AB25052022NADSTAN.JPG Northland Regional Council says an illegal rubbish fire on June 3, 2020, polluted the air and that former Whangārei mayor Stan Semenoff is to blame. Photo / NZME Whangārei’s former mayor Stan…
Tag Archives: oceania
Auckland gang shootings: Stray bullet hits neighbour's bedroom after gang drive-by shooting
The victim of a gang-related drive-by shooting could be heard screaming “f***, my kids are here” as his Flat Bush house was sprayed with bullets last night. An innocent resident directly opposite the targeted house on Glen Osborne…
What Aussie house prices will do under the new government
A new federal government under Anthony Albanese will only have minor impact on Australia's housing market compared to soaring interest rates and low supply, experts have warned.
Albanese and the Labor Party won the 2022 Federal Election by campaigning on a ticket of addressing the rising cost of living, which included a housing policy that proposed the federal government sharing up to 40 per cent of a property's purchase price with first homebuyers.
Despite this, the policy is capped at a maximum of 10,000 places – a figure that experts say is not high enough to have a material impact on the market.
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"Home ownership is likely to be in focus, but the ALP's proposed Shared Equity Scheme is set to be capped at 10,000 places per annum, so unless that is changed or there are widespread first homeowner grants rolled out across the country that alone won't be a market mover," said BuyersBuyers founder Pete Wargent.
"Housing market demand is more likely to be driven by employment and wage growth. Employment and job vacancies are both at record highs, so there's a genuine prospect that the unemployment rate can fall towards 3 per cent over the year ahead".
"The challenge will be whether that can be sustained as interest rates rise, but overall the labour market fundamentals are presently in a very strong shape."
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Tim Lawless, Research Director at property data firm CoreLogic, says while the ALP's "help to buy" scheme will give some first timers a leg up into the market, it only addresses the symptom of housing affordability.
"Being able to share up to 40 per cent of the purchase price with the government, along with only a small deposit and opportunity to save on lenders mortgage insurance, helps to overcome several of the hurdles of home ownership," he said.
"Keeping in mind buyers will still have to fund their transactional costs, including stamp duties, legal costs and bank fees."
Wargent said a Labor government will still have to deal with the fundamental supply and demand variables of the Australian property market.
"There is a looming challenge around housing supply. Nationally, rental vacancy rates have plummeted to around 1 per cent as employment has surged to a record high," he said.
"Rental vacancy rates in many parts of the country are at levels associated with a rental crisis. Indeed, asking rents for houses have jumped 10 to 20 per cent over the past year, and more in some regional locations.
"It's not yet clear how the new government will plan to tackle this from a policy perspective. A vacancy tax may be effective but could be considered a radical move for a newly formed government."
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Chief Economist at AMP Capital Shane Oliver said while the government's proposed policies will help, the benefit on the market as a whole will only be "marginal".
"The construction of 30,000 social homes combined with the National Housing Supply and Affordability Council if appropriately focused on boosting supply have the potential to help improve housing affordability," he said.
"It's marginal though.
"The main impact on home prices will likely from come rising interest rates (which would have occurred whoever won the election) which we see driving prices down by 10-15 per cent over the next 18 months and may prove to be a headwind for prices thereafter."
The information provided on this website is general in nature only and does not constitute personal financial advice. The information has been prepared without taking into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs. Before acting on any information on this website you should consider the appropriateness of the information having regard to your objectives, financial situation and needs.
Monkeypox outbreak: Some older Kiwi globetrotters may already be immune
A local monkeypox case is likely but a big outbreak is not, and some older people might already have immunity, a public health expert says.Monkeypox has been spreading in North America, Europe and Australia.”It’s quite likely…
Hundreds of fishing vessels to be fitted with cameras from August
Camera installation on up to 300 commercial fishing vessels will commence in August. The rollout, costing $68 million over four years, aimed at providing independent, accurate information about fishing activity and better evidence…
Man left wounded, pet killed during horrific dog attack
A man who was left with grisly bite wounds and saw his pet cavoodle killed during a horrific dog attack has called on the owner of the offending pit bulls to turn himself in.
