent.
And in Richmond, a one-bedroom 1970s apartment at 3/35 Rowena Parade attracted three bidders and a big price, reported Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler. The property sold for $408,000 after competition between investors and first-home buyers.
She said the reserve was $360,000, adding the property’s location and affordable price point held appeal. It features an updated bathroom but the kitchen needed work, she added. Read more
UNDERQUOTING laws were introduced in May to reduce the gap between the quoted and sale price of Melbourne properties. But is it actually making a difference?
THE average gap between the quoted and sale price of Melbourne properties has improved since the introduction of laws aimed at tackling underquoting in May, new data shows.
Figures provided to the Herald Sun by property value predictor RealAs show Melbourne homes sold an average 10.7 per cent more than their listed price in the six months since May, when the beefed-up laws were introduced by the State Government.
Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler attributed the improvement the data showed to the impact of the laws.
“There are agents quoting appropriately and properly and doing a fantastic job of it, so those agents are the ones that have brought those (figures) down,” she said. But Ms Sandkuhler added some agents were manipulating the comparable sales or stating there were no comparable sales to work around the laws.
The top end of Melbourne’s residential real estate market was in fine form at the weekend as several $4 million-plus auction properties raced past their reserves.
But with more than 1440 auction properties up for grabs on Saturday, the heavily supplied $1.5 million to $3 million family home market segment was under some pressure. Variable levels of demand in this price bracket helped to pull down the weekend auction clearance to 66.2 per cent.
Miriam Sandkuhler, from Property Mavens, is also tracking heavy demand for affordable homes in the west. Six months ago buyers were paying around $710,000 for superior, fully renovated houses in West Sunshine. On Saturday, she represented an investor at the auction of an unrenovated house on 697 square metres at 21 Arnold Street, Sunshine West, but was outbid by an owner-occupier family group.
“I find that price gobsmacking,” she said. “It is an indication that the market is still strong in areas where properties are affordable and under the median house price for Melbourne. There is low supply and high demand.” Read more
VENDORS need to keep it cool when preparing for a summer sale. Check out property expert and The Block regular Greville Pabst’s top tips for nailing a result in the warmer months.
Keeping gardens well-maintained, setting inspection times for the morning and serving water to potential buyers are key tips to nailing a result in the warmer months, experts say.
Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler said potential buyers should be kept hydrated.
“Be welcoming and consider the fact heat takes it toll on people. Give them a reason to remember you and your property.”
Ms Sandkuhler said the normal fundamentals of having a clean and tidy property remained. Read more
Cashed-up Baby Boomers helped to lift sale prices at auctions in Melbourne’s inner and middle-ring suburbs at the weekend.
There were also signs of improvement in the inner-east auction market, which has underperformed in comparison to the north, south and west of the city on many weekends since mid-year.
Advantage Property Consulting and Property Mavens both said properties in Melbourne’s north that had solid owner-occupier appeal performed well in the weekend market. Read more
Miriam Sandkuhler, from Property Mavens, believes the variable results are partly due to the Andrews government’s underquoting laws introduced in May, which require all listed properties be given an estimated selling price or price range.
“There is definitely still confusion in the market place with the price quoting,” she said. “Many people don’t understand it and are still adding 10 per cent or more to the top of whatever the quote range is.
“The quoting laws are having a mixed effect. There are properties that sell for within the range and there are others that sell for 10 per cent or 20 per cent over the range. I would suggest that it is harder to figure out likely selling prices now than it was before these new regulations came in.”
New Zealand’s ban on foreign investors buying existing homes in an effort to tackle the housing crisis could have ramifications for Australia, experts say.
The country’s new Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern also announced plans to cut rates of immigration.
Miriam Sandkuhler, director of Property Mavens, said it was likely that some foreign buyers barred from buying in New Zealand would look to Australia. “Auckland has had the same amount of foreign investment as Australia,” she told Tom Elliott on 3AW Drive..
“We have fair reason to be concerned around the fact that any one who no longer has the ability to buy in New Zealand will tip their money here,” she said .Listen here
Kevin: Someone once said to me that you’ll make more money out of investing from the things that you say no to. That leads me to ask this question now of buyer’s agent Miriam Sandkuhler from Property Mavens: the properties that a buyer’s agent will reject, and why?
Miriam: I use the term “compromise,” so any properties that are compromised in any way that can have a detrimental effect to the property’s capacity to resell down the track or to earn decent capital growth down the track.
