❓ Mr. Logan questions the Minister for Housing about a promotional video featuring the Minister and a property developer, Macro Realty, and whether the Housing Authority promoted Macro's activities. The Minister acknowledges the video, explains its context, and discusses the Pilbara property market challenges.
AnsweredQoN 526Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
HOUSING —
PILBARA — MACRO REALTY DEVELOPMENTS
526. Mr F.M. LOGAN to the Minister
for Housing:
I refer to mounting concerns about property developer Macro
Realty Developments and the association of its director, Veronica Macpherson,
with housing and development deals in the Pilbara.
(1) What steps
has the minister taken to have removed a promotional video featuring the
minister and Ms Macpherson filmed in the Aboriginal People's Room that
might ay have led institutional and mum‑and-dad investors to think that
the group's claims had the endorsement of the minister and his
government?
(2) Will the
minister guarantee that neither the Housing Authority nor any other government
agency facilitated or promoted the activities of Macro apart from the minister's
own promotional activities?
PILBARA — MACRO REALTY DEVELOPMENTS
526. Mr F.M. LOGAN to the Minister
for Housing:
I refer to mounting concerns about property developer Macro
Realty Developments and the association of its director, Veronica Macpherson,
with housing and development deals in the Pilbara.
(1) What steps
has the minister taken to have removed a promotional video featuring the
minister and Ms Macpherson filmed in the Aboriginal People's Room that
might ay have led institutional and mum‑and-dad investors to think that
the group's claims had the endorsement of the minister and his
government?
(2) Will the
minister guarantee that neither the Housing Authority nor any other government
agency facilitated or promoted the activities of Macro apart from the minister's
own promotional activities?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)-(2) I
thank the shadow spokesman for housing for the question. He is correct. When I was
the member for Pilbara, Macro Property Developments, which has developments right
across the Pilbara in Port Hedland, Karratha and Newman, came to see me to ask
me to participate in a video around the Pilbara Cities project and to provide
my vision, as the member for Pilbara, for the Pilbara. That is on its website.
Subsequently, the market has disintegrated almost entirely in Newman. We have
real structural challenges in the property market in Newman. That is why I as
the member for Pilbara and the Nationals took such a strong stand on the Kurra
workers' camp, because to renew the lease on a workers camp for 25
years when the property market is essentially in freefall would have been a damaging
decision. I welcome the decision by BHP Billiton to do that. Since that time,
Macro Realty has continued to bring potential investors through the Pilbara. It
does investment tours that allow people to look at opportunities in Hedland,
Newman and Karratha. I have met with them on maybe two or three occasions over
the course of the last 24 months to give my impressions as the local member of
Parliament on market conditions and what is happening. At all times, I have
been very clear on what we see. The member can see the published figures to see
what has happened to the median property price, what has happened to the median
property rentals and how many vacant properties are for rent in Newman and the
like. This has been damaging; it has been damaging for Newman. Members of
Parliament may recall the member for Victoria Park and I spoke about the
Grandtown development. The original Grandtown development was sold to Macro.
The piece of land that was the subject of those disappointing set of
circumstances back when I was still a minister in 2012, or something like that,
was sold to Macro. Macro tried to get that subdivision up and running, and that
is now the subject of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission
investigation. It is my understanding that the video is still up. I have
advised my staff of that today. My take of the video is that I was explaining —
Mr M. McGowan interjected.
Mr B.J. GRYLLS : I had
nothing to do with the Department of Housing except for my being the member for
Pilbara until this week when I was sworn into cabinet. I do not think the
Department of Housing has promoted it at all. Again, it is a private property
developer in Newman looking to resurrect the development of which Grandtown was
the first proponent. I as the local member have continued to talk to all
developers interested in the Pilbara about market conditions and how to deal
with not only the property boom, which saw average rents go to $3 000 and
average property go over $1 million, but also the downside of that, which is property
prices that are below what many people paid for them, and many vacant blocks.
The continuing problem is that the banks now want 30 per cent deposit for those
properties. The banks have essentially shut the door. A young first home buyer
who wants to purchase one of the older three-by-one properties in the Pilbara
that is selling for $300 000 needs a $100 000 deposit to make it happen. We
still have fundamental structural problems in the Pilbara property market off
the back of it.
I am aware of the video. I have instructed my staff to
investigate it today to see whether it can be removed. But, as I said, my sense
of it is that I, as the local member, was explaining the Pilbara Cities program
and the property market and issues in the Pilbara. I have done that for many
people who have been looking to invest in the Pilbara.
thank the shadow spokesman for housing for the question. He is correct. When I was
the member for Pilbara, Macro Property Developments, which has developments right
across the Pilbara in Port Hedland, Karratha and Newman, came to see me to ask
me to participate in a video around the Pilbara Cities project and to provide
my vision, as the member for Pilbara, for the Pilbara. That is on its website.
Subsequently, the market has disintegrated almost entirely in Newman. We have
real structural challenges in the property market in Newman. That is why I as
the member for Pilbara and the Nationals took such a strong stand on the Kurra
workers' camp, because to renew the lease on a workers camp for 25
years when the property market is essentially in freefall would have been a damaging
decision. I welcome the decision by BHP Billiton to do that. Since that time,
Macro Realty has continued to bring potential investors through the Pilbara. It
does investment tours that allow people to look at opportunities in Hedland,
Newman and Karratha. I have met with them on maybe two or three occasions over
the course of the last 24 months to give my impressions as the local member of
Parliament on market conditions and what is happening. At all times, I have
been very clear on what we see. The member can see the published figures to see
what has happened to the median property price, what has happened to the median
property rentals and how many vacant properties are for rent in Newman and the
like. This has been damaging; it has been damaging for Newman. Members of
Parliament may recall the member for Victoria Park and I spoke about the
Grandtown development. The original Grandtown development was sold to Macro.
The piece of land that was the subject of those disappointing set of
circumstances back when I was still a minister in 2012, or something like that,
was sold to Macro. Macro tried to get that subdivision up and running, and that
is now the subject of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission
investigation. It is my understanding that the video is still up. I have
advised my staff of that today. My take of the video is that I was explaining —
Mr M. McGowan interjected.
Mr B.J. GRYLLS : I had
nothing to do with the Department of Housing except for my being the member for
Pilbara until this week when I was sworn into cabinet. I do not think the
Department of Housing has promoted it at all. Again, it is a private property
developer in Newman looking to resurrect the development of which Grandtown was
the first proponent. I as the local member have continued to talk to all
developers interested in the Pilbara about market conditions and how to deal
with not only the property boom, which saw average rents go to $3 000 and
average property go over $1 million, but also the downside of that, which is property
prices that are below what many people paid for them, and many vacant blocks.
The continuing problem is that the banks now want 30 per cent deposit for those
properties. The banks have essentially shut the door. A young first home buyer
who wants to purchase one of the older three-by-one properties in the Pilbara
that is selling for $300 000 needs a $100 000 deposit to make it happen. We
still have fundamental structural problems in the Pilbara property market off
the back of it.
I am aware of the video. I have instructed my staff to
investigate it today to see whether it can be removed. But, as I said, my sense
of it is that I, as the local member, was explaining the Pilbara Cities program
and the property market and issues in the Pilbara. I have done that for many
people who have been looking to invest in the Pilbara.
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