Patrick Crisostomo, from Westmeadows in Melbourne's north, was walking his dog along the Moonee Ponds Creek Trail in Jacana last Thursday when he was approached by two off-leash pit bulls at around 5.45pm.
The two dogs attacked Crisostomo and his dog, Kevy, a 15-year-old cavoodle, who was killed in the attack.
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Crisostomo suffered multiple bite wounds as he used his body to shelter Kevy from the attack.
He spent the night at the Royal Melbourne Hospital and needed stitches.
"For me, the most painful thing is the mental anguish," he said.
The two attacking dogs are described as being stocky with a medium build. One is brown, the other is white.
Police say the owner of the attacking dogs is believed to be Middle Eastern in appearance, with a medium build, aged in his late 30s, with short dark hair.
He was wearing a brown jacket at the time.
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Crisostomo said the owner of the two dogs attempted to hit the animals with a stick to stop the vicious attack.
He urged the owner to come forward.
"I just want justice because this guy walked away and he knew someone was hurt badly and knew my dog was dead. This could happen to anyone," Crisostomo said.
"Don't make it any worse for yourself, turn yourself in and we know you will be found.
"We will do anything we can to seek justice, we just want closure for our family."
Police are appealing for any witnesses around the Moonee Ponds Creek Trail area around the same time to come forward, and for any information that may assist in identifying the owner and his two dogs.
Kiwi cameraman Joseph Day's farewell tomorrow as coroner investigation starts
Family and friends of Joseph Day will gather tomorrow to celebrate the Kiwi cameraman’s life after he died in the United Kingdom about a month ago. The 31-year-old, a former TVNZ employee, had been living in Bristol when he vanished…
Jac Howells repeatedly rammed a ute during domestic row
A man who used his car as a weapon has met his victims at a restorative justice session, and offered to pay the vet bills for the pet dog that was injured.Jac Rhys Howells, a 24-year-old shearer from Rangiora, also offered to pay…
Christopher Luxon demands answers after 'horrific' night of gun crime in Auckland
National leader Christopher Luxon said the Government needs to “take stock” of New Zealand’s gun problem after an “horrific” wave of gang-related shootings in Auckland overnight.”Clearly we have a big challenge with illegal guns…
Jetstar unveils new-look Airbus fleet with fuel-saving paint
Jetstar has unveiled what its new fleet of Airbus aircraft will look like in the sky, complete with special paint that improves aircraft fuel economy.
The budget airline marked its 18th birthday in the Australian market today by revealing its new livery for what will be a fleet of 38 Airbus A321LR NEO aircraft servicing Australia's most popular domestic routes.
Jetstar's new-look aircraft is not just a branding exercise – the airline says the specially-formulated paint will indirectly help the environment and cut down on fuel costs.
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The livery uses a two-coat system consisting of a base coat and a clear coat, which in simple terms reduces the weight of the paint by up to 30 per cent.
This weight saving is anticipated to save up to 108 tonnes of fuel every year across the whole fleet and a saving of nearly 350 tonnes of CO2 emissions.
Jetstar Group chief executive officer Gareth Evans said the new aircraft won't just benefit the business but the customer too, by providing up to 50 per cent quieter engines and overhead bins with 40 per cent more storage space.
"These modern aircraft are world-class in terms of performance, comfort and sustainability, ensuring our customers will enjoy a new range of benefits on board," Evans said.
"In addition to flying on our most popular domestic routes, the long-range NEOs open up new international opportunities, providing us with an opportunity to expand our international network and deliver on our promise to offer more low fares to more destinations."
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The new Airbus aircraft also boast wider seats than the existing Jetstar fleet, and include flip-down smartphone and tablet cradles, with every seat offering USB power access.
The airline is expecting to take delivery of eight A321LR aircraft between August 2022 and May 2023, with a full suite of 18 aircraft here in Australia by mid-2024.
A further 20 aircraft of the same variety will then arrive sometime between 2024 and 2029.