Welcome to nestegg’s weekly round-up of the bricks-and-mortar stories that we think will be most relevant to you, whether as a first-home buyer, a seasoned investor or anyone in between!  

To compile this list, not only are we taking a look at the week’s most-read stories and the news that matters, but we are also curating it to include stories from our sister platforms that could have an impact on your buying, selling or investment journey, no matter where you find yourself on the property ladder.

1. Boost your super in the comfort of your own home

There’s a new way for retirees to top up their super through the downsizer contribution without having to move out of their home – and it’s got the approval of the ATO. 

2. McGrath boasts $10m, 12-month turnaround: How did it do it?

McGrath highlighted its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) was $3.7 million for the year – a $10.1 million turnaround from underlying EBITDA loss of $6.4 million last financial year.

Calling the turnaround “significant”, the real estate giant posted an 11 per cent lift in revenue to $91.69 million for the year – a 31 per cent rise in sales per agent for the period, achieved despite the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in the last quarter.

3. 5 regions tipped to rise

Low vacancy rates and inventory can still lead to portfolio growth in a COVID-19 world, according to Arjun Paliwal.

“To the surprise of many, many suburbs across Australia are actually going through high levels of rental and price competition with low inventory levels and below 1.5 per cent vacancy rates.”

4. Central Coast hotspots uncovered

According to Raine & Horne, there has been considerable attention being drawn to NSW’s Central Coast in recent times.

It’s flagged four areas as attracting the most attention. 

5. Property remains resilient despite COVID pandemic

CoreLogic’s quarterly property update has revealed that Australia’s dwelling market fell by just 0.8 per cent over the June quarter, despite some economists saying the $7 trillion asset class could fall by as much as 20 per cent.

The capital cities saw a 1.1 per cent reduction in house prices while, regionally, properties grew by 0.3 per cent during the quarter.

6. Why you should beware bargain property buys

A mortgage broker has cautioned against pressing ahead in pursuit of bargain property finds as an investor.

7. Lender closes branches in all but one state

Tasmania-based lender MyState Bank has confirmed that it is closing its four Central Queensland branches and two branches in Tasmania following a steep decline in in-person transactions and strong performance in the digital and broker channels.

In announcing its FY20 full-year results, MyState Bank revealed that two-thirds of its customers are now using internet banking.

8. Borrowers turn to government stimulus to pay mortgage

An ABS survey has found a growing proportion of Australians using their personal government stimulus payments (such as JobKeeper) to pay their bills and mortgages.

While around 14 per cent of all people receiving payments were using it to pay their mortgage/rent, a growing proportion of people said that this was the “main” use of their payment.