For example, there was a great property I was looking at for a client in Sunshine West recently. It ticked all the boxes except it was very close to high voltage power lines, and I know for a fact in dealing with a lot of sworn valuers, that they always suggest if you can stay 100 to 300 meters away from those power lines, it’s better from a resale perspective and a capital growth perspective. In this instance, the property we rejected was within 65 meters of both power lines, so we walked away. Listen or Read more
MELBOURNE’s spring property market will be in full swing with the Grand Final done and dusted.
Five industry players has given their forecasts for the remainder of 2017, including the types of properties that will perform and the continued impact of underquoting law changes.
See what they expect below.
Miriam Sandkuhler, Property Mavens chief executive:
Confusion regarding new underquoting laws will continue to have an impact. Many agencies are now quoting price ranges more accurately, while some agencies are manipulating data and using very old sales or non-genuine comparable properties as a new and deliberate form of underquoting. Read More
Miriam discusses with Kevin Turner why not all buyers agents are the same.
Podcast Audio here
Transcript ...
Kevin: There’s a saying that you get what you pay for – nothing truer when you’re dealing with people like buyer’s agents. Joining me to talk about that – that you get what you pay for – is Miriam Sandkuhler from Property Mavens.
Good day, Miriam.
Miriam: Hi, Kevin.
Kevin: True, isn’t it – you get what you pay for. I guess that raises the question: how do you distinguish a good buyer’s agent from an average one, Miriam?
Miriam: That’s a great question, Kevin. What I say to people is it’s like any industry: there will always be those who are more qualified, more experienced, have more expertise than some others, and so like any industry, it’s important to ask the right questions of the person you’re looking to engage. Read More
HOMEOWNERS who bought into Notting Hill, West Footscray and Sunshine when they were cheap five years ago have since struck it rich.
This is the finding of new finder.com.au research, which names these suburbs among the once-affordable areas to have enjoyed the biggest median house price rises by dollar value since 2012.
Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler said Sunshine had enjoyed a similar transformation in recent years, attracting young buyers with its affordability and becoming home to “trendy cafes” like Sunshine Social, and its property market was reaping the rewards. Read More
EAST Melbourne, Sunshine and Albion have been Melbourne’s most consistently strong housing markets over the past decade, data shows.
Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler said the gains consistently experienced in these suburbs were “very strong”.
“It’s a reflection of the substantial amount of migration to Melbourne — especially to those affordable areas,” the buyer’s advocate said.
“Since 2005-06, Melbourne has consistently had higher population growth than Sydney. It all comes back to supply and demand.”
Ms Sandkuhler said Sunshine and Albion’s affordability had made them increasingly popular with buyers in recent years. She said the suburbs offered “bang for buck”, with three-bedroom houses up for grabs for about $600,000-$700,000, as well as dramatically improving infrastructure and a gentrifying environment. Read more
Modern townhouses and single-level period homes were hotly contested at weekend auctions as Melbourne’s burst of warmer weather helped to swell the number of people on the hunt for new properties.
Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler bid unsuccessfully for the townhouse on behalf of an owner-occupier.
She said the Prahran listing prompted “strong, fast bidding,” and disputed claims by some market watchers that townhouses were not performing as well as detached and semi-detached houses.
“The fundamentals were there with this property,” Ms Sandkuhler said. “The opportunity to buy a three-bedroom/two bathroom townhouse with an off-street carpark and a north-facing courtyard is fairly rare. This was certainly a good size and really well-located and hence had strong appeal.” Read more.
BUYERS converged on a Hoppers Crossing house at the weekend as first-home buyers compete for affordable properties on Melbourne’s fringes.
“Bidding opened at its reserve price of $660,000,” she said. In the city, a huge four-bedroom apartment at 806/19 Queens Rd, Melbourne, sold for $1.71 million through Dingle Partners’ Robert Eggers. Read more.
Property punters intent on purchasing in inner Melbourne upped the pressure on vendors at weekend auctions.
Would-be buyers were quite relaxed about allowing some houses and apartments within 10 kilometres of the CBD to pass in on a vendor bid, opening the way for a negotiated sale. At the same time, real estate agents warned that spring-time sellers who set “silly reserves” were being left out in the cold.
The professional buying firms, Advantage Property Consulting and Property Mavens, both said sub-$1.5 million homes were tending to sell for prices marginally above reserve.
Melbourne’s robust clearance rate of 76 per cent at the weekend was higher than the 73.1 per cent recorded over the previous weekend. However, it remained below the 79.5 per cent reported on the same weekend last year.
Domain Group chief economist Andrew Wilson said the weekend’s higher clearance rate was recorded despite a big increase in auction numbers. Some 1066 homes were listed to go under the hammer compared to the previous weekend’s 923 properties. Read more.
Don’t focus just on price – Miriam Sandkuhler
Kevin: We hear lots of great advice about what properties you should buy. Is it all about location? The saying about you only make money when you buy property, not when you sell it. What about “Buying property is not all about price?” That’s what we’re going to talk about now with Miriam Sandkuhler who’s a buyer’s agent with Property Mavens.
Good day, Miriam. Nice to talk to you again.
Miriam: Hi, Kevin. Nice to talk to you, too.
Kevin: If buying property is not about price, then what is it about?
Miriam: Price is obviously a factor, but that kind of comes in at the end. That’s one of the last things that we would consider when buying a property. There are a number of things buyers or investors want addressed all the way through.
They want to make sure that they have a plan in place. They need to be clear on whether they’re investing for capital growth or whether they’re investing for cash flow, and what that property needs to do for them. So, they have to have their budget resolved as well at that time when they’re putting that plan together. Read more here.
Dozens of auctions in Melbourne at the weekend saw a drop-off in bidder participation rates but the percentage of properties that sold under the hammer stayed high.
Kay & Burton director Scott Patterson said fewer people were turning out to open for inspections and auctions, which was in part due to the impact of the Victorian government’s new quoting laws for auction properties.
“This time last year we had multiple bidders at most auctions,” Mr Patterson said.
On Saturday, the Domain Group reported a clearance rate of 73.1 per cent. This was down marginally on the 74.8 per cent recorded for the previous weekend and well below the 78.4 per cent posted for the same weekend last year.
But the city’s auction numbers were substantially higher at the weekend with 927 listings compared to the previous weekend’s 844 auctions. Read More
A PAIR of inner city family homes secured multimillion-dollar price tags under the hammer among a flurry of auction action across Melbourne.
Owner occupiers pushed a double-fronted Middle Park house almost $250,000 beyond its reserve, while a four-bedroom Prahran pad sold in front of 100 people.
Melbourne recorded a preliminary clearance rate of 73.8 per cent from 1116 auctions, down from the 77.4 per cent from the same time last year, CoreLogic data shows. This week last year, there were 1060 auctions in Melbourne.
CoreLogic Victorian director Geoff White said this year’s results were slightly down on last year, but were performing in a similar pattern to 2015. “It is still very healthy though given the volume we have,” he said. “There were auctions in 281 suburbs last week, and 127 suburbs had 100 per cent clearance rate. “Which is 45 per cent of the total number of auctions had 100 per cent clearance rate. “It indicates the market is reasonably strong.”
Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler said two parties battled for 81 Erskine St, Middle Park, pushing the sale price $240,000 beyond the reserve on Saturday. She said the auction of the double-fronted period home was slow to start with but it sold for $2.09 million, against a reserve of $1.85 million. Read more here
Properties with spacious backyards and strong appeal to young families prompted the hottest bidding duels at auctions in Melbourne at the weekend.
The Domain Group reported a solid clearance rate of 74.8 per cent from 732 reported auctions on Saturday. This was lower than the previous weekend’s season-high 78.3 per cent result and also lower than the 77.9 per cent reported over the same weekend last year.
Meanwhile, a double-fronted, three-bedroom house at 81 Erskine Street, Middle Park, also did well when offered by Chisholm & Gamon.
The property had a reserve of $1.85 million but sold for $2,090,000. According to the buyers’ advocacy firm Property Mavens, two bidders competed and the strength of demand for scarce Middle Park real estate helped to push both bidders over the $2 million mark and return about $10,000 per square metre to the vendors. Read more here
Word travels fast in Melbourne. And it means suburbs tipped to be “the next best thing” aren’t a secret for very long.
Gentrification, development and hordes of buyers can quickly change the game. Prices soar, auctions become crowded and those searching for an affordable neighbourhood are forced to look elsewhere.
It’s known as the ripple effect in real estate. And it means once-affordable suburbs like Footscray, Preston, Ringwood and Clayton are no longer bridesmaid suburbs.
But a new belt of next-best suburbs are emerging as appealing options for money-conscious home buyers. And it’s not only the west that should be on your radar. Miriam Sandkuhler, chief executive at Property Mavens, said the next wave of bridesmaid suburbs in the north would include the likes of Thomastown and Lalor. “It has very much been attracting the younger generation of 25- to 35-year-old age group and they’re moving into these areas because they can’t afford Reservoir. Read more here
JUST say you won the Lotto or a kindly relative left you a sizeable inheritance and, hooray, you have a deposit for a bedsit in a far-flung corner of Sydney.
It’s time to hit the listings with your chequebook and your shock-and-awe auction tactics.
What could go wrong? Lots, in fact.
TELLING THE AGENT TOO MUCH
The agent may be a great person, charming to boot, and you really like the way they spare you the hard sell. But it’s important to remember their loyalty is not to you. “The selling agent works in the interests of their seller and it is their job to sell their house for the absolute maximum the market is willing to pay,” buyers’ agent at Property Mavens, Miriam Sandkuhler, said. Read more here
Buyers’ advocate Miriam Sandkuhler, from Property Mavens, bid on behalf of a client for a three-bedroom townhouse at 2A Albion Street, South Yarra, but missed out to a downsizer.
She was representing a second-time home buyer looking to upgrade from an apartment to a larger dwelling.
The South Yarra property was quoted by Hocking Stuart at $1.1 million to $1.2 million. However, it sold to the downsizer, who had recently sold a large home in the Stonnington council area, for $1.4 million, well ahead of the $1.21 million reserve. Four bidders competed.
Ms Sandkuhler said the market was being heavily influenced by debt-free downsizers who were selling in expensive suburbs and then buying new properties, either for investment reasons or to live in.
“Downsizers are so cashed up that it is just impossible for some people who are trying to buy up or buy into the market, to get in, particularly if they are hamstrung with tight borrowing limits,” she said. Read more here
BIDDERS battled for 45 minutes before the hammer fell in Fitzroy, as a cashed up downsizer splashed almost $200,000 more than reserve to secure a South Yarra townhouse.
Meanwhile, another downsizer was prepared to do whatever it took to win the keys to their new Wyndham Vale home — which sold $75,000 more than reserve — and a Blackburn South house fetched a cool $1 million.
The auctions were among 907 scheduled across Melbourne this week, according to CoreLogic. Take a look at what happened across the city below. Read more here
Consumer Affairs Victoria primed to spring on underquoters ahead of busy season with new laws
SELLERS should set a reserve when a home is advertised to stamp out rampant underquoting, real estate experts say.
Consumer Affairs Victoria has been cracking down on the practice following new laws to reduce the problem that disappoints so many homebuyers.
But there are concerns the new laws don’t go far enough, with some industry players stating a vendor’s reserve price needs to be declared at the start of a campaign for true transparency.
Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler said the laws were open to interpretation and many buyers were not aware of any shift towards more accurate quoting. “It’s a step in the right direction. However, it has caused confusion,” she said. “The only genuine way to solve the issue is to require a vendor to declare a reserve at the beginning of an auction campaign and then that way the market knows the absolute minimum they have to pay on the day and then anything beyond that is due to market forces.” Read more here
First home buyers dig into deep pockets at Melbourne auctions after stamp duty cuts
First-home buyers increased their spending budgets at many auctions in Melbourne at the weekend, triggering warnings they could be overpaying for lower-end properties.
First-time buyers are benefiting from extra cash from the state government’s new stamp duty concessions and were far more visible in the market on Saturday. But there were also some very competitive auctions in the $1.2 million-plus market segment, especially in the Bayside suburbs. Added to this, several properties with redevelopment potential tossed up exceptionally strong results.
Ivanhoe heritage gem sells amid first-home buyer flood
A HERITAGE gem in Ivanhoe and a Collingwood midfielder’s Northcote home have emerged as winners on a “patchy” auction weekend in Melbourne.
It came as first-home buyers — flushed with extra cash thanks to the State Government’s stamp duty concessions — threw their weight around at the lower end of the market.
There were 683 auctions scheduled in Melbourne this week, with CoreLogic recording a preliminary 73 per cent clearance rate. Read more here
The clever, dirty, effective tricks being used to win auctions
Loudly lying about the apartment block planned next door, aggressively staring down the competition, renting an expensive car and popping anti-anxiety pills: these are just some of the tactics people are using to get an edge in the auction market.
As house prices surge, desperate buyers are increasingly digging into their arsenal of weapons, using dirty tricks, decoy bidders and intimidating body language, experts say.
Adding to the high stakes game, new figures from property value prediction site realAs.com reveals properties are selling at auction for as much as 22 per cent more than the quoted price. Read more here
Percentage of Victorian ‘rentvestors’ drops from recent years: Mortgage Choice research
VICTORIANS are realising the dream of homeownership while continuing to rent where they would prefer to live — but the percentage of “rentvestors” could be in decline.
