Wage Growth Halts Rate Rise

Reserve Bank of Australia governor, Dr Philip Lowe, has dented any suggestion of a pending rise in official interest rates, citing slow levels of wages growth, inflation and current unemployment figures as factors that will see maintained rates through until to at least 2024.

His comments come as the Australian housing market engages unprecedented levels of growth — with many tipping a necessary increase in rates given the stronger than anticipated march out of the pandemic.

Speaking at the Australian Financial Review’s Sydney business summit, Dr Lowe said that despite the strong economy, interest rates – which the bank cut to a record low of 0.1 per cent in 2020 – would only start rising when wages were growing fast enough to lift inflation.

“The point I want to emphasise is that for inflation to be sustainably within the 2-3% target range, wages growth needs to be materially higher than it is currently,” Dr Lowe said.

Wages growth currently sits at a record low of 1.4 per cent.

“The evidence strongly suggests that this will not occur quickly and that it will require a tight labour market to be sustained for some time. Predicting how long it will take is inherently difficult, so there is room for different views. But our judgment is that we are unlikely to see wages growth consistent with the inflation target before 2024. This is the basis for our assessment that the cash rate is very likely to remain at its current level until 2024.”

Former Aussie Rules player Jeff Chapman’s dream beach house, which has had its praises sung by The Independent in the UK, is back on the market with a revised – and more competitive – price guide.

The contemporary pavilion-style residence Alinghi, created by celebrated architect James Grose, was voted one of the top five beach houses in the world by the British newspaper and has been operating as a luxury holiday rental earning up to $7000 a week.

The one-time Melbourne forward and founder of Bennelong Funds Management, and his wife Carena Shankar, listed the five-bedroom getaway back in mid 2024 with hopes of about $8 million. The prestige property is now back with new agent Pauline Karatau of Ray White New Farm and the amended guide now sits at $6.5 million.

As part of the private 5ha Rocky Point estate, at the southern end of the Great Barrier Reef overlooking Honeymoon Bay, the glamorous holiday home shares not only a private beach with just four other neighbours, but also a 30m saltwater pool, a full-size tennis court, a beach cabana with barbecue facilities and a full-time live-in caretaker on site.

Alinghi seemingly floats against the cliffs of North Queensland’s Capricorn Coast consisting of two pavilions and shallow reflections pools for ultimate serenity. Residence number 5 is home to a two-storey main pavilion with large living spaces spilling onto semi-enclosed areas framing enviable ocean views. Upstairs there are four bedrooms, including two with ensuites. The second pavilion is a private retreat housing the main bedroom suite with an additional study or wellness space.

Crafted by Grose to leave minimal impact on its natural environment, the house features external materials sourced locally including rich cedar, plus glass and Travertine stone specifically chosen to blend and weather with the landscape over time.

The low maintenance property is also relatively self sufficient thanks to water tanks collecting the region’s abundant rainfall. Despite it’s northern Queensland address air-conditioning is an after-thought due to the clever cross-ventilation design principles and deliberate orientation capturing ocean breezes that flow through the large footprint.

Alinghi’s external lightning has also been carefully designed to be low voltage with minimum impact upon the local wildlife including wallabies, echidnas, goannas, turtles and even a diverse range of native birds. From the private terraces throughout winter, homeowners can also track the migratory whales.

Alinghi is a 90-minute drive away from Agnes Waters and its sister town of 1770 (also known as Seventeen Seventy). It is approximately 120kms from Bundaberg, which is home to a well-serviced domestic airport.

Alinghi is listed for sale with a price guide of $6.5 million via Ray White New Farm agent Pauline Karatau on 0418 733 773.

Wage Growth Halts Rate Rise

RBA governor Dr Philip Lowe speaks out on ascendent property markets and future plans.