Research Shows House Prices Without COVID-19

Australia’s property prices have risen at an alarmingly fast rate in the last 12 months. However, a new report from KPMG Economics indicates that property prices would’ve been lower than the current market should COVID-19 never have happened.

According to the report, The Impact of COVID on Australia’s Residential Property Market, most capital cities were due for a significant uptick last year. That scheduled rise combined with ultra-low interest rates and government support to the housing market during the pandemic further stoked prices – adding hundreds of thousands of dollars to property values.

The report assessed the past 18 months compared to a no COVID-19 scenario and found that nationwide, house prices were between 4-12% higher and units up by 13% compared to what they would’ve been in a state of normalcy.

The report cites measures such as pushing the cash rate down to 0.1 per cent and introducing the HomeBuilder program as specific catalysts.

Further, the report by KPMG shows without the pandemic, house prices in Sydney would’ve risen by 13% to 1,119,000 by December 2023. They are now on track to rise 26% to 1,244,000.

Elsewhere, Brisbane’s house prices would have risen by 9% instead of the predicted 20% and Melbourne’s prices 19% instead of 24%.

Darwin was the only capital where house prices were modelled to fall – now is set to have a modest increase.

Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt is selling his Northern California estate, which was listed Monday for $24.5 million.

Located in Atherton, an extremely affluent town northwest of Palo Alto and about 30 miles south of San Francisco, the 3.36-acre property is made up of three parcels that Schmidt acquired over the years, according to public records and Compass, who has the listing.

Schmidt, 69, and his wife, businesswoman Wendy Schmidt, purchased the main home in 1990 for $2 million, according to public records accessed via PropertyShark. They remodelled the 1969 home in 2007, and at that time, bought a neighbouring parcel of land, allowing an expansion of the main house and the addition of a guest house, according to Compass, who holds the listing. A third parcel was later acquired, on which the Schmidts added an English garden house and landscaped grounds overlooking the Eastern Hills.

“Finding three contiguous parcels in Atherton is rare. Even rarer are those with views of the Eastern hills,” said listing agent Katharine Carroll of the reSolve Group at Compass. “The location of this residence is ultra private, at the back of a cul-de-sac with the main house built into a hillside that provides privacy and very good security.”

Across the estate, there are five bedrooms, five full bathrooms and six half bathrooms.

The 5,265-square-foot main house also offers a number of private outdoor spaces on its upper level, including a large terrace off the primary suite, another large terrace off a secondary bedroom, plus a third smaller terrace and two balconies.

Behind the main house is a patio with a pool and spa. For even more outdoor space, there’s an entertaining pavilion, an open lawn and an outdoor fireplace area near the guest quarters.

The grounds themselves are also a standout feature, with an array of mature plants and specimen trees. The upper portion of the property’s landscaping is designed around an Amdega-designed conservatory, which was imported from the U.K. Around the greenhouse, there is a garden of raised beds and fruit trees, Carroll said.

“From the moment you step onto the grounds, it feels as if you’ve been transported to a private botanical sanctuary,” she said.

Schmidt served as Google’s CEO from 2001 to 2011, and then became the company’s executive chairman until 2015. He could not be reached for comment.

This article first appeared on Mansion Global

Research Shows House Prices Without COVID-19

A new report indicates the pandemic may have boosted house prices nationwide.