Property

A new report from AMP shows homeownership rates in Australia steadily declining from their peak in 1966, as longer lifespans and greater individual freedoms contribute to a changing definition of what wealthy means for Australians.

The prudential regulator will more closely examine the valuation methodologies super funds deploy to value private assets to address an emerging gap between the performance of listed and unlisted property.

New data shows Australian house prices have dropped 8.4 per cent since their peak in May 2022, the largest decrease on record. While further RBA rate hikes could deepen the downturn, experts say a crash in 2023 is not inevitable.

While the greater housing market is already reflecting the pain of constricting economic conditions, a new property fund partnership between Trilogy Funds and Michael Birch’s Murray Darling Capital shows the potential of ‘rent roll’ portfolios of rental property management agreements to provide exposure to the supersized Australian property sector even as the outlook darkens.

Financial planners are advising Australians to diversify out of property and put more money into superannuation, as statistics show falling asset values contributing to a nearly $500 billion decline in household wealth for the June quarter.

While data is a big part of Michael Birch’s new property fund play, he says the real key to running a rent roll investment is maintaining relationships.

Australians should be putting more money into superannuation and diversifying out of property, some say, even as super performance remains a question mark.

The respected corporate adviser and manager is laying it all on the line after “rolling the sleeves up” on multi-faceted research for his new property-based fund.

The new fund, a tie-up between Murray Darling Capital and Trilogy Funds, is buying up rent rolls across the country and has its sights set on a 10 per cent annual return.

Higher interest rates could force some householders to default on home loan repayments, with new data showing the number of distressed home sales is on the rise.