Blacks, you are wrong period, re posted just for you
Also, most banks have already adopted the new lending practice which will be law in about 3 months.
Success of crackdown on foreign property buyers called into question EXCLUSIVE Joe Kelly From: The Australian January 18, 2011
A CRACKDOWN on foreign buyers of residential real estate has blocked just 15 property purchases in the nine months since it was announced.
The Australian Online has learned none of the transactions was discovered as a result of a special ?dob in? hotline, which has taken a mere 131 calls.
The federal government tightened foreign investment rules last April amid concerns Asian buyers were driving property prices beyond the reach of local first home buyers.
But the rising dollar and uncertainty over property values appear to have cooled foreign interest.
Treasury's compliance and real estate screening unit did not rule a purchase as ?contrary to the national interest? until November.
It blocked eight buyers in the past month, stopping property transfers on the Gold Coast, in western Sydney and suburban Perth.
Related Coverage Growth fears from housing crackdown The Australian, 3 Jun 2010 Foreigners buy up Aussie homes Perth Now, 26 May 2010 Alexander Ouwens Adelaide Now, 14 May 2010 Estate agents to police new rules Perth Now, 2 May 2010 City limits homebuyers to one new unit The Australian, 30 Apr 2010
Under the new rules, temporary residents must now sell any property they own in Australia before leaving the country, while overseas-based investors are unable to purchase already-developed Australian real estate.
Undeveloped land may be purchased but construction must start within two years.
?It is the government's policy that foreign investment in residential real estate should increase Australia's housing stock,? a Treasury spokesman said.
?All applications are considered in light of this overarching principle.?
He said the blocked purchases were detected through ?normal real estate screening processes?.
The new rules followed an earlier relaxation of foreign investment regulations in 2008.
Opposition housing spokesman Kevin Andrews cast doubt over the effectiveness of the new compliance regime, given the small number of rejections and calls to the hotline.
?This is at odds with the anecdotal evidence from the real estate industry,? he told The Australian Online.
?This was policy on the run from day one and now it's clear Labor's attempt to fix loopholes they created simply isn't working.?
Real Estate Institute of Australia president David Airey said that prior to the crackdown, many local buyers and agents were concerned about the high number of foreign buyers in the market.
?We asked our members to contact us and see if there was a need for further investigation,? he said.
