Newsletter - Inner Circle August 2020
Inner Circle
Melbourne’s real estate industry is still open for business
WITH the property industry now having experience working online, it has continued to operate seamlessly over the past few weeks with the return to Stage 3 restrictions in metropolitan Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire. Auctions continue to be conducted online, as well as inspections in those areas where face-to-face meetings cannot take place.
While many sellers are choosing to hold their listings back from the market, buyers are continuing to be active, with properties transacting, as professionals guide them through the new way of doing things.
I am fielding wide-ranging enquiry from buyers – including first homebuyers, investors and owner-occupiers - for property in metro and regional areas of Victoria ranging in price from $350,000 to $2 million.
If you need advice or help – whether you’re buying or selling - Property Mavens is here to guide you through the property market during the COVID-19 crisis and beyond. To talk to a qualified and highly regarded buyers’ agent or seller’s advocate, contact us today.
Where is the property market in Victoria headed?
The question on everybody’s lips at the moment is what will happen to Victoria’s property market when the lockdown in our state ends.
We don’t a crystal ball to tell you what will happen in the future, but we can learn from the lessons of the past – that is, what happened in the last COVID-19 lockdown.
We saw housing market activity substantially disrupted, with low listing and sales numbers, while restrictions were in place, but there was a sharp rise once lockdown policies eased around mid May. As confidence returned to the market new listings increased and were tracking 18% higher than a year ago through the first week of July, while sales picked up over May and June to be 59% higher than the low seen in April, according to CoreLogic data. Clearance rates also picked up from 20% in early April to the early 60% after restrictions were lifted.
The fall in dwelling values was mild, with the market stronger than in 2019. The latest REIV figures show house prices in Metropolitan Melbourne fell by 3.5% over the June quarter, but are still 6.1% higher than at the same time last year. In regional Victoria house values were stable, with the quarterly median house price up by 0.1% over the past quarter and 3.7% over the year.
In this current lockdown the market has proven to be resilient so far with online auction clearance rates sitting in the 40% range. We anticipate activity will return to higher levels once restrictions ease, just as it did last time. In fact, there will likely be pent up demand that will see the housing market significantly boosted.
There are still very active first homebuyers, upgraders and downsizers looking for the right property. Now is a great time for vendors to be selling, with less competition and a shortage of supply helping to underpin prices.
An experienced and expert buyers’ agent such as Property Mavens can provide advice and help buyers and sellers to navigate any market. If you are a buyer or seller that needs assistance, contact us today for an obligation-free discussion.
At Property Mavens we choose to give back to help create social change within our community.
We have joined the global platform Pledge 1% where we pledge a minimum 1% per annum of our revenue, and donate to various charities, as they help some of the most vulnerable in society.
Every time a client engages our services, each Maven donates to their preferred charity. When you use our buyers or vendor advocacy services, you will be directly helping to make a positive impact within the local and wider community.
Should we be worried? Or have the economists got it wrong yet again?
Economists, egged on by news media, have invented a new doomsday scenario to stress about: the one they call The September Cliff.
The theory suggests that Federal Government support measures like JobKeeper and JobSeeker will end abruptly at the end of September.
It also speculates that banks will withdraw their support of borrowers who are struggling in the pandemic with their mortgage payments. And, as a consequence, everything will collapse after 30 September. Including property prices.
Hotspotting founder Terry Ryder discusses this attention-grabbing topic with multi award-winning buyer and vendor advocate Miriam Sandkuhler of Property Mavens.
Tom and Rachel engaged Property Mavens’ expertise as a Melbourne buyers’ advocate to assess and negotiate to buy a unique investment property, for future
use as medical rooms. They wanted certainty regarding the property quality and pricing, and their interests protected in the buying process. And our carefully researched and considered strategy and advice worked!
We purchased this 3-bedroom, 1-bathroom house in Moonee Ponds for market value at an online auction, on Zoom, during COVID-19.
If you want help to identify an investment-grade property like this one, whether it’s a family home or an investment property, click here to book a time with us to discuss your requirements. It’s 100% obligation free.
Graeme and Jodie were located out of town, were time poor and wanted a stress-free experience selling their investment property – a 2bedroom, 1-bathroom apartment in Hawthorn - so they sought out our services as a vendors’ advocate to help.
An update of the property was undertaken on our recommendation and after we determined which three real estate agents best suited Graeme and Jodie’s needs, they selected their chosen one, with the sales and marketing process kicking off! The result was an outcome that was better than expected, with a price secured in excess of the quoted range when the property sold on auction day.
As professional property buyers and vendors advocates, we know the difference between a bad selling agent and a great one! If you would like help to secure a fantastic outcome like this one, whether it’s selling a family home or an investment property, and you’re ready to get started, click here to book a time to discuss your requirements. It’s 100% obligation free.
Ballarat
David and Rachael were seeking a strong capital growth property, so they engaged our Ballarat buyers’ agent services to help.
With a tight budget and in a fast rising market, David and Rachael wanted to purchase a low-maintenance property with potential for capital growth while delivering a strong yield in the interim. We successfully purchased this fantastic property (development site) , a 3-bedroom, 1-bathroom house in Ballarat delivering a 4% yield in what is a highly competitive market.
We snaffled the property without any other buyer competition (despite many interested parties) as we strategically shut them out of the negotiation.
As professional property buyers we know the difference between a bad property and a good one, where to buy to generate the strongest returns, and what properties are really worth, to ensure our clients don’t pay too much. If you want similar results, click here to book a time with us to discuss your requirements. It’s 100% obligation free.
If you want to invest or buy the right home for your budget, or sell your property click here to book a time, or call us for a chat about securing your financial independence.
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Giving back..
At Property Mavens we choose to give back to help create social change within our business model. If you use our buyers or vendor advocacy services, you will be helping to make a positive impact within the local and wider community.
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