News.
Most people are now tax-ready
Most taxpayers can now lodge their tax returns, as more than 80 million pieces of information are available in pre-fill.
The Australian Taxation Offie said much of the information it collects from employers, banks, private health insurers, share registries and other institutions has now been loaded into people's tax returns.
Property and climate change
The government's new climate change legislation will have significant implications for Australian real estate, assuming it gets approved by Senate.
The Climate Change Bill 2022, which has been approved by the House of Representatives, will enshrine into law an emissions reduction target of 43% from 2005 levels by 2030 and net zero emissions by 2050.
Interest rate update
While variable interest rates are continuing to rise, and will almost certainly increase further, some lenders are actually cutting their fixed rates.
Lenders started increasing their variable rates in May, once the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) began increasing their cash rate. However, lenders increased their fixed rates much earlier, in anticipation of future rate hikes.
Buyers enjoying more choice
Buyers are increasingly enjoying more choice, with a growing number of properties listed for sale in many parts of Australia.
The number of for-sale properties across the country in July was 0.6% higher than the month before, according to PropTrack.
Homebuilding activity soars
Despite a few negative headlines about some construction companies experiencing financial difficulties, Australia is actually in the midst of a homebuilding boom.
A record 143,037 new house builds were started in the year to March, according to the most recent data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.