Welcome to our Monthly Newsletter!

In this months’
newsletter we look at three areas of interest our Clients have asked about in
the last month.

·      
New Smoke alarm requirements

·      
Suburb spotlight – Coolum District

·      
Sales and rental report

Plus, a quick
summary of the Current Sale and Rental markets for the Sunshine Coast.

 Are
you all prepared with the new Smoke Alarm Requirements that are Mandatory as of
the 1^st of January 2022!?

It is estimated that around
only 25% of Queensland rental properties comply with the NEW requirements so
there will be a rush and you know what it is like getting tradies after October! 

So, what are the NEW Legal Requirements you
ask?

The new requirements apply to all dwellings being sold,
leased or and existing lease renewed.

From January 2022, smoke alarms must.

·       
Be photoelectric and

·       
Not also contain an ionisation
sensor and

·       
Be less than 10 years old and

·       
Operate when tested and

·       
Be interconnected with every other
smoke alarm in the dwelling so they are all active at the same time.

·       
Complaint with AS3786:2014.

·       
Smoke alarms must be hardwired or
powered by a non -removable 10-year battery.

Smoke alarms must be installed on each story and:

·       
In each bedroom and

·       
In hallways which connect to
bedrooms and the rest of the dwelling or

·       
If there is no hallway, between the
bedrooms and other parts of the story and

·       
If there are no bedrooms on a storey
at least one smoke alarm must be installed in the most likely path of travel to
exit the dwelling.

Fortunately, most of our
property owners already have this in hand! Feel free to discuss with me to
check where your place is up to.

To view full Legislation changes,
visit Queensland Fire and Rescue: www.qfes.qld.gov.au.

Suburb Spotlight – Coolum District (Mount Coolum,
Coolum Beach, Yaroomba & Point Arkwright)

Coolum is a chilled out beachy area of the Sunshine
Coast. It has a laid-back feel and has a strong community vibe. Coolum District
is located north of Marcoola, south of Peregian and east of Maroochy river.  This
little area has boomed in the last 5 years with people wanting to enjoy all the
sunshine coast has to offer but still want that quiet laid-back feel.

The name would appear to be
derived from local Aboriginal word "gulum" or "kulum",
meaning "blunt" or "headless", referring to the shape of
Mount Coolum, which has no peak. According to Aboriginal legend, Ninderry
knocked off Coolum's head and it fell into the ocean and is now Mudjimba Island. Mount Coolum is the world’s second largest rock behind Uluru, volcanic
rock that was created 25-26 million years ago. The Dreamtime legend of Mount
Coolum:

Many years ago, during the dreamtime,
a beautiful Aboriginal girl named Maroochy was loved by another of her tribe,
Coolum, a young warrior whose union to Maroochy had the approval of the elders.
One day a mighty warrior named Ninderry, who belonged to a fierce and warlike
tribe, stole Maroochy while Coolum was out hunting. When Coolum returned and
found that Maroochy had been abducted, he set off in pursuit following their
tracks. Fearing (as custom decreed) to demand Maroochy’s return from such a
fierce warrior, Coolum crept into the camp while Ninderry was asleep and set
Maroochy free, before fleeing back to their tribe’s territory on the coast. Ninderry
was furious when he awoke to find Maroochy gone and Coolum’s tracks leading her
from the camp. He flew into a mighty rage and set out after the young couple. When
Ninderry caught sight of them, he threw a nulla (club) at Coolum, knocking off
his head which rolled into the sea and became Mudjimba Island. Coolum’s
headless body fell and turned into stone, becoming Mount Coolum. The Spirit
God, known to the Undanbi as Birral, had been watching these events from his
crystal throne in the sky and was deeply incensed by Ninderry’s foul deed. He
struck him down, turning him into stone where he became Ninderry Crest. Filled
with sorrow at the loss of her beloved Coolum, Maroochy fled to the Blackall
Ranges, weeping so much that her tears flowed down the mountain range to form
the Maroochy River. As time passed, she decided to try and find Coolum’s spirit
that had gone from his body. To aid her quest, she transformed herself into a
black swan (Muru-kutchi) and to this day, journeys up and down the river,
flying to the swamps and lakes, searching for the spirit of her treasured
Coolum.

Coolum has great waves, fantastic cafes, and restaurants.
The local Surf Club has the best views and is a great place to sit and watch
the waves roll by and maybe a whale at the right time of the year. The RSL has
great events such as St Patricks day and ANZAC day. They also host a Sunday
session with live music and food trucks. You can find some of the best coffee
on the coast in this beachy spot. The bowls club has food special every day and
is a lovely place to have a meal. The property market in the Coolum area has seen
an increase in value, this month achieving the highest sales record for Coolum
at $4.2m on Grandview drive. Coolum and surrounds are arguably one of the
coast’s most wanted suburbs now. The lookout at Point Arkwright is a beautiful
stroll and fantastic views you may even see some whales.

Current Sales Market

While headlines focus on Noosa record sales prices there are
many parts of the Sunshine Coast that have quietly added 5% - 10% annual growth
to median home values in the last 12 months. 
From Sippy Downs (5.8%) to Peregian Springs (9.5%) the seaside and one
or two suburbs’ westwards seem to be the best performers though areas close to
infrastructure updates or coming from a low base are also thriving (Nambour 3
bed 9.8%). 

At the office there is a small let up of Buyers through the
door in the last 2 weeks though it is possibly due to school holidays. Most are
from interstate and ex-pats however at open homes there is always a strong
presence of local buyers who tend to act faster to secure properties. Digging
deeper into this last point, it is true to say that of the local buyers a
greater percentage are local renters who have recently moved from capital
cities.

To demonstrate further, Nerida Conisbee the Chief Economist
at REA reports that Victoria normally has a steady one million views of
Queensland property per month but by October last year this had increased over
130% to well over two million per month. Victorians had a propensity to view
property on the sunshine Coast and Gold Coast so there is a possibility during
lockdown there a bit of daydreaming was going on. However, there are plenty of
Victorians we talk to who are putting their money into property here allowing
Coasters to get on with their lives. 

Current Rental Market

There are no signs of the high-pressure rental market
slowing down on the Sunshine Coast for the foreseeable future.

Rental prices are among some of the highest we have seen. This
means affordable housing for some families on the Sunshine Coast is no longer a
viable option. Vacancy rate for Buderim is 0.4% the average 4-bedroom home
being over $620 Per Week!

Some tenants we talk to have widened their search further
north to places such as Gympie, Hervey Bay, and the Bundaberg region to secure
rental accommodation and at more affordable prices. At the same time, this
lack of rental accommodation has underpinned an increase of property sales in
the low and mid segments of the market.