Greg Bird, in a file picture here with Corey Parker (left), made several fortuitous property moves during his time with the Gold Coast Titans. Picture: Richard Gosling

A side hustle of controversial ex-Titans and Blues hardman Greg Bird is set to rake in more than the average Aussie income after he approved a major hike on the Gold Coast.

Publicly available rental records show the former NRL enforcer has now pushed his Gold Coast rental property’s weekly asking price to $2600 – more than double what many Gold Coasters earn – which will net him more than $135,000 a year in gross rental income if secured.

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Greg Bird spent six years with the Titans but also played for the New South Wales Blues, like his Titans’ colleague Jarryd Hayne. Picture: Darren England.

Bird – who debuted for the Cronulla Sharks in 2002 before stints with the Gold Coast Titans and French club Catalans Dragons – first put the Broadbeach Waters property on the rental market at $2,000 a week in 2022. He nudged it up to $2,100 last year but has now applied his steepest increase yet.

Bird and wife Rebecca – sister of former Knights forward Robbie Rochow – bought the waterfront home for $1.33 million a decade ago. Valuation estimates now place the property as high as $3.28 million, reflecting the Gold Coast’s booming prestige market.

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Greg and Becky Bird have seen their net worth rise without lifting a finger thanks to property. Picture: David Clark

The sprawling multi-level home is every inch the coastal dream with a grand entry flowing into a large living zone overlooking the pool and canal, while an oversized chef’s kitchen with breakfast bar leads to a private alfresco area. The lounge, dining and TV space open onto a sun-soaked pool deck.

There is a master suite upstairs with a private balcony that has skyline views of Surfers Paradise, flanked by two additional bedrooms and a family bathroom. The lower level has a guest suite, games room and a second indoor–outdoor entertaining space complete with a built-in BBQ and bar setup.

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The Birds have long proven savvy operators in the Gold Coast property market. During his six-year Titans stint, they bought a duplex for $570,000 and later sold it for $1.2 million.

In 2023, the couple also snapped up a corner-block home in Mermaid Waters for $1.45 million which was briefly listed for sale last year but remains in their portfolio. The current estimates hover around $2 million for that home.

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Greg Bird in action for Southport Tigers vs Burleigh Bears on the Gold Coast during comp season in 2022. Picture: Richard Gosling.

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After almost 100 years of hosting greyhound racing, Wentworth Park is set to be transformed into green space, paving the way for thousands of new homes.

The NSW government has unveiled plans to transform Wentworth Park into public green space, which could enable up to 2500 new homes in the surrounding area.

Wentworth Park sits just 1.5 kilometres west of Sydney’s CBD and has long been a focal point for sport and recreation in Glebe. This housing boost adds to 4800 homes already planned nearby, including 2000 at the former Sydney Fish Market site at Blackwattle Bay – where developer Mirvac has been named preferred tenderer.

Altogether, the Glebe, Blackwattle Bay and Pyrmont areas could see 7300 new homes delivered over the coming years.

Spanning 14 hectares, Wentworth Park has hosted greyhound racing for almost a century. The state has confirmed that once the lease expires in 2027, the sporting facilities will be demolished and the land transferred to the City of Sydney to create community sporting fields.

Under the plan, the 3.3-hectare Wentworth Park Sporting Complex will be redeveloped into open space, enabling rezoning to support the construction of up to 2500 homes in the immediate precinct.

The government said the change is part of its broader strategy to deliver more housing close to public transport, jobs and education, while also expanding green space for residents.

For Wentworth Park, this includes a new ferry stop at Sydney Fish Markets, an upgraded light rail station, the Pyrmont Metro station, which is set to open in 2032, and a 15km coastal boardwalk from the Blackwattle Bay to Woolloomooloo.

NSW premier Chris Minns acknowledged Wentworth Park’s long history but said the state has “a responsibility to plan for the future”.

“Right in the middle of Sydney and connected by rail, light rail, ferries and the future Metro, our plan for the future of Wentworth Park will deliver much-needed new housing while also providing up to 20 new community sporting fields,” Mr Minns said.

“This is more homes, more playing fields and better public spaces, alongside the infrastructure that makes neighbourhoods work. This is homes and community facilities delivered together, not one without the other.”

NSW minister for planning and public spaces Paul Scully said collaboration with the City of Sydney will be key to ensuring rezoning happens efficiently.

“Our city is changing, and we have a responsibility to make sure people can live near the jobs, education and transport they rely on,” Mr Scully said.

“We’ll continue working closely with the City of Sydney to deliver this rezoning in a timely way, and we’re ready to step in with a State-led rezoning if it’s needed.”  

Urban Taskforce Australia welcomed the announcement noting the extra housing would “help ease the pressure in the inner city”.

“It shows that the Minns Government is listening to the public and understanding the urgency for more and better housing supply to meet community needs,” CEO Tom Forrest said.

“Rather than being nostalgic for the past glory of Wentworth Park, the NSW Government has recognised that cities change and that the site could be better used for the benefit of the community.”

Are you interested in the latest in buying and building new? Check out our New Homes section.

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The cash rate will remain on hold until at least February while the Reserve Bank continues grappling with an inflation surge and an accelerating economy.

The RBA confirmed the decision at its final meeting of the year, aligning to market expectations by holding steady for the third month in a row.

“As expected, the RBA held the cash rate steady at 3.60%,” REA Group senior economist Eleanor Creagh said.

In its post-meeting statement, the RBA board said recent data suggest the risks to inflation have “tilted to the upside”, but said it will take a little longer to assess the persistence of inflationary pressures.

“The board therefore judged that it was appropriate to remain cautious, updating its view of the outlook as the data evolve,” The RBA said.

Households with a mortgage can view the outcome as a positive one, with growing concerns about persistent inflationary pressures and the RBA’s ability to manage them now pointing towards rate hikes for 2026.

It’s a sharp turnaround from forecasts as recent as October which suggested Aussies could be in for one more rate cut before the end of the year.

Speaking at a press conference following the decision, RBA governor Michele Bullock said a rate cut was not considered at the December meeting, but the prospect of a hike was discussed.

“We did not explicitly consider the case for a rate rise at this meeting, but we did consider and discuss quite a lot circumstances and what might need to happen if we were to decide that interest rates had to rise again at some point next year,” Ms Bullock said.

“Certainly there was no cut on the table and no-one suggested that there be a cut.”

Two pieces of crucial data – the next Consumer Price Index and jobs figures – will determine which card the RBA will choose to play when it next meets in February. In the meantime, the bank’s assessment of the labour market, unemployment figures and household spending over Christmas will inform its next set of forecasts ahead of the decision.

Rate hikes ahead?

The unexpected resurgence of inflation has been the talk of the market since September quarterly inflation data confirmed figures were higher than the RBA has anticipated.

October Consumer Price Index data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics then backed this up, confirming trimmed mean inflation was up 3.3% annually. This measure of inflation, which strips out volatile and one-off price movements, is the figure the bank relies on for its cash rate decision making and is now well outside its 2-3% target range.

“Interestingly, the unemployment rate dropped slightly to 4.3%. And while that’s great news for working Australians, a strong labour market will give the RBA confidence that the interest rates can stay higher for longer,” Mortgage Choice chief executive Anthony Waldron said.

HSBC brought forward its forecast this week and is now anticipating a rate increase next year – a major move which follows three of the big four big banks scaling down any expectations of cuts dramatically.

Commonwealth Bank, ANZ and National Australia Bank are all agreed borrowers won’t see any rate relief in the near future, while lenders began winding in expectations and locking fixed rate offers last week.

Westpac still expects two further rate cuts in 2026, likely in May and August.

Home prices still rising

The three rate cuts delivered earlier this year have already fuelled a new momentum in the housing market over 2025.

Median prices rose for 11 consecutive months to reach record highs in 2025, with record growth seen in several states.

“National home prices rose 0.5% in November and are now 8.7% higher than a year ago, the fastest annual growth since mid-2022,” REA Group senior economist Eleanor Creagh confirmed.

“Momentum has firmed throughout 2025, but stretched affordability means growth remains well below the 20-30% annual gains seen in past booms.”

Perth (+15.5%), Darwin (+14.1%) and Brisbane (+13.7%) were the best performing capital cities over the last year, while Sydney remains the most expensive city in the country to buy a home, with an all-time high median price of $1.24m.

Regional areas have also climbed in value throughout 2025, up 9.3% year-on-year and continuing to outpace capitals over both the past 12 months and the last five years.

Lower interest rates are being the year’s price acceleration, momentum that is likely to dampen in 2026 as rising inflation quashes public confidence.

New year outlook

As for the RBA’s next move, Ms Creagh said the bank will remain “on watchful pause” until sustained patterns in data are clearer.

“The RBA will need clear evidence that inflation pressures are easing once more before cutting rates again,” she said.

“With interest rates now expected to remain on hold for an extended period, affordability constraints are likely to see home price growth moderate throughout 2026.”

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The cost of home insurance in the United States rose by ~89% between 2014 and 2025, as rapidly climbing home prices, more frequent extreme weather events and inflation impacted insurers and homeowners. ICE analysts share key insights from their recent 10-year study into the forces propelling rising insurance costs across the nation. 

Over the past decade, home insurance costs have risen rapidly in many parts of the United States. This has been driven by numerous factors, including an increase in the costs associated with extreme weather events, the COVID-era spike in nationwide housing values, and high inflation in 2021-22. 

Before 2017, the five-year rolling average costs associated with billion-dollar disaster events was consistently less than $100 billion in the U.S. Since 2017, however, those costs have consistently exceeded $120 billion.

Increasing costs due to extreme weather events will likely continue since these events are projected to become more frequent and severe, creating mounting cost pressures for federal, state, and local governments, as well as insurance companies and homeowners.

In some parts of the nation, rising insurance costs are already contributing to home affordability challenges. For homeowners with mortgages, insurance is an unavoidable cost as lenders require basic home insurance, while homeowners in high flood risk areas face even higher costs because lenders require them to hold additional flood insurance. 

Premiums are also tied to the amount of coverage (often set by the value of the home) and over the past five years, home values, as well as construction and replacement costs, have risen across the country. Between March 2020 and January 2023, ICE’s nationwide Single Family Home Price Index increased by nearly 36%. 

As home values increase, the amount of insurance coverage purchased generally also increases — leading to a rise in premiums even if all other factors remain constant. High inflationover the past few years has also contributed to an increase in the dollar amount of insurance premiums paid across the country. 

Rising insurance costs are likely to have broad effects on the U.S. housing and mortgage market. Home values may be impacted as fewer prospective homebuyers are able to afford the insurance they need to obtain a mortgage, and home value declines could prove disruptive for local governments that depend heavily on property taxes. 

Because these impacts are interconnected, insurance cost increases will affect every participant and stakeholder in the U.S. real estate market. This means it is critical to understand trends in insurance costs across the country. 

To tease out the contributions of these different factors, ICE examined insurance costs from more than 18 million single family loans in the ICE McDash data set, which contains anonymized data on residential loans in the U.S. back to 2013. 

The analysis finds that insurance costs rose across the board during that time, but those cost increases vary between different loan cohorts.

Insurance costs for all active loans: Looking at the broadest view of insurance cost increases — the 12 million single-family loans active in 2014 and 18 million active loans in 2025 — ICE data reveals the average total insurance cost for these loans has climbed from $1,270 in 2014 to $2,405 by 2025 (+89%). Cost changes vary significantly depending on location. 

Figure 1. Average total insurance costs for all active single-family loans in the ICE McDash data set by county in 2014 and 2025. Source: ICE McDash as of 9/01/2025. 

Insurance costs for continuously existing loans:
Continuously existing loans are associated with established homeowners. Unless dropped by an insurance carrier, these households are not likely to shop for cheaper or better policies each year. For the two million loans in the ICE McDash  data set that existed continuously between December 2014 and August 2025, average total insurance costs almost doubled from $1,230 in 2014 to $2,440 by 2025 (+98%). 

Insurance costs for loans originated in each year:
Homebuyers associated with newly originated loans are likely to have been engaged in insurance policy selection in that year. In the ICE McDash data set, 950,000 loans were originated in 2014, with one million loans originated in 2024. The average total insurance cost for 2014 loans was about $1,150, but by 2024, it had climbed to $1,950 — significantly lower than the increase in cost for continuously existing loans, which was +69% higher in 2025 than in 2014. 

Cost per $1,000 of coverage

Inflation and coverage amount changes have been major contributing factors to increasing insurance costs between 2014 and 2025. As a ratio, insurance cost per $1,000 of coverage provides a perspective on these costs that accounts for both inflation and coverage amount changes. 

Figure 2. Average total hazard insurance costs per $1,000 coverage for all active single-family loans in the ICE McDash data set by county in 2014 and 2025. Source: ICE McDash as of 9/01/2025. 

Comparing costs per $1,000 of coverage for continuously existing and newly originated loans reveals an interesting insight: loans that were continuously in existence from 2014 to 2025 have higher average costs than newly originated loans every year. This pattern suggests that by actively engaging in insurance policy and deductible selection — as new homebuyers tend to do — many homeowners with longstanding loans could significantly reduce their insurance costs.

Figure 3. Average hazard insurance costs per $1,000 of coverage over time for three loan cross-sections. Source: ICE McDash as of 9/01/2025.

To request access to the complete 10-year analysis How are insurance costs changing for U.S. homeowners? A visual perspective, please click here. 

On this episode of Real Estate Insiders Unfiltered, Jim Trueblood details how he built the largest Zillow and Realtor.com partnership in Indiana, scaled a 225-agent brokerage and did it all by betting big — on himself, leads and raising the darn standard.