One in four investors recently surveyed by Mortgage Choice were buying their first property, but the portion of real estate newcomers was smaller than recent years.
More than a third, 38.5 per cent, of investors surveyed in 2015, and 35.2 per cent in 2016, were entering the property game for the first time. Read more here
First-home buyers utilise stamp duty cuts and upper end of Melbourne auction market slows
Generation Y buyers upped the ante to purchase properties at the weekend as new stamp duty concessions for first-home buyers revved up sections of Melbourne’s auction market.
The Domain Group reported a clearance rate of 73.5 per cent from 558 reported auctions on Saturday. “It is a pretty good result that has been inflated by first-home buyers or certainly supported by them,” the Domain Group’s chief economist Andrew Wilson said. Read more here
Melbourne first-home buyers beaten at auction by cashed-up downsizers
A cashed-up downsizer dashed the dreams of three first-home buyers on Saturday, after snapping up a Highett villa she saw just five minutes before auction.
It comes as the Victorian government’s stamp duty savings for first-home buyers kicked in on Saturday July 1, giving buyers across the city up to $15,000 extra to bid with. Stamp duty has been exempted on all properties up to $600,000 under the Andrews government plan, and savings offered for those up to $750,000. Read more here
Prices will rise for Victorian first-home buyers following stamp duty cut, experts say
When first-home buyers head to auctions across Melbourne this weekend, they will have up to $15,000 extra to bid with — pushing prices potentially tens of thousands further out of reach for their peers.
That is the counter-intuitive effect experts say will result from the state government’s leg up to first-home buyers from Saturday.
Eight bidders battle in Lalor as Sunshine West unit soars $68,000 beyond reserve price
WEST
1/41 BARDSLEY ST, SUNSHINE WEST
SOLD: $518,000
FIVE bidders battled for this three-bedroom unit, taking its sale price a huge $68,000 past reserve. An investor won the keys. Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler said there was strong competition due to low stock levels and it was the final chance to buy before stamp duty changes from July. Read more here
Owner makes $700,000 selling Hawthorn cottage after two years
On Saturday, a two-bedroom villa unit at 4/26 Mailey Street, Sunshine West, attracted scant competition and sold for a price below expectations.
Buyers’ advocate Miriam Sandkuhler, from Property Mavens, said the selling agent Barry Plant expected eight bidders to compete. However, only two investors contested the property, with the unit, one of five, selling for $358,000 against a $350,000 reserve.
“That property would normally very much be a target for first-home buyers,” said Ms Sandkuhler, who purchased the villa on behalf of an investor client. “It is well located and at a very good price point whether you are an investor or a first-home buyer. The stamp duty savings coming in on July 1 would be a reason to keep a first-home buyer away because in two weeks’ time they will have a greater benefit.” Read more here
Buyers who expected to see softer real estate prices at the weekend were roundly disappointed as dozens of auction properties shot past their reserves.
Some buyers had high hopes that the market pendulum would swing a little in their favour because of the large volume of auctions being held on the last two weekends in May. Read more here
Armed with a budget of $600,000, Matt Lyon could have bought an apartment in Footscray, among many other suburbs. But the airline pilot did not want “a shoebox in the sky”, so chose Altona.
The bayside suburb has emerged as a pocket of strong price growth, to the point now that buyers priced out of Altona could try Richmond, Brunswick, Doncaster or even Northcote. Buyers’ advocate Miriam Sandkuhler, of Property Mavens, said heavy supply levels of apartments and units in Richmond affected its median and selling prices. Read Miriams comments here
Across town, four bidders competed for an older-style house at 11 Kerferd Street, Coburg. It was quoted by Nelson Alexander at $750,000 to $800,000 and received an opening offer of $780,000 before being declared on the market at $830,000.
The Coburg house was bought on behalf of an investor for $941,000 by buyers’ advocate Miriam Sandkuhler, from Property Mavens. More than 35 bids were placed by the four bidders. The article can be read here
"Licensed buyer’s advocate Miriam Sandkuhler, who led a Change.org campaign for stronger underquoting laws, expects the Victorian changes to help the underquoting issue but does not think the new laws go far enough" The article can be read here
“First home buyers are keen to purchase as soon as possible as was evident in Sunshine today, as further stamp duty breaks from July 1, 2017 will most likely just drive prices up further,” Ms Sandkuhler said. The article can be read here
Home hunters are turning to buyer’s advocates to help them research properties, bid at auction and try to make good investment decisions in a hot market.
