Property

Having recently taken on the role of president of the Property Council, Luke Saraceni has clear plans for what he wants to achieve for the industry during his tenure.

Renewed interest in the Perth office market among interstate investors was further confirmed last week with sales of CBD office assets worth nearly $200 million.

Hard work and a focus on objectives may seem like a simple formula for success but it’s one that has served Luke Saraceni well.

Goods and Services tax on property will increase if a bill introduced to Federal Parliament becomes law.

Perth-based Kebbel Investment Bank has kept a remarkably low profile in the four years since its inception, raising more than $700 million and having been involved in property projects totalling between $2 billion and $3 billion.

Perth’s century old Bayswater Hotel has recently undergone a $3.5 million refurbishment.

An agreement signed between the State Government and the Rubibi community in October last year has allowed for the residential development of 33 hectares of prime land near Cable

The outcome of Native Title negotiations in coming months will be critical for the property sector in Broome amid mounting development and cost pressures.

Work will commence within a few months at St Andrews, a proposed $20 billion new city about 50 kilometres north of Perth at Yanchep-Two Rocks.

With more than $100 million of tourist developments and upgrades scheduled, a substantial increase in direct flights from several airlines and tourism operators anticipating a record year, things are looking good for Broome’s tourism sector.

A new City of Stirling report has criticised the findings of last September’s State Government survey which recommended a height cap in Scarborough.

Western Australia’s relatively immature real estate market, and its more efficient contracting system, were two convincing reasons to keep the current sales system, according to Real Estate Institute of Western Australia (REIWA) president Greg Rossen.

The Town of Cambridge has named Multiplex as the preferred tenderer on the multi-million dollar Perry Lakes redevelopment.

Construction industry advocates say a shortage of apprentices is the major issue they will be taking up with the newly elected Gallop Government.

Chamber of Commerce and Industry chief executive John Langoulant has forecast a steadying of Western Australia’s economy and the property market as industry catches up on a backlog of work.

New South Wales Premier Bob Carr has acknowledged the broadening of land tax and the introduction of a vendor tax last year are hurting the Labor Party in NSW.

Confidence is growing among developers with a view to new office construction as the outlook for Perth’s office market moves into positive territory for the first time in several years.

The planning policies of the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River are to be tested in the State Administrative Tribunal (SAT).

When Geoff Wood established an office interiors company called Design Sales in 1965 it was only the second operation of its kind in Perth.

Australian Securities and Investments Commission chairman Jeff Lucy last week called for nationally consistent real estate legislation and regulation of the property industry in an appearance before the Senate Economics Legislation Committee.

The University of Notre Dame has approved a graduate certificate course in construction and building law to start in the winter semester of this year.

After four years of nearly full-time volunteer work for a not-for-profit organisation, and driven by the desire to be in a position to contribute to aid and education on an intern

City planners debating the issues of growth, sustainability, community and environment in Perth have vast resources of information available to them via the experiences of other cities throughout the world.

Investors in property shouldn’t expect returns of recent years to continue unchecked, according to Gavin Hegney, despite expectations the market in Western Australia will be among the nation’s top performers throughout 2005.

Property Council vacancy figures for the CBD office market show Perth’s vacancy rate has dropped to 13.4 per cent with 17,000 square metres of space newly leased in the six months to January 2005.

The Master Builders Association has launched its first business venture in Western Australia.

Amendments made last year to LandCorp’s governing legislation enabling the agency to engage with the private sector has been the catalyst for several joint ventures with partners such as Mirvac Fini, BGC, and Doric.

Tax has emerged as the number one priority for Western Australia’s three main property industry groups ahead of the looming State election.

Western Australian owned and operated Seashells Hospitality Group is currently undergoing expansions on three of its four tourism sites.

The much-debated sinking of the rail line that divides the CBD and Northbridge is predicted to send property prices upwards and inject much-needed life into the neglected precinct.