Meet Bob and Linda.
They didn’t select a winning agent.
Meet Bob and Linda.
They didn’t select a winning agent.
In a conversation with Matthew Shalhoub of Sydney auctioneering company Under the Hammer today, Matthew commented that most good agents are now selling property prior to auction. Buyers are thinning out across all sectors – there’s no doubt that the reset button has been pushed and given past performance in a top of market cycle, there is usually a period of about 3-4 months of stabilisation. We then start to see consolidation again.
Given the fact that most buyers are still around, they’re probably just trying to find some direction in the market. If I was buying, I would try and find the seller with the biggest pain level in order to secure a bargain. In saying that, past experience dictates that there’s a magic time for buyers to enter the market before it fully stabilises and firms up.
regards,
Andrew Bruce
Riverview Realty is a boutique agency focused on achieving the maximum price, with a client engagement that is above the industry standard. We call it the “Ultimate Experience” which forms part of our unique selling proposition.
Ph. 02 9420 0083, 59 Tambourine Bay Road, Riverview.
You’re welcome to connect with us on social media:
I’ve posted regularly about the essential criteria home owners need to cover with any potential real estate agent prior to appointing them to sell their home.
I’ve now collated this information into “Select A Winning Agent” available in eBook format and hard copy from the office.
In Select a Winning Agent, I outline how a vendor must focus on the facts and not the promises or perceptions of a real estate agent.
regards,
Andrew Bruce
Riverview Realty is a boutique agency focused on achieving the maximum price, with a client engagