Tracey Cook

SARACEN Properties has begun scouting for tenant pre-commitment for a new A-grade eight-level office building at 161 St Georges Terrace.

The Shire of Augusta-Margaret River council is keeping a tight rein on development projects in the region as increasing numbers of interested parties eye the prize. Tracey Cook reports.

AN unprecedented increase in demand for premium holiday home accommodation in the Margaret River region is coming from an unexpected source – American and British expatriates stationed in Singapore and Hong Kong.

THE accompanying graphic is an approximate list and location of some of the major projects planned or under construction in the cape to cape region.

PROMINENT business identity Ross Smith has taken a step back from the corporate world and moved ‘down south' in search of a fresh start.

THE rapid pace of technological change has presented building managers and property developers with a new dilemma – what technology infrastructure should they implement?

Tracey Cook takes a look at the industrial property market as part of the real estate series.

NEWLY appointed Perth Convention Exhibition Centre chief executive Paul D'Arcy hopes a whole-of-city approach will help place Perth among the list of top international convention destinations.

A RECENT court ruling in New South Wales may have an effect on land valuations in built-up Perth suburbs such as Cottesloe and Mosman Park.

THE new home construction industry remains buoyant and hopes are high for strong activity levels in 2003.

In this week's look at the real estate industry Tracey Cook ponders the question that has the commercial office market guessing.

COMMERCIAL agent Knight Frank will be asked by the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia to explain its controversial actions relating to a call for expressions of interest to house tenant client BHP-Billiton's operations.

INCREASING numbers of tenants are calling on professional services to help them negotiate a better commercial lease.

THE West Australian Newspapers-owned Mandurah Telegraph will publish for the last time on Wednesday March 26 as part of plans to decentralise sub-editing functions and cut costs.

THE recent approval for the demolition of the historic Court Hotel and two nearby double-storey brick and iron commercial buildings by the City of Perth has sparked complaints that council is not doing enough to protect its heritage buildings.

SPURRED on by the poor performance of the stock market, low interest rates and government incentives, investors have been spending up big on property.

TIRED of waiting for a determination on its application for a $35 million shopping centre redevelopment, Kelmscott Central Development Trust has lodged an appeal with the Town Planning Appeal Tribunal.

A PROPOSED $25 million dollar international hotel resort development north of Margaret River will be one step closer to receiving the green light if the local council agrees to put the development application out for public comment.

MOST of Perth's top real estate agents held their ground in the WA Business News Book of Lists 2003, with little change recorded among the top 20 agents from the previous year.

THE heat is on for Perth CBD building owners to hold on to their tenants as a range of city firms look to relocate.

PROPERTY owners and tenants are grappling with the costs of implementing increased security amid current global tensions and local crime patterns.

AUSTRALIA'S architectural firms are earning about 30 per cent of their annual turnover in export dollars, according to a national survey conducted by the Royal Australian Institute of Architects.

‘FAILURE is not an option' sounds like a fairly apt description of the way Kym Illman approached his entry into business several years ago.

THE creation of a vibrant village atmosphere is the impetus behind the waterfront piazza-style development for Port Bouvard's Northport precinct approved last year.

FROM a simple sprout production set-up in a Bullsbrook backyard, Leanne Wesche has expanded her home-based business into a multi-million dollar export company.

Home-based businesses account for 66 per cent of all small business operations in Australia, fast outgrowing its cottage industry image, as Tracey Cook reports.

THE Village Northbridge community development hub may go ahead despite the City of Perth's initial opposition to the project.

WITH three direct flights each week to Broome from the eastern States soon to be launched, the north-west tourist haven is becoming an alluring honey pot for business – fast tracking the town's path to becoming the regional centre of the Kimberley.

DELAYS in progress on the proposed $100 million expansion of the Midland Gate Shopping Centre appear to be nearing an end with new owners, Gandel Retail Management, making moves tow

THREE years after its inception the Midland Redevelopment Authority will release its first parcels of land.

AFTER months of negotiations with the East Perth Redevelopment Authority, Australand will finally enter the construction phase on its controversial $9.5 million development opposite the Post Office Nightclub in May.

COSTING is a delicate subject in a marketplace as fiercely competitive as the Perth architectural sector.