Retirees Ivan and Renate Jagic leveraged the family home to help their adult children climb the property ladder.

While many homeowners faced mortgage debt into retirement, the challenges of the property market also impacted intergenerational wealth.

The Jagics, who are aged in their 70s, consulted specialist reverse mortgage broker Seniors First on innovative solutions that meant they could use the equity in their property without having to sell.

The Tarragindi couple opted for a reverse mortgage, tailored to over-55s, to direct a generous sum to their son for his new home build.

Mr Jagic, who worked in the building industry, recognised the difficulties facing young homeowners today.

Massive home price growth, coupled with the cost of living, meant people were buying their first home later and taking on huge debts.

Even though the Jagics were “financially sound” and not using the loan to clear their own mortgage, their decision highlights how crucial home equity is in retirement.

“My wife and I are going to leave money for our boys when we pass, but we also like to see what is achieved with the gifts we are giving,” Mr Jagic said.

Mr Jagic has a “business arrangement” with his son, who will pay the interest on the loan, with the debt to be settled after his son sells his own home.

This strategic use of a reverse mortgage has allowed the Jagics to support their family, without selling their cherished home.

“When the dust settles and [my son] sells his home, I want to reward myself with a beautiful new Mercedes, and also give some money to my two boys,” Mr Jagic said.

Seniors First CEO Darren Moffatt said a reverse mortgage allowed older homeowners to convert some of their home’s equity into cash, receiving a loan that doesn’t require regular repayments as long as they live in the home.

“You can receive funds as a lump sum, a regular income stream, a line of credit, or a combination of these,” he said.

“The loan, with compounding interest and fees, is repaid from the sale of the property after the last owner moves out permanently or passes away.”

Finance broker Andre Dixon, of Inovayt, said a reverse mortgage was a useful tool for “asset rich but cash poor” retirees, but wasn’t without downside.

“The main risk is compounding debt,” Mr Dixon said.

“Because no repayments are made, interest is added to the balance each month and you end up paying ‘interest on interest.’ With variable rates that are often higher than standard mortgages, the loan can grow quickly and significantly reduce home equity.

“The longer the loan runs, and the more funds are drawn, especially in a lump sum, the less is left in the property for future generations,” he said.

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Mr Moffatt said the expectation of a debt-free retirement had waned, as rising house prices led to larger loans with longer terms.

Economic pressures from the cost of living, divorce or time off work added to the strain, with Colonial First State’s Rethinking Retirement Report revealing 28 per cent of Australians aged 50 to 64 still had a mortgage, and 14 per cent of retirees were yet to pay theirs off.

“More people are still carrying mortgage debt well into their 60s and beyond,” Mr Moffatt said, facing the hurdle of “paying the same level of bills and expenses as when they were working, but on limited retirement incomes.”

Yet only 13 per cent of Aussies planned to downsize, highlighting the emotional value of the family home.

Mr Moffatt advised homeowners in their 50s contemplating retirement to budget for extra repayments while still receiving a consistent income.

“It’s an unfortunate reality that work often becomes more patchy for people in their 50s and 60s, so any plan needs to acknowledge this.

“Don’t ignore the looming problem and hope it goes away. The sooner you face it head on, the better.”

While reducing the mortgage as fast as possible was often the goal, this needed to be balanced against super contributions, ideally with financial advice.

The post Boomers’ bold move: How we helped our kids build a home appeared first on realestate.com.au.

The much-desired path to supplying 240,000 new dwellings a year across Australia is narrow.

But the federal government’s ambitious housing target will not be met without a bigger contribution from investors, according to research by Angie Zigomanis of Quantify Strategic Insights.

Comparison of the buyers the last time the target was achieved, in 2015, with the 2025 financial year suggests that while owner-occupiers are pulling their weight investors have stepped back sharply from buying.

And the emerging build-to-rent (BTR) sector is just getting started. Without re-engaging private investors and scaling up BTR, the target will remain aspirational rather than achievable, Zigomanis anticipates.

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He says having achieved the target in 2015, the National Housing Accord goal of 1.2 million new dwellings over five years, or 240,000 new dwellings per annum, “appears achievable”. “However, once we dig into the data and compare the market then and now, the challenges become clear,” he says.

In 2015, the market peaked at 238,000 new dwelling building approvals, with an estimated purchaser mix of 118,000 owner occupiers, 84,000 local investors, and 36,000 overseas investors.

The FY2025 approvals slipped to 186,000 dwellings – 54,000 short of the government’s target. Zigomanis calculates the contribution from the owner-occupier segment increased slightly to about 119,000 approvals.

“However, the investor side almost halved,” he says.

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Local investors accounted for 51,000 approvals, and overseas investors just 11,700. The gap was only partly filled by almost 4000 BTR approvals.

“These numbers indicate that a larger contribution is needed from the investor side to meet the 240,000 target,” he says.

“However, this will be a challenge as baby boomers are moving to divestment mode and gen X and millennials are burdened by debt.

“Overseas investors have retreated in response to purchaser and owner surcharges, and are unlikely to fully recover.”

As local investors are the main “off-the-plan” buyers for apartments, without more investors achieving the infill targets of our major capital cities will be impossible.

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BTR activity may have to increase up to tenfold, to about 30,000 to 40,000 dwellings annually, to compensate for the shortfall in traditional investor activity, the report advises.

“BTR development is largely taking place in the premium market, with developers avoiding ‘market priced’ and affordable developments without further incentives,” it reports. But BTR has the potential to scale significantly as institutional investors are increasingly interested in residential property as a long-term asset.

Zigomanis concludes that hitting the government’s goal is not just about numbers, but balance.

“Australia needs a mix of housing types and tenure models that meet the needs of owners, renters, and the broader economy,” he says.

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The post Albanese Government next to no chance of meeting much-touted housing target appeared first on realestate.com.au.

Set on almost 1.8ha of landscaped grounds, at the end of a tree-lined driveway, is a character-filled bluestone residence that exudes luxury living and rural charm.

Located in Russell’s Bridge, only minutes from Bannockburn and a 25-minute drive to Geelong, the property is on the doorstep of regional amenities, including quality schools and a thriving wine region, making it a perfect blend of country living and city convenience.

“Located in the Moorabool Valley, a very secluded valley with great views of the rolling hills, the property is within easy access to the Ring Road to Melbourne in 60 minutes,” says listing agent Ken McDonald from HF Richardson, Newtown.

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The four-bedroom house at 520 Russells Bridge Rd is warm and embraces country style with hardwood floorboards, stained glass windows, exposed bricks and an open-plan layout that is versatile and creates the perfect space for entertaining.

“The current owners have lived here for 15 years; they fell in love with the character and location of the home and have completed a full renovation over their time at the property,” says McDonald.

 The renovation, which he describes as “high quality”, is a standout.

“It’s such a versatile home with options for an upstairs office or student study,” he says.

Built-in storage and shelving throughout the home cater to practicality, with windows and skylights throughout the home capturing the natural light and generating warmth.

“The home has the perfect orientation to the north with sun-drenched living, meals and kitchen in winter, which is in shade over the summer,” says McDonald.

The open-plan living and dining area, particularly the country-style kitchen, is at the heart of the home and enjoys sweeping views over the surrounding countryside.

“This all leads out to the outdoor entertaining area while the valley views are in the distance,” explains McDonald.

The main bedroom suite is one of three ground floor bedrooms, while upstairs a large, attic-style bedroom has magnificent views.

Outdoors, the property features a large brick-paved patio alongside a 16m solar-heated lap pool and a floodlit tennis court.

A six-car carport sits between the main house and an additional detached studio with an that offers a separate, flexible space that can be used as a home office, games room, movie or theatre room or potential guest accommodation.

Another original stone building near the tennis court awaits the new owner’s personal touch.

“The expansive outdoors area includes fruit trees, a vegetable garden and a chicken run,” McDonald adds.

The outdoor area is serviced by a 63,000-litre rainwater tank. A river pumping license also comes with the property.

HF Richardson, Newtown agent Ken McDonald will auction 520 Russells Bridge Rd, Russells Bridge, on October 18 at 11am. Price hopes are $1.85m to $1.195m.

The post Bluestone country estate offers entry to Moorabool Valley wine region appeared first on realestate.com.au.

Britt and Taz have staged an almighty comeback, snatching victory by half a point from an enraged Han and Can thanks to a perfect 10 from judge Shaynna Blaze.

This time it was Can who blew her lid over coming second for their garage, mudroom, spare toilet, laundry and pantry.

Letting fly with a string of expletives, she moaned: “We have the wrong style for this season. We’re dykes on bikes. We are retro, urban, eccentric, fun, lux, expensive rich girls. We don’t do country bumpkin.”

Han added: “They can kiss my country a***.”

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With a paltry $20k to spend on five spaces, everybody blew their budget – Han and Can to the tune of $20,455 – so there was no prize for money management this week.

Instead, the prize for the most budget savvy build will jackpot next week, with $20,000 up for grabs instead of the usual $10,000.

Shaynna and fellow judges Marty Fox and Darren Palmer had been impressed by Han and Can’s thoughtful and stylish spaces (except for the rug in front of the toilet which made them all retch at the thought of what it would look and smell like after regular use).

“I love that they haven’t just burned this floorspace,” Darren said as he walked into the girls’ pantry, where the entryway had been transformed with benches and shelves along one side. “It isn’t just a walkway it’s a visual and functional connection to the kitchen.”

They were also taken by Han’s striking black and white garage that Marty said was “the car enthusiast’s and home improver’s dream”.

“This is showroom quality in a residential setting,” he swooned. “This could be the dark horse on auction day. Han and Can on the back of their Harley, revving it hard.”

Unfortunately for the girls, Britt and Taz did it better, adding a shallow shelf along the pantry walkway wall to mirror the bench space on the other side.

“Now that I see it, this is what it’s meant to be,” Darren said, approvingly.

He also declared their laundry “sexy”.

Shaynna said the couple’s home had her heart and buyers would feel the same.

“This is the first house that all three of us would say: ‘I’d live here. I’d want to buy it,’” she cooed.

Marty felt the house was like a warm hug. And they all agreed the garage was the only one on The Block which felt like an extension of the house.

“Is that a garage or a gallery?” Marty said taking in the garage with its two Bromley paintings on the wall.

“It’s sexy AF,” Darren added.

Britt and Taz were elated with the feedback after failing to finish last week and yet another dust-up with Sonny and Alicia.

A sheepish Sonny earlier said he was happy to wear the title of the Big Bad Wolf for dobbing in Britt and Taz for getting a head start on alfresco week.

Owning his role in their punishment (they would be penalised a day’s labour next week), Sonny explained to Taz that he was compelled to report it to foreman Dan.

“I’m sorry, I feel bad for you but I have to think about what we are doing,” Sonny said. “How could it be fair that we are getting guys in on Monday to do that (and you’ve already done yours ahead of time)?”

Unimpressed, Taz said Sonny’s actions were frustrating and flattening. Britt added that she wouldn’t want to hold people back because she wanted to win on her own merits.

“I think they are just trying to do whatever they can for a win,” Britt shrugged.

Although their strategy hadn’t involved any dobbing, Emma and Ben had also worked hard in the hopes of securing back-to-back wins.

That wasn’t to be, with the judges declaring their combined laundry and pantry impractical. And so, in keeping with the trend of this season, Emma and Ben went from winners to wooden-spooners in the space of a week.

“The reason you have a butler’s pantry is to have a second kitchen area to make a lot of mess and there’s not a lot of space to do that,” Marty pointed out.

And everyone wanted to know where the second fridge was. Spoiler: there wasn’t one.

“There seems to be no strategy to the way they have planned this room,” Marty said.

There were more functionality issues in the mudroom (which didn’t have any hanging space) and the garage (where the black floor would show up dust and dirt).

“You’ll be mopping every day,” Shaynna said.

Although they felt Sonny and Alicia’s room was executed better, they had similar complaints about the couple’s hybrid laundry and pantry space.

But they approved of their drying cupboard and pantry fridge.

“The fridge saves them,” Marty said.

The judges did, however, love the mudroom nook for a dog and were rendered speechless by their “faultless” WC that was “so high end, it’s ridiculous.”

They likewise loved the commissioned photograph of Daylesford on the wall of the garage.

Unfortunately, Robby and Mat’s garage seemed very plain by comparison to everybody else’s efforts.

And all those hoops the boys had to jump through to make their euro laundry cupboard come to life were a waste of the time. With nowhere to fold or sort laundry, and cupboard doors that were a hindrance, Darren complained: “it’s form over function”.

FINAL SCORES

Britt and Taz: 28

Han and Can: 27.5

Sonny and Alicia: 26.5

Robby and Mat: 25.5

Emma and Ben: 22

MISSED AN EPISODE? HERE’S ALL OUR RECAPS SO FAR

Episode 1: Why no NSW applicants were good enough for The Block

Episode 2: The worst day on The Block

Episode 3/4: ‘Tear them off’: teams forced to rip tiles from walls

Episode 5: Judges feedback leaves one contestant vomiting

Episode 6: Dan and Dani’s heartbreak

Episode 7: The big problem with the Block house designs

Episode 8: Robby and Mat’s drunken blunder

Episode 9: ‘An up-market nursing home’

Episode 10: Can faces the wrath of Han

Episode 11: Han micromanaging from her sick bed

Episode 12: Sonny cops a spray from Alicia

Episode 13: Brutal feedback leaves Block team confused

Episode 14: Han and Can are in trouble with Dan, and other contestants

Episode 15: Han explodes at Dan in shocking tirade

Episode 16: Defiant Han gets epic dressing down from Scott Cam

Episode 17: Two teams are smashed by hyperbolic judges

Episode 18: Two teams start the week devastated by judges’ feedback

Episode 19: Copying scandal erupts as Alicia and Sonny point the finger

Episode 20: Ben and Emma drop good news into tense Block week

Episode 21: Ben and Emma and Sonny and Alicia cop the wrath of the judges

Episode 22: As Sonny and Alicia despair, Mat summons his inner Mean Boy

Episode 23: Han and Can all but quit the spa room challenge

Episode 24: Ben and Emma finally crack after yet another loss

Episode 25: Britt and Taz make a major blunder

Episode 26: The girls fire their builder

Episode 27: Ben and Emma hatch a sneaky plan

Episode 28: Britt’s decision to freeze out her former bestie has Alicia on the warpath

Episode 29: ‘Basic’, ‘no heart’, ‘not elegant’ – judges pan some teams’ kitchens

Episode 30: Block stars ugly showdown

Episode 31: Greed and cheating accusations at body corp meeting

Episode 32: Team unleashes on ‘dog act’

The post The Block 2025 Episode 37 recap: Going all out for a win one team comes unstuck appeared first on realestate.com.au.