But concerns are spreading that some operators have conflicts of interest or charge for information that buyers could access themselves online.
Licensed buyer’s advocates such as Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler warn of operators who call themselves “buyer managers” but are not acting in buyers’ interests. Read the full article here.
Weekend auction update article includes an auction report for 13 Tucker Street, West Footscray which was secured by Property Mavens for Investor clients.
The article can be read here
More than 50 per cent of new apartments bought and re-sold in the five years to 2016 in Melbourne sold at a loss, research shows.
Miriam's comments feature in the Domain article 'the rule of thumb that property prices increase due to land value, not building value, holds true.' Miriam is also quoted “When investors buy off the plan, they are paying a premium which includes the developer’s profit,” Ms Sandkuhler said.
The full article can be read here.
Glen Huntly has been revealed as Victoria’s capital of inaccurate house price quoting by new figures.
Data from property value predictor RealAs reveals homes in the southeastern suburb sold for an average of 20.9 per cent more than their quoted prices at auction in the year to February.
Miriam discusses underquoting and comments "compelling vendors to publish reserve prices at the start of an auction campaign was the simplest way to stifle the practice."
The full article can be read here
Competition for property is red hot in Melbourne with strong clearance rates and droves of frustrated bidders missing out each week.
Good planning can help luckless buyers secure the home they are after, according to industry experts who have offered their tips on how to win at auction.
Miriam's comments and tips can be read here in the full article.
Miriam comments in the auction wrap on realestate.com.au
'EIGHT bidders converged on this two-bedroom villa unit, which sold about $130,000 above reserve, reported Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler. She said about eighty people attended the auction, including four buyers’ agents and the property was on the market at $450,000 after an opening bid of $390,000.'
The full article can be read here
Miriam's interview with Dream.Believe.Create for International Women's Day is up online.
The interview touches on Miriam's background, the actions that have led to Property Mavens being the business it is today and what the future holds.
The interview can be read here.
Miriam discusses the new underquoting laws which are due to come into effect May 1st 2017 with Tom Elliott of 3AW.
Miriam discusses whether the changes which require the advertised price to be either a single figure, or a price range of not more than 10 per cent will make a difference
Recording starts at 1 hour:15 minutes, select the 3AW Drive with Tom Elliott, March 8 podcast. Listen to the recording here
Miriam discusses ways to improve the income of your rental property in a podcast with Kevin Turner on RealEstateTalk.com.au
Miriam can be heard from 27:30 on the podcast which is accessible here a transcript of the podcast is also provided on the page.
Miriam features in Retiree Magazine, sharing her tips on how to re-establish yourself after divorce.
What is often lacking for people once the family home has been sold, and funds have been divided, is guidance re buying their next home and providing security for themselves and their family into the future.
Read the full article here.
Read my comments to The Australian Financial Review about the new lending risks for investors here.
Bankwest's axing of negative gearing benefits for new - and some existing - investor housing loans is being used by Australia and New Zealand Banking Group and National Australia Bank as a marketing opportunity to attract disaffected borrowers looking for alternatives.
Miriam comments to The Australian Financial Review "This sudden change is brutal. If Bankwest reviews approved loans in their pipeline then the implications to investors are substantial and far reaching."
Read Miriam's comments in The Australian Financial Review, Miriam discusses how the term "buyer's agent" has been abused by property spruikers or project marketers "in disguise."
A Property Mavens case study also features in the article. A past client comments "We're just coming up to our yearly review and we're pretty comfortable with our investment."
Read the full article including Miriam's comments and case study here.
Property investment is often touted as the key to building real and lasting wealth, but how easy is it to get started?
In today’s property market, owning even one home can seem like a fantasy for many of us, however with some planning, saving and know-how, property investment to build wealth can be achieved.
Read Miriam's comments about how "One size doesn't fit all" here
Read Miriam's comments featured in Domain regarding compromised properties struggling to sell.
The full article can be read here
Property Mavens chief executive Miriam Sandkuhler said investors should “exercise extreme caution” around inner-Melbourne’s “small, poorly designed” units which lacked scarcity value.
Read the full article including Miriam's recommendations for suburbs to invest in here
Property Mavens CEO Miriam Sandkuhler discusses underquoting and new laws due to come into effect shortly to try and crackdown on the practice.
“If buyers knew from the start of the sales campaign what the vendor reserve was, this would level the playing field, and any price above that would be down to market forces,” Ms Sandkuhler says.
