A Spring Market in Full Bloom.

Lockdown is now a distant memory, and the market is still in full bloom. The supply pipeline is showing great signs of rebound from quite low levels as a late rush of stock has begun to creep back onto the market.

Don’t expect the market to turn around any time soon though. We may begin to see price gains starting to slow a little - despite overall property values still increasing.  This still means continued, double-digit annual rates of growth, just likely not as fast as we’ve previously witnessed over the last 18 months. 

It is likely that with restrictions lifted, we will continue to see more properties come on the market for a late spring sale. While this has been happening, “time on market” continues to decline, a great sign that property values will continue their upward trajectory.

Sydney property prices have kept moving higher, up another 0.3% in the last week alone, up 1.3% for the month of October to date, and up 25.0% over the last 12 months. The supply of properties for sale has been simply unable to match buyer demand for quite some time, with an average of 1.4 properties sold for every new property joining the market.

Overall, the freedom October brought with it was reflected in our sales results. This month we sold  19 properties, totalling $52M. Many have been swept off the market prior to their auction date, as buyers move quickly and with confidence to secure their next home by Christmas. 

Our stand out sales this month were: 

• 17 Gallipoli Street, Concord - SOLD for $4.65M
• 319 Queen Street, Concord West - SOLD for $2.7M
• 58 Llewellyn Street, Rhodes - SOLD for $4.020M
• 22 Station Street, Concord - SOLD for $3M

We’ve lifted our rental game, with a diverse range of property types at different price points, from effortless one bedroom apartments, to premium family homes in the $1,500 to $2,000/week range. Make sure you check out what rentals are currently available, here.

We continue to work side by side with eager buyers, and enjoy the privilege of finding a new owner for the many exclusive off market opportunities that we have.  It’s our job to just know when a potential purchaser is the right person for a property, so get in contact today, and let us link you with your next home.

Thinking of selling instead? We’re already ahead of the game, preparing our 2022 campaigns. If you’re savvy enough to be considering leveraging the momentum that awaits us in the new year, get in touch for a discussion about how we can best serve you.

Market trends

Buyer demand continues at a vigorous rate as owner-occupiers, investors, and first home buyers are all in the market to purchase at a time when available supply is struggling to keep up.

New research undertaken by Canstar tells us that homeowners who bought property six months ago are up to $180,000 better off than if they had invested their savings in the stock market or a term deposit with their bank. 

Hypothetically, if a Sydneysider bought a house for the median price of $1,112,671 in March with a 20% deposit ($222,534) by now the value of property would have seen a 16.3% rise - that’s $181,365.

Forecasted price growth

The International Monetary Fund has revised its forecast for property price growth next year from 3% to 4.1% , as Sydney property prices have continued to rise - up 1.3% so far in October, and 25% over the last 12 months.

Westpac has also lifted its forecast for growth in Sydney’s home prices by 5 percentage points to 27% for this year, with the long lockdown doing little to budge the powerful drivers of strong demand and low supply. Sydney home values have already matched the bank’s previous forecast of 22%, and added about 1% so far over October.

Australian property the wisest investment

According to CoreLogic, the total value of residential real estate in Australia has surged to an estimated $9.1 trillion, gaining $1 trillion in just five months to set a new record. 

Its value now sits at 28.2% higher than the estimated value of  superannuation, ASX and commercial real estate.

APRA raises the serviceability buffer

The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority has advised banks to increase the serviceability buffer they use to assess loans from 2.5% to 3%, in an attempt to alleviate some of the heat from the market.

This change will reduce the maximum borrowing capacity for the typical borrower by around 5% to ensure borrowers can withstand higher interest rates in the future. Property sales are likely to surge in the next three months as buyers rush to settle before their existing pre-approvals expire, and avoid these new, tougher home loan assessments.