Jobin Mani - Mortgage Broker/Property Developer

17/09/2026

In today’s difficult economy, being debt free provides something truly valuable: security, peace of mind and financial freedom.

Focus on paying down your existing debts instead of taking on more and adding further financial pressure to your life.

കടമില്ലാത്ത ജീവിതം നൽകുന്നത് സുരക്ഷയും മനസ്സമാധാനവും സാമ്പത്തിക സ്വാതന്ത്ര്യവുമാണ്.

കൂടുതൽ കടമെടുത്ത് ജീവിതത്തിലെ സാമ്പത്തിക സമ്മർദ്ദം വർധിപ്പിക്കുന്നതിന് പകരം, നിലവിലുള്ള കടങ്ങൾ തിരിച്ചടച്ച് തീർക്കുന്നതിൽ ശ്രദ്ധ കേന്ദ്രീകരിക്കുക.

12/09/2026

09/09/2026

More sellers are moving away from auctions and choosing private sales, with this shift doubling over the past six months in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra.

When buyer demand is weak, auctions can end with few or no bids. A private sale gives sellers more time and flexibility to negotiate the price, settlement period and conditions.

Strong properties with competitive price guides can still perform well at auction. In the current market, buyers have greater negotiating power.

02/09/2026

Who Is Really Affected by Interest Rate Hikes?

Australia’s residential property market is worth approximately $12.4 trillion, covering around 11.5 million homes.

🏠 Owner-occupier bank loans: $1.69 trillion
🏘️ Investor bank loans: $821.4 billion
🏦 Combined mortgage balance: $2.51 trillion

The $2.51 trillion represents outstanding mortgages held by APRA-regulated banks.

Australia has significant housing equity, and many properties are debt-free.

Recent buyers may have borrowed 80–95% of their property’s value. Therefore, interest-rate rises hit recent homebuyers and highly leveraged investors the hardest.

24/06/2026

A breakdown of property ownership by Australian landlords

• 1 property: ~71% of investors
• 2 properties: ~19% of investors
• 3 properties: ~6% of investors
• 4 properties: ~2% of investors
• 5 properties: ~1% of investors
• 6+ properties: ~1% of investors (approximately 20,000 individuals)

The data shows that the vast majority of Australian property investors own just one investment property, with only a very small proportion holding large portfolios.

An interesting question for discussion: Should property investment policies be designed around the small minority with multiple properties, or the majority who own just one investment property as part of their retirement strategy?

17/06/2026

🏗️ Building approvals continue to decline

• April dwelling approvals ↓ 3.4%
• March dwelling approvals ↓ 10.5%
• House approvals ↓ 1.0%
• Unit/apartment approvals ↓ 3.6%

With Australia facing a housing shortage, declining approvals mean fewer homes entering the construction pipeline.

It will be interesting to see whether building approvals improve in the coming months following the Federal Budget, with the Government expecting construction activity to increase.