Weekend Reads — Must see articles from the last week

6 min readJul 8, 2016

There are more interesting articles, commentaries and analyst reports on the Web every week than anyone could read in a month.

Each Saturday morning I like to share some of the ones I’ve read during the week.

The weekend will be over before you know it, so enjoy some weekend reading…and please forward to your friends by clicking the social link buttons.

Clearance Rate Rises as Election Brings Down Auction Numbers

The July 2nd election saw no winners — accept for auction numbers that is.

Right across the capital cities, especially in the Sydney market, clearance rates rose high compared to previous weekends, as reported in an article for Your Investment Property Magazine.

The federal election may have resulted in a fall in auction volumes last week, but competition for the limited stock available was strong.

Figures from CoreLogic show just 811 auctions were held across Australia’s capital cities last week, with the preliminary clearance rate currently at 70.7%.
The previous week saw 2,218 auctions held across the capital cities; however the national clearance rate was recorded at 66.4%.
For last week at least, Sydney took the crown as the nation’s leading auction market.
The New South Wales capital was the busiest in the nation, with 341 auctions held across the city, with its preliminary clearance rate of 80.4% the highest recorded so far.
The result continues Sydney’s solid run through winter, with it averaging a clearance rate of 73.4% throughout June.

Last week, North Sydney and Hornsby was the best performing Sydney sub-region with a clearance rate of 86.3%.
In Melbourne, 268 auctions were held, which was a significant drop on the 1,029 held the week prior.
Melbourne’s preliminary clearance rate currently sits at 71.6%, which is an improvement on the previous week’s 67.3%.
The Inner South was Melbourne’s best performing sub-region recording a preliminary clearance rate of 100%, while the South East sub-region also performed strongly at 86.4%.

Find the full article here

The ‘halo effect’ and its possible impact + A new investor tool

Michael Yardney points out that if you avoid properties that are up for sale at auction, you’re going to miss out on a lot of good buying opportunities as many of the best properties are offered for sale by auction, particularly in Melbourne and Sydney so he has some tips on bidding. [adrotate group=”8"]

Peter Gionoli from Investor Assist explains the financial implications of the wrong halo effect.

Dr Andy Krause explains how this can be a brilliant tool for investors and we tell you how you can get your hands on the report.

Patrick Bright, a buyer’s agent , looks at the easiest way to keep a renovation on track is to ensure all the tradespeople do their work in the right sequence.

Shannon Davis discusses the news that will have major ramifications for investors and property manages and could see some tenants getting into some legal difficulties.

Mark Mendel CEO of iBuyNew explains that if banks are prepared to fund a development for construction, then they should take the same stance on providing finance when it comes to the buyers of those apartments.

If you don’t already subscribe to this excellent weekly internet based radio show do so now by clicking here.

Developers winning the battle with the NIMBYs?

The battle between developers and residents seems to have come down to one term — NIMBY.

A blog by Pete Wargent unravels this ongoing debate and explain the meaning behind the term.

NIMBYism!
I had a yarn about this very thing in today’s Sydney Morning Herald, one of the day’s top news stories:

NIMBYism — what is it, and what causes it?
NIMBYism refers to a situation where residents oppose new development because it is too near to them, or due to a perceived negative impact of the local area.
It needn’t relate only to residential development, and it can also be targeted against commercial or industrial developments, or to new roads or rail.

NIMBYism often gets the blame for a lack of responsive dwelling supply.
And there’s little doubt that NIMBYism still exists is Sydney, particularly in the leafy garden suburbs, such as on the lower north shore.
It definitely hasn’t gone away, and it probably never will.
Perhaps, though, there is a slightly more widespread acceptance of multi-unit developments today, especially given their prevalence through this market cycle.

Read the full article here

Holiday homes dubbed as ‘worst possible way to invest’

Most vision board around the world have a few things in common — a mansion in a prestigious area, a luxury car, beautiful family and a holiday home by the beach.

But what if the ‘dream’ is actually a failed investment that may turn into a nightmare?

When it comes to holiday homes that is exactly what experts are saying, as seen in this article by Your Mortgage Magazine.

Over half a million Australians are considered lucky enough to own a holiday home along the coastline, but real estate experts are not happy about it.

“People choose holiday homes purely on emotion,” said buyer’s agent Chris Gray. “They’re not buying in the highest capital growth area, not looking at tenancy, not looking at what industry is supporting the local area. They’re buying based on where they want to hang out on the weekend and it’s the worst possible way to invest.”
However, Ray White sales manager Warwick Davis believes that a holiday home can be a sound investment.
“It’s a tax-deductible expense, provided you rent it out for a portion of the year,” he said. “Many of our clients either rent out their holiday homes for most of the year and spend Christmas here themselves, or they rent it out during the high season and collect a chunk of rent then.”

Click here for the full article

Science says parents of successful kids have these 10 things in common

What factors go into raising successful children? teaching them wright from wrong, encouraging them to do well in school, supporting their dreams etc.

While most of these seem like common knowledge, there is now a science behind successful parenting.

According to an article in the Business Insider a study concluded 10 factors that parents of successful kids have in common.

Good parents want their kids to stay out of trouble, do well in school, and go on to do awesome things as adults.
And while there isn’t a set recipe for raising successful children, psychology research has pointed to a handful of factors that predict success.
Unsurprisingly, much of it comes down to the parents.
Here’s what parents of successful kids have in common: