Do you really know what your home is worth? Are you relying on its likely sale price to fund the purchase of your next home? It turns out even the biggest stars’ gambles don’t always pay off. As shown in this ABC article a case in point is the recent successful suing of actress Toni Collette and her husband who pulled out of the purchase of a $6.35m Sydney property stating they didn’t have the money when their current home didn’t achieve the dollar figure she and her hu
We’ve had beautiful sunny weather the last few weeks but the cold conditions will be on their way soon enough. It’s quite common for Sydneysiders to put their search on hold during the cooler months of the year – but is this really the best strategy?
True, there’s often not as much stock on the market during the winter months but trends also show that less buyers are likely to pound the pavement thereby reducing the competition.
With variable interest rates sitting at near all time lows, fixed rates even lower, rents steadily rising, vacancy rates consistently below 2% across the board and in many parts of the inner ring below 1%, the immediate impact of the GFC in the rear view mirror, employment strong and a pretty predictable election result coming up in a few months it’s any wonder that the Sydney market is well and truly on the move. Investors with their ears and eyes open are aware of this market shift over the past six months and are on the property hunt.
Sydney and Melbourne are primed for the biggest auction weekend so far this year with more than 2000 properties ready to go under the hammer. Soon there'll be some ecstatic buyers who bought their dream property within their means and below their maximum purchase price and there'll be others who'll be cursing their actions having gone over their budget to "win" in the heat of the auction environment.
Thankfully the warmer weather is just around the corner and with it comes the peak of the real estate market. Spring is the time of the year where many property owners try to capitalise on attractive gardens and the sunny days that spring brings. It also means that more buyers come out of their winter hibernation looking for their new home or to secure a great investment property. So how do you best ensure you give yourself every chance to secure a great property at a great price? Here are a few tips to put into action:
I often hear people referring to their home or investment property purchase in regards to how much they ‘saved’. When I ask a few questions and dig a little deeper (it’s my nature I just can’t help it) more often than not I discover they’re referring to A) the amount of money they were able to negotiate off the asking price or B) the amount of money they were able to negotiate off the sales agent’s price guide.
In the last few weeks I’ve seen a 3-bedroom house that was barely liveable and not worth a dollar more than $1.125m sell for $1.248m. Then a couple of days later a 2-bedroom apartment which was worth $700k sold for $750k. Following on from that the Sydney Morning Herald showcased a property that was valued at $1.3m which sold for $2.2m after two buyers became entangled in an auction bidding war. In contrast there are also a few properties of late selling below what I would have expected, one of which we purchased for a client. So what is going on?
The silly season is just around the corner and many people who have been looking for a new home or investment property for months will put the search on hold till the new year while they focus on getting things organised for Christmas. For sellers though, December is an important month, particularly if they have had a property on the market for at least a month already.
In a wise move the NSW Government is tightening up the stamp duty exemptions - after all the savings are essentially passed on to vendors though increased sale prices rather than helping out the buyer. Come December 31 and exemptions and subsidies for first home buyers on existing homes under $600,000 come to an end.
Do you know who you’re competing against when buying a home or investment property after the Federal Government announced even more changes to the foreign investment rules on April 24?
What impact has the foreign investment rules had on our real estate market over the past 16 months and what impact will the new changes have going forward? How has it affected supply and prices and what’s likely to happen in the near future?
This week I joined Louis Christopher, SQM Research; Matthew Chun, Becton and Matthew Rollason, DibbsBarker to discuss these changes.