Property

Rents are set to rise in Perth as competition between tenants hots up, and the tightening could help trigger a recovery in the broader residential market, REIWA president Alan Bourke says.

Out-of-pocket investors will recover an additional $67.5 million from Westpoint Group, after the Australian Securities and Investments Commission agreed to settle litigation against Westpoint's directors and accounting firm KPMG.

Perth-based residential developer Cedar Woods has announced a profit guidance of $27 million for financial year 2011, an increase of 12.5 per cent on the previous year.

Aspen Group major shareholder Entrust Funds Management has confirmed it has requested a meeting of shareholders to discuss replacing most of the current board, including managing director Gavin Hawkins.

PROJECTS in the Perth CBD and Midland worth a collective $155 million have brought the total value of developments on the books of listed property group Diploma Construction to $560 million.

LONG-TIME Perth home builder Robert Shaw doesn't want to see another crisis in home affordability as the state heads towards another widely tipped property upturn in the next few years.

Demand for inner-city, high-density apartment living in Perth is tipped to jump on the back of a surge in mining investment, increased migration to the state and more younger buyers.

A JOINT venture between two Western Australian companies has bought two office buildings in Richmond, Melbourne, in recent months, paying about $30 million for the two.

THE Peet Yanchep Land syndicate has settled the $62 million purchase of its development site after Peet Limited bought the majority of syndicate shares.

WESTERN Australia's commercial construction sector is reaping the benefits of the state government's commitment to the upgrade of the state's medical infrastructure and facilities.

Long-standing commercial and industrial construction company Sizer Builders was placed into the hands of receivers and voluntary administrators last month after trading unprofitably.

Receivers for troubled office development Raine Square say project financiers gave the developer, Westgem Investments, ample opportunity to meet its debt obligations, but Westgem chief Luke Saraceni says Bankwest would not discuss refinancing options.

The director of beleaguered office development Raine Square has labelled its receivership unnecessary, saying the project still has "strong financial metrics".

The Satterley Property Group and 17 of the state's leading builders are set to combine resources in a partnering arrangement to deliver more affordable housing.

A PROMINENT Perth-based lawyer has questioned the need for local governments to remain involved in town planning, after Planning Minister John Day last week moved to smooth the way for mid-rise development on Cottesloe's beachfront.

OFFICE leasing is the CBD has become increasingly competitive as growing firms absorb record levels of office space, and owners of older buildings mobilise plans to reposition their stock to compete with a raft of new offerings to the market.

Building products manufacturer Wesbeam posted an improved result in financial year 2009-10, but remains short of being profitable, according to its latest accounts.

PERTH'S residential property market is in a state of oversupply and in the midst of a price correction with industry experts warning the market has been overstimulated.

WESTERN Australia's construction and development sector is set for a change in fortune after a lacklustre 2010, according to new research by construction industry analysts Davis Langdon.

PERTH'S property markets are proving attractive to overseas investors, with new research showing office, retail and industrial sectors in Western Australia are undervalued amid rising enquiry levels from offshore investors.

PROPERTY investment and funds manager Aspen Group has made a profit after selling an office property in inner Melbourne for $33.3 million.

A RECENT decision by the State Administrative Tribunal will allow nickel miner Panoramic Resources to construct a workers' accommodation camp at one of its mines sites despite objections from the Shire of Coolgardie.

THE Department of Housing has bought the Broome Motel in an effort to address the shortage of cheap accommodation for workers in Broome.

DEVELOPER Finbar Group has reached a joint venture agreement with Heyspring International to build 190 new residential apartments in East Perth.

PLANS to develop a major ‘city centre' at Innaloo have been given a boost after Planning Minister John Day took the rare step of intervening in a long-running dispute between Georgiou Capital and the City of Stirling.

Since retiring from the board of Mirvac in June, Adrian Fini is still making an impact on the Perth property scene.

THE firm behind the overarching plan that will help guide Perth's suburban residential, retail and commercial development over the next 20 years has received a national Planning Institute of Australia Award for planning excellence.

HAZELMERE is emerging as a major site in Perth's industrial land market, after Coca-Cola Amatil signed a 10-year lease to join blue-chip tenants Toll IPEC and MTU Detroit Diesel at Goodman International's Stockyards Industrial Estate.

THE Master Builders Association has identified industry driven training schemes and employer bond systems as new strategies to address anticipated skills shortages over the next two years at its annual Skills Summit.

Centro Properties Group, which owns 19 shopping centres in WA, says the competitive market process it's initiated to determine the group's future might result in any of a range of results, ranging from asset sales to change of control of the group.

Marilynne Paspaley's Pinctada Hotels and Resorts has been named the preferred proponent to build a new hotel on Rottnest Island, beating a rival proposal from Karma Resorts.

OVERSUPPLY in Perth's residential property market has seen it emerge as the weakest performing in the nation, according to median price analysis.