The Australian federal election dust settled. According to the salary increase regulations for the new fiscal year, the deposits in the bank accounts of politicians after returning to Canberra will continue to increase. According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, the Remuneration Tribunal has issued a 2% salary increase to all government employees and senators. It…
Melbourne Mayor Sally Capp came up with a radical idea that made public transport in Melbourne free, but was opposed by the state government. Although the Melbourne City Council has no right to introduce such a policy, the Mayor of Capp raised this idea when discussing the possibility of expanding the CBD free tram area.…
Planning is to recognize the role of urban design, architectural design, heritage, energy and resources Provide the efficiency of livable and sustainable cities, towns and communities. Planning should ensure that all land use and development respond appropriately to its surroundings Landscapes and characters, important architectural forms and cultural backgrounds. Planning should protect places and sites…
Former Labor leader Bill Shorten has been given the portfolios of the National Disability Insurance Scheme and Government Services in Labor’s new-look shadow ministry. Mr Shorten’s replacement, Anthony Albanese, unveiled the frontbench shadow positions on Sunday afternoon. “[Mr Shorten] of course made such an impact on Australians with his work on the National Disability Insurance…
Mortgage repayments are set to become cheaper for many Australian borrowers, as lenders rush to cut their rates ahead of next Tuesday’s widely anticipated Reserve Bank decision. After keeping rates on hold for nearly three years, on Tuesday the Reserve Bank will almost certainly cut the official cash rate to a record low of 1.25 per cent.…
Your age and time in the market will have a marked bearing on how you perceive mortgage interest rates. If you had a mortgage in 1990, during the “recession that Australia had to have”, you might tremble as you recall interest rates reaching 18 per cent, whereas newcomers might wonder what all the fuss is about…
The way Australian homes are built could be changed forever, with new research into a type of engineered timber showing it could cement its place as an environmentally friendly alternative to concrete. Australian cross-laminated timber, or CLT, can replace concrete in many situations, including being used as a foundation for a house. Studies have already been…
Labor leader-elect Anthony Albanese will this week become the official Opposition Leader after an uncontested leadership ballot. Key points: Anthony Albanese was the only person to nominate to become Labor leader The caucus will meet in Canberra later this week to elect a new deputy Mr Albanese will now select a frontbench to lead Labor…
The Sydney and Melbourne property markets are showing early signs of ending their steep slides, with a strong bounce in auction clearance rates on the first Saturday after the federal election. Preliminary figures from CoreLogic show that 69.9 per cent of homes that went under the hammer in Sydney found a buyer, while 62.9 per…
Just days following Labor’s shock election loss, some of Sydney’s leading real estate agents are already reporting an uptick in inquiry from investors relieved that proposed changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax are off the table. Tom Tuxworth, director of NSW metropolitan and regional sales at Savills, said that he had been talking…