Daily Buzz: Saturday, 2 December

PropertyBuzz, your daily dose of property news.

New House Starts Set to Plunge to a 10-Year Low in 2024, The Unsettling Surge of Scam Tradies in New South Wales, and auctions heat up alongside the weather.

Welcome to Property Buzz! I’m Grace Ormsby. Today is Saturday, the 2^nd of December.

I hope your weekend is off to a better start than new house starts – which are Set to Plunge to a 10-Year Low in 2024
– The Bureau of Statistics has reported a 1.2 per cent increase in new home approvals for October, but this is 14 per cent lower than the same period last year.
– Detached house approvals are down 13 per cent, while multi-unit approvals did increase, but are still 19 per cent lower than the long-run monthly average.
– The construction sector is concerned about the industry’s health in the coming year, especially as every Australian state and territory plans to start building 1.2 million new dwellings over the next five years.

For those who are looking at renos and home improvements over the next little while
– New South Wales Fair Trading has warned homeowners about con artists posing as tradespeople, offering home maintenance services and disappearing after payment.
– The scammers use door knocking, letterbox drops, and online advertisements to reach potential victims. One victim lost more than five-grand after responding to a pamphlet advertisement for roof work.
– Warning signs of a scam include door knocking with a special deal, asking for money upfront, pressuring the homeowner, and offering to drive them to the bank for money.
– Homeowners are advised to ask for a tradesperson’s licence and check their ABN before signing a contract or putting down any money.

And for anyone hunting for a home this weekend, over three-thousand homes are predicted to be auctioned this week – the second busiest week of the year.

CoreLogic said Melbourne leads as the busiest market with nearly 1,400 properties expected to go under the hammer.

– Sydney is also showing strong, with more than 1,100 homes up for grabs.

– The research group is expecting strong auction figures leading into the early summer, but anticipates a slow down during the festive season.

That’s all for today. Enjoy your weekends. We’ll see you again next week for Property Buzz.

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