April market update

Nearing the end of April, the property market is clearly in a holding pattern with many home owners and buyers alike staying on the sidelines for now. The volume of property on the market is extremely low compared to historical levels although this is not uncommon in election years. With house prices fairly stable, these neutral markets can result in longer days on market for average properties as buyers bide their time, but can be a great opportunity for any property with some X-factor as buyers will have to compete hard to secure it given the low stock levels and limited alternatives.

Turning to the most recent economic information put out by the analysts and it is all pretty neutral at the moment as they work out where they think the economy is heading this year. The Australian dollar has rallied this month off the back of further stimulus measures rolled out in China, which is raising some concerns about how it will impact Australia’s fragile economy. Inflation is still expected to remain low for the foreseeable future giving the RBA scope to lower the cash rate if deemed necessary although with funding becoming more costly for the banks the consensus is that any cut is unlikely to be passed on to homeowners in full. From a house price perspective, most expect the market to remain flat this year, but there were some positives coming out of NAB’s quarterly residential property survey.


Below is the key economic commentary that caught my eye that may be of interest to those looking at transacting property in the near future:

NEWS
RBA cash rate decision
‘At its meeting this month, the Board decided to leave the cash rate unchanged at 2.0 per cent

Consistent with developments in the labour market, overall GDP growth picked up over 2015, despite the contraction in mining investment. The pace of lending to businesses has also picked up. Inflation is quite low. Recent information has confirmed that growth in labour costs remains quite subdued. Given this, and with inflation also restrained elsewhere in the world, inflation in Australia is likely to remain low over the next year or two.’

Source: Reserve Bank of Australia


Auction results
Weekend auction results for Saturday 23 April 2016:
– Sydney: 71%
– Melbourne: 75%
– Brisbane: 35%
– Adelaide: 57%
Source: Domain.com.au

Suburb performance
‘Infrastructure investment in some of Australia’s newest developed suburbs is beginning to pay off, with outer suburban areas seeing a dramatic rise in median house prices in the past five years. Newly developed suburbs in Western Sydney rose the most up a national ranking of Australian suburbs by median house price since 2010. Where does your suburb rank? Enter your suburb and state into the interactive dashboard to find out.’

Source: realestate.com.au


House prices
‘Sentiment among residential property professionals lifts in Q1 2016, after three consecutive quarterly falls. Eastern states out-performing, led by Victoria, while WA still falling. Foreign buyers are pulling back across most states as their focus continues to shift to Queensland (more than 1 in 5 new sales). NAB expects average national house prices in 2016 to rise by 1.5%, with unit prices to fall 1%’

Source: National Australia Bank


Housing trends for the Eastern Suburbs:

 

 Here are some recent sales reports for a selection of suburbs below: 
If you would like a suburb report more specific to your property type or for a suburb not listed, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

 

 This market update contains general information only as of 29 April 2016. Before making any decision or taking any action that may affect your finances, you should consult a qualified professional adviser. Kiki Bermudez or Mint360property shall not be responsible for any loss whatsoever sustained by any person who relies on this market snapshot. To unsubscribe click here

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