Hi All Essentials

Its been a hectic few months so I apologise for the lack posts in recent times. I don’t think you need me to tell you the real estate market has seen a definite cooling over the last 12 months. Interest rate rises and the general cost of living have seen house and land sales plummet. Interestingly we are still receiving good levels of enquiries for knock down rebuilds in numerous parts of Sydney. Investors are also re-entering the market. So whilst overall sales may have slowed the interest is still there. We are still seeing good numbers go through our displays and people are asking all the right questions but one major hurdle is finance. The lenders have been tightening up their lending criteria with the higher interest rates. For example: Typical of what we are hearing from clients is whilst they may have had a borrowing capacity of $800,000.00 six months ago, its now down to $650,000.00.  Buyers are quickly realising that sacrificing some “wants” maybe the only way they will be able to obtain finance.

What is also interesting is some of the stats I receive from my REA (realestate.com.au) account manager. I’ve shared a few with you below.

• Property transactions in Sydney and Canberra were up 13.5% in July. Over the past four months, we’ve seen the highest number of highly engaged buyers on the platform, compared to any other time over the last 5 years.
• Property prices have increased every month in 2023.
• National property prices have already risen 1.5% this year, with prices expected to rise a further 2-5% by the end of the 2023.
• Property market activity is showing early signs of picking up in Sydney amid what is typically the quieter winter season. Activity is likely to continue increasing over the next few months heading into the spring selling season for the usual seasonal peak of activity in October and November.
• Selling conditions and home prices have picked up compared to the second half of 2022. Home prices nationally posted the seventh consecutive month of growth in July and have recovered 2.8% since December. That means home prices nationally are now sitting just 1.4% below the March 2022 peak
• Sydney has recorded more new listings on site this year, compared to last. This is the first time Sydney has recorded positive year on year growth in new listings since Spring 2022Investors ?

  We have recently seen a large spike in Investors looking to purchase property in NSW. Now is the best time to target Investors as over a third of mortgages taken out last month went to property investors. Find out more here. This is driven by:

  • Vacancy rates across the country sitting at an all-time low (as low as 1.5% in most capital cities)
  • Low risk of properties sitting vacant for an extended period
  • Median rents for units in Sydney are up nearly 20% over the last year.

So whilst some of these figures are not favourable for purchasers, it atleast shows there is still some “heat” in the market which is always a good thing.

Cheers Scott