More homes are being added to the real estate market as spring heats up and key cities cool following a prolonged housing boom and regulatory crackdown on investor lending.
But while listings are growing in Sydney, they’re not enough to cause a deluge or pull prices down dramatically, according to Brian White, chairman of Ray White.
“One of the best litmus tests of market change is a surge in listings,” White said. “We are seeing adequate listings, but no surge for spring.”
Charles Tarbey, chairman of Century 21 Australia, said there’s been a modest rise in stock, and this was expected to increase over the next few weeks. “The market [in Sydney] is starting to weaken. Auction clearance rates in Sydney were 70 per cent last weekend; they were 80 per cent a year ago,” he said.
The withdrawal of investors in the wake of a regulatory clampdown and higher mortgage rates, the slowdown in Chinese investment, and Sydney’s unaffordability after house price growth of 75% since 2012, have taken their toll on the Harbour City’s housing market.
House price growth has been flat in Sydney for the past three months, while Melbourne’s value lifted nearly 2%, according to CoreLogic. Price growth in Brisbane continues to be static, while Perth’s values fell 1.6% for the three months to the end of August.
In Sydney, the number of homes advertised for sale jumped nearly 5% in August compared with the previous month, and was up 12.4% compared with August 2016, according to SQM Research. In Melbourne, listings rose 3% for August, but fell 15.3% compared with 2016.
“Looking ahead, we can expect to see a big boost to listings in September with the advent of the spring selling season,” SQM said in a research note.
The return of first-home buyers after the NSW and Victorian governments brought back first-home owner grants would bolster demand and prices, SQM said. “We’ve seen a strong monthly rise in listings in Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne, with some buyers deciding to take profits on their properties with price gains being posted in all of those cities.”
Collections: Mortgage News
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