The 7 must-know numbers of the week, starting with the potential number of unlisted vacant Melbourne homes

By Cassidy Knowlton
Friday, 22 June 2012

The possible number of unoccupied Melbourne homes that are not listed for rent, according to an analysis of water usage by lobbying groups Earthsharing Australia and Prosper. Casting doubt on regularly reported vacancy rates, Deakin researcher Phillip Soos used City West Water and Yarra Valley Water figures to look for homes that consume less than 50 litres of water per day, saying these are all most likely unoccupied.

The percentage of Australians who expect mortgage rates to fall over the next 12 months, according to the Westpac-Melbourne Institute consumer survey. This is the first time since Westpac began asking the question (in February 2010) that a majority expected interest rates to fall.

The price the former 1860-built Bible Christian Church in Gore Street, Fitzroy fetched at auction. The bluestone building was once used as a furniture factory after its ceased operating as a tabernacle. It comes with tall brick-embellished Georgian windows and a 1911-added Greek Revival-style façade.

The projected cost of Judith Neilson's planned renovation of her recently purchased Chippendale warehouse. The $14.75 million O’Connor Street warehouse project was formerly the Simona fashion headquarters now set directly opposite the upcoming Central Park precinct. Neilson is the founder of the White Rabbit Collection, one of the world's most significant collections of Chinese contemporary art,

Packed to the Rafters star Rebecca Gibney's initial price hopes for her Clareville home, which she sold this week. The couple didn’t have the time to turn it into their dream home.

The rough proportion of Queensland and WA estate agencies that made a loss in 2011, according to the Macquarie 2012 Residential Real Estate Benchmarking report.

The approximate height of Australia's tallest private home, which sold this week after two years on the market. The Girvan tower was built at a cost of more than $2 million by local Peter Grey atop a hill on a back road between Stroud and Bulahdelah.