Latest Headlines

HOME construction is becoming an increasingly attractive option as the median house price pushes through the $200,000 mark, with growing numbers of Perth investors sinking their money into house and land packages.

TWO home-grown tech companies have become leading lights in their respective fields and, although their technologies are strikingly different, there are some business similarities.

A REPORT by FPD Savills has estimated a 14 per cent level of overall vacancy in the CBD by the start of 2004.

Unlike those who have disappeared, they have anticipated future trends and changed their business accordingly. Over the past 15 years at Touchstone DDI they have successfully moved from typesetting to independent pre-press to printing.

MORTGAGE broker, Mortgage Choice has recorded a growth of 34 per cent in Western Australian home loan approvals for the March quarter 2003, compared with the same period in 2002.

CONFRONTED with a daily bombardment of marketing e-mails, telemarketing phone calls and direct mailing, consumers are increasingly rejecting the methods used by the marketing industry to collect personal information.

A RECENT economic impact report has highlighted the State’s billion-dollar land development industry as a major employment generator and contributor to the economy.

CONTINUED strong growth is forecast for the Greater Bunbury region during the next decade.

In the final part of a series on the real estate industry, Tracey Cook examines the work of property valuers.

INDIANA Tea House has had its fair share of celebrity visitors in recent weeks, with several talented Australians and international visitors dropping in for a bite to eat.

With the crusher cleaned, David Pike looks forward to the quiet of Easter and some of the delights April has in store for lovers of the grape.

In the fifth of a six-part series on mergers and acquisitions, Mark Beyer looks at the acquisition of Marlows.

The pundits are hedging their bets in the upcoming race for lord mayor, with some well-qualified challengers lining up to take on the incumbent Dr Peter Nattrass. WA Business News’ reporters look at the candidates and their agendas.

THE new corporate governance guidelines issued recently by the Australian Stock Exchange could create a divide between large and small companies, local experts have warned.

Is the highly sought after position of lord mayor really worth winning? Joe Poprzeczny assesses its limited powers and offers recommendations on how to improve the role.

POSTAL voting is expected to prompt greater than usual interest in polling from Perth businesses in the City of Perth ballot next month, a marked change from recent elections.

THERE are 126 outcomes possible from a choice of four City of Perth councillors from nine nominees. And each would make for an interesting combination.

AN often forgotten segment of the City of Perth’s history and culture could play a major role in the lord mayoral election. The Greek and Italian communities, while not as visible as they once were, are said to hold considerable sway at the ballot box.

A CORPORATE fracas is often the public version of an ugly divorce.

THE issue of lobbying resurfaced in the media last week. WA’s current lobbying activities were first highlighted early this year and Premier Geoff Gallop has had a tortuous time explaining his Government’s handling of it.

In the first of a five-part series on web development, Julie-anne Sprague talks to some of the Perth industry’s best-known names.

COMMUNITY television station Channel 31 has been given some breathing space after creditors accepted a deed of company arrangement that will leave most with just 20 cents in the dollar.

TWO years after it was launched VCubed Leisure Management and Marketing, a company set up to create innovative business models for various sectors, is to release its first business model – aimed at the tourism sector – in about four weeks.

They may not be popular in WA but auctions offer benefits to both vendors and buyers, as Tracey Cook reports.

THE rapid pace of technological change has presented building managers and property developers with a new dilemma – what technology infrastructure should they implement?

The Shire of Augusta-Margaret River council is keeping a tight rein on development projects in the region as increasing numbers of interested parties eye the prize. Tracey Cook reports.

THERE’S no signage, no garden, and nothing from the busy Great Eastern Highway streetscape that screams ‘new restaurant’,

THE consequences of popularity are becoming all-too apparent to the burghers of the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River, who must balance the benefits of investment in the region with community concerns about environmental impact of over-development.

While the red berries are in no hurry to ripen, David Pike takes the opportunity to take into account a new offering.

CHAMBER of Commerce and Industry chief executive Lyndon Rowe is among the high-profile development proponents to have recently received a rebuff from the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River.

The debt collection industry has witnessed enormous change over the past few years. Mark Beyer looks at how services have evolved. FOUR years ago, the debt collection industry in Perth was dominated by locally owned and locally run firms.

PROMINENT business identity Ross Smith has taken a step back from the corporate world and moved ‘down south’ in search of a fresh start.