A check in on the home news, for a day of rest

So how do you follow-up on last week’s tsunami?  “Wait a minute, Kochie, there are bright spots for property investment on the Gold and Sunshine coasts” not only was our most popular post, it got national media coverage.

It goes to show that many are sick and tired of the negativity, don’t want to be continually told how bad things might get and crave some balance in media (and other) reporting.  Glib one-liners make easy punchlines, but most things are hard to accurately sum up in 12 words or fewer.

What most do after a good game is have a day of rest, a B-day, so to speak.  I try to have a B-day every month or so.  This is a day when you don’t do anything with an immediate deadline, try to improve on some things that need adjustment, or try something new. Heck, sometimes I just read the articles that I have been carrying around with me for the past month or so.  And if it is a really good B-day, I get time to update my Home News.

Home News is a collection of weird stuff that my youngest daughter, Savannah, and I cut out from the media. It has been going on for years and we now are up to our sixth scrapbook. We are probably breaking several laws, but this all started after I read how Tom Waits does something similar.  Like Tom, I do find it more interesting to read my own news collection rather than the day-to-day drivel.  Also, paraphernalia comes in handy at parties, or for those awkward pauses in conversation, and sometimes even during presentations.

So, here is a sample of some Home News, Matusik style.  Try to enjoy, and please suffer my remarks in italics.

• An increasing number of cashed-up Australians are buying fake grass because they don’t have time to mow the lawn on the weekend.  Tell me about it.  And why do they need to be cashed-up?  And did you know that Aussies will pay up to $75,000 more for house with a nice lawn? But I don’t think fake stuff really cuts it.  Pun intended.
• Last year, 1.93 million people in Australia’s workforce were aged 55 or over, up from a million a decade ago.  Now Canadian Leonard Cohen describing himself as a “lazy bastard living in a suit” on his new album, Old Ideas, does kinda ring true – he is fond of wearing a suit, but lazy seems a bit harsh.  He is 77 and there is no sign of slowing down, having spent almost three years on tour. Old Ideas has won widespread acclaim, and he says he has enough material for another album.  Ditto Dylan, McCartney and even Springsteen, whose Wrecking Ball has the energy of someone in his 20s, not 60s.  Watch out, youngsters, us oldies are back.
• About 75% of people admitted to surfing the web, using smartphone apps, emailing and texting while on the toilet.  One in five men said they had taken a conference call while on the loo.  Now this behaviour used to be confined to real estate agents.  Who said agents aren’t trend setters?  Do you also know that 9 million (40%) Australians use social networking sites such as Facebook, You Tube and Twitter?  And obviously, many do so while in the smallest room of the house.
• A third of Australians are unaware of how much super they have.  One in eight never check their super balances.  Little I can say here, except that for some reason, many treat their super funds like they aren’t really theirs. It is much easier, in our experience, for an investor to pay money out of a super fund to buy a property, rather than out of current accounts.  Curious indeed.
• Some wit to close… and most will be able to tell it is too good to be mine.  Apart from being nice to their mother, the best advice you can give your children is to live in a marginal seat.  Touché
• Two-thirds of women would choose a good night’s sleep over sex. Whatever I add here will get me in some deep shite.
• Aussie high school and university students are now outsourcing their English essays and maths papers to firms in India, Pakistan and Egypt, for as little as $2.  Well, this speaks volumes.
• In addition to making you groggy and dazed, jet lag makes you stupid too.  Hmmm, stupider maybe more apt.

Michael Matusik is the director of independent property advisory Matusik Property Insights. Matusik has helped over 500 new residential developments come to fruition and writes the weekly  Matusik's Missive. The Matusik Missive is free, however, reprinting, republication or distribution of any portion of this material, or inclusion on any website, is strictly prohibited without the written permission of Matusik Property Insights and may incur a charge.