Distressed sales make impact

VACANT residential and regional industrial development sites made up the majority of sales undertaken by mortgagee in possession and receivers over the past year, the research firm LandMark White said.

In its Forced Sales Monitor, LandMark White's data indicated the lion's share of receiver sales listings were in Queensland. Of those, which accounted for 52 per cent of the national total during the final quarter of last year, the bulk were in the residential sector.

The lack of sales was evident among developers, with Mirvac last week forced to make a $373 million writedown on the value of its residential development operations in Queensland and Perth.

Property analysts have said they expect an update on any impairments in residential developments from Stockland on Wednesday when it releases its half-year profit report.

In NSW the share of distressed listings fell in the December quarter, accounting for 21 per cent of the total, compared to 30 per cent across the calendar year.

Industrial space in NSW had the highest distressed ratio in both the December quarter and the year, with 31 and 32 per cent of sector listings in the hands of receivers respectively, followed by the leisure (hotels and motels) sector at 22 per cent.

Ross Horsley, research manager at LandMark White, said the majority of receiver stock was in regional rather than metropolitan areas.

In the December quarter the proportion of regional properties reached 82 per cent of the total. Over the full calendar year, they made up 73 per cent of all distressed sales advertisements.

The LandMark White Forced Sales Monitor started in October 2011 in response to the rising number of mortgagee, receiver and liquidator sales in national property markets.

LandMark White maintains a database on every property advertised for sale in the daily national newspapers, distressed or not.

Mr Horsley said the most recent survey indicated that the most noticeable change was the increase in Victoria at the end of last year.

"Advertisements placed on behalf of receivers and mortgagees in Victoria accounted for 11 per cent of the nation's distressed listings in the December quarter," he said.

"That was the first time that Victoria has taken more than 9 per cent of the national number over the past 15 months; noteworthy because it was also the busiest quarter in the series so far."

Mr Horsley said the industrial sector also had the highest concentration of distressed listings in Victoria during the December quarter, with 42 per cent being mortgagee in possession.