We wrote recently about the Reserve Bank of Australia cutting the official interest rate and of course near neighbours, New Zealand’s Reserve Bank has cut their interest rates. The effect in each country is quite different though.
Propertytalk used to have the obscure url propertytalk.co.nz but has since gone international as propertytalk.com and expanded its property investment forum to cover the countries to which the Kiwi diaspora migrates to: notably Australia, UK, Asia and North America.
Jan and Ian Somers entered the Property Investment industry in 1989. somersoft.com.au is their website which they use to support their books and software over the years up until the latest book “More Wealth from Residential Property”.
Foreigners Buying Australian Property
Australia restricts what real estate non-residents can buy. Essentially it is lot easier to invest in commercial property than it is residential property: the Australian government sees an economic benefit for investment in commercial operations but is less clear on the benefits for Australia for non-residents investing in residential real-estate. The rules are complex and the details can be found Foreign Investment Review Board
More on Investing in Australia and New Zealand Real Estate: Rules for Non-Residents
There appears to be mounting evidence that New Zealand’s current interest rate cycle has hit its top: which will be a relief to those paying nearly 11% on their mortgages.
Higher fuel and food costs have also dented consumer spending while tighter international credit conditions have kept investors out of the market. The small New Zealand economy is always vulnerable to international credit crunches and the oil price is critical for a country who imports all its oil (petrol is now at NZ$2.25/litre).
More on New Zealand House Sales Drop: Will Interest Rates Follow?
