What the Finder Housing Affordability Survey Reveals About Policy Failures
Hotspotting
Is negative gearing really to blame for Australia’s housing crisis? A new Finder survey asked 22 leading economists, academics, and property experts how to make housing more affordable — and their answers may surprise you. Not one pointed to negative gearing, and only one mentioned capital gains tax. Instead, the focus was on boosting housing supply, cutting red tape, rethinking demand-side incentives, and even considering the impact of migration. In this episode, we unpack what the experts actually said, why the usual media narratives miss the mark, and what solutions could really make a...
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What the Numbers Reveal About Australia’s Rental Crisis
Hotspotting
Why are property prices across Australia still on the rise when affordability is already stretched? 🤔 In this episode, we dive into the latest SQM Research data showing housing listings have dropped across every capital city, tightening supply just as demand continues to surge. With migration, population growth, and poor housing policy all adding fuel to the fire, what does this mean for buyers, sellers, and investors? Tune in as we break down the trends city by city, explore why listings are falling, and unpack how this could shape the property market in 2025.
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How We Predicted the Hottest Market in Australia Before It Made Headlines
Hotspotting
Why are property prices across Australia still on the rise when affordability is already stretched? 🤔 In this episode, we dive into the latest SQM Research data showing housing listings have dropped across every capital city, tightening supply just as demand continues to surge. With migration, population growth, and poor housing policy all adding fuel to the fire, what does this mean for buyers, sellers, and investors? Tune in as we break down the trends city by city, explore why listings are falling, and unpack how this could shape the property market in 2025.
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What the ACTU Campaign Overlooks About Housing Affordability
Hotspotting
Sally McManus and the ACTU want to scrap negative gearing and the capital gains tax “concession” for property investors, arguing it will fix housing affordability. But does the evidence actually stack up? In this episode, we dive into the history of negative gearing in Australia, the real impact of CGT rules, and why blaming property investors might miss the bigger picture. From rental shortages to soaring construction costs, we unpack the policies that have shaped today’s housing crisis — and what really needs to change. Perfect for anyone interested in Australian property, housing...
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Lessons in Real Estate, Leadership & Sales with Adam Horth
Hotspotting
In this episode, Terry Ryder, Founder of Hotspotting, sits down with Adam Horth — a seasoned real estate professional, trainer, and Operations Director at Smartre Group. Adam’s journey began at just 19 years old, starting out as a salesperson and eventually building his own highly successful agency in Ipswich, QLD. Within six years, his office was the number one agency in the area, supported by a team of high-performing agents. Today, Adam combines his passion for real estate with training and leadership, helping agency principals and salespeople across Australia and New Zealand through...
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What Our Early Analysis Revealed About Darwin’s Strong Growth
Hotspotting
Everyone’s suddenly talking about the “Darwin boom” as if it came out of nowhere – but did it really? In this episode, we unpack why the media has only just noticed what was obvious months ago. We reveal how forward-looking data pointed to Darwin’s rise well before prices surged, and why the so-called exodus to affordable lifestyle is anything but new. If you want to spot the next growth markets before the headlines do, this one’s for you.
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Regional Victoria Property Market Shows Signs of a Strong Comeback
Hotspotting
After two quiet years, Regional Victoria’s property market is showing clear signs of a strong revival. Our latest Hotspotting analysis reveals a surge in sales activity across key cities including Bendigo, Geelong, Shepparton, Wodonga and Ballarat – with sales volumes now at their highest since the Covid boom of 2021. In this episode, we unpack what’s driving the comeback: The surge in buyer demand and sales growth across regional centres Why Melbourne residents are making the move to more affordable regional lifestyles The role of affordability and infrastructure in fuelling...
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Melbourne Property Outlook Brightens After Years of Decline
Hotspotting
Melbourne’s property market is making a comeback — and the data confirms it. After lagging behind other capitals, the city is now cheaper than Brisbane and Sydney, with sales activity surging to its highest levels since the 2021 boom. Backed by population growth, new infrastructure, and rising demand for affordable units, Melbourne is shaping up as one of the best value markets in the country. In this episode, we reveal the suburbs leading the charge, why buyer interest is climbing fast, and what this means for investors and home-buyers looking to get in ahead of the next growth cycle.
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How We Predicted the Hottest Market in Australia Before It Made Headlines
Hotspotting
Why do media commentators keep declaring ‘new’ trends that have actually been brewing for years? In this episode, we unpack the so-called “Darwin boom” — the one the headlines claimed nobody saw coming. Spoiler: we called it back in January. Discover how forward-looking indicators, like our Price Predictor Index, spot market surges months before they hit the news, and why knowing early can make all the difference when investing.
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Why Timing Is Everything in Picking Property Winners
Hotspotting
Where not to buy can be just as telling as where to invest. In this episode, we dive into the thinking behind our latest National Top 10 Best Buys report – and why some of Australia’s strongest recent performers, like Perth, Adelaide, and the Gold Coast, are no longer on the list. We explain why these booming markets have now passed their peak, and shine a light on the emerging "second wind" locations – early-stage markets with the right ingredients for future growth. If you want to spot the next wave before the crowd catches on, this is the insight you’ve been waiting for.
info_outlinePoliticians and journalists love to scapegoat and demonise, particularly with issues impacting housing markets – with property investors always a popular target.
Australia’s love of scapegoating is one of the reasons the nation seldom resolves any of the key issues it faces.
Politicians hold press conferences, they stage inquiries, they bring on royal commissions, they make announcements – but the recurring theme is looking for someone to blame and to vilify – preferably someone other than themselves.
In real estate, investors and related issues like negative gearing are blamed for all the problems afflicting the housing industry – including poor affordability and rising rents.
But, according to analysis by the Reserve Bank, property investors have copped the brunt of rising interest rates and haven’t passed on their impact to tenants in the form of higher rents – or, not much.
New Reserve Bank research debunks the idea that so-called greedy landlords simply pass on higher mortgage costs to their tenants via rent increases.
According to the RBA analysis, after analysing years of investor tax returns, for every $1 increase in home loan interest repayments, property investors have raised rents by just 1¢.
The RBA economists who wrote the report said: “To put this effect in context, the median monthly interest payment for leveraged investors increased by around $850 between April 2022 and January 2024.
“Our estimate suggests that this $850 increase in interest costs would have raised rents by less than $10 per month, or just over $2 per week.”
The research, released in the RBA’s quarterly bulletin, is an attempt by the central bank to refute the commonly held perception that landlords pass simply higher interest rates on to renters.
While there is a public perception that rents and interest rates tend to move in tandem, the RBA says this is more a case of correlation rather than causation.
The RBA says: “Pinning down the relationship between interest rates and rents is tricky because both will tend to move together with the economic cycle.
“For example, a strong economy, with a pick-up in income growth, will see increased demand for rental properties. This will put upward pressure on rents. At the same time, interest rates may be raised to reduce inflationary pressures.”
So they’re saying that rising rents and rising interest rates tend to occur at the same time, rather than one causing the other.
The sample period for this research includes two other interest rate tightening cycles, including immediately before and after the global financial crisis.
RBA governor Michele Bullock said in August the fundamental reason rents were increasing so quickly was because there was not enough housing supply to meet demand.
Bullock told a parliamentary hearing: “Landlords can only pass on interest rate rises into rents if there is demand for those properties. If there isn’t, then it’s very difficult for them to pass those costs on.”
The researchers said that housing demand had been strong due to high population growth and an increase in the number of households with spare rooms.
Meanwhile, supply had been hampered by rising construction costs, which the RBA says have increased 40 per cent over the past four years – although other estimates say they have risen more than 50% in the past three years.
You could argue that the RBA has a vested interest in the argument they are presenting, because many believe that higher interest rates have driven increases in rents over the last few years - and therefore Bullock and the other financial elites on the RBA board are to blame for the rise and rise of residential rentals.
What do I think? I don’t think much of the RBA and its arrogant out-of-touch behaviour which sees only economic graphs, charts and numbers – and displays no feeling for the impact of their ivory tower decisions on ordinary Australians, without achieving the end goal of actually taming inflation.
But, I think they’re correct in this instance.
Higher interest rates have not caused higher rents. It doesn’t matter how high interest rates go, or any of the other rising costs of property ownership – investors can increase rents ONLY if there’s high demand and low supply.
It’s historically low vacancies that have caused rents to rise and rise – not high interest rates.