Hello,

First, let me extend a warm welcome to all our new readers, and of course, welcome back to our regular subscribers.

If you haven’t visited the Investment House web site recently, you may be interested in the total rebuild we’ve undertaken.  The key was to simplify ten years of accumulation into a clear story.  Have a look at www.investmenthouse.com.au - I welcome any feedback.

The Brisbane market continued to show mixed signals this month as we all struggled to come to terms with five consecutive short weeks.  Very little new stock came onto the market and it appeared some buyers chose to take advantage of the long weekends by putting their house hunting on a temporary hold.  In contrast to that, auction activity was up 30% on February and March volumes and those purchasers who did stay in buying mode showed good confidence maintaining the auction clearance rate at 48%.

In this issue you’ll see:

• An overview of the changed tax rates coming into effect July 1st – facts and figures for reference, plus some thoughts on how it may impact your tax variation (PAYG Withholding Variation).
• Highlights from a new report which uncovers a significant shift in the way we now buy property.  The report was prepared by our in-house real estate arm - In-House Realty to help sellers recognize and understand the current selling environment.   Aside of exploring the changes, it highlights the new skills you should demand of an agent if you’re looking to sell a property.
• Our regular “site of the month” article details a house and land project in the quality suburb of Graceville.  In our last newsletter I mentioned my intention to build up my personal portfolio in preparation for the next wave of capital growth – and this site is my first acquisition as part of that new program.  The plan is to have five in place before the expected boom in 2009.

Of course, if you have any specific questions regarding any of the articles, please feel free to contact our team on (+61 7) 3369 0111. And feel free to forward our newsletter to anyone you feel may find it of interest - our best promotion has always been word of mouth.

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Best regards,

Colin Ferguson

In this issue

Interest Rates Rise… then Tax Cuts for All

Understanding How to Use the Internet to Market Property

Site of the month

The Reserve Bank set a cat among the pigeons by increasing interest rates by .25%.  Most economic forecasters had expected the rate to remain steady until later in the year.  Some commentators have inferred the RBA elected... >>more

The site of the month for April is a house and land deal in the suburb of Graceville, approximately 6km south-west of the Brisbane CBD.

Over the past 6 months, during what has been a relatively slow period (in both turnover and growth) for inner-ring Brisbane property, the river pocket suburbs of Graceville, Sherwood, and Chelmer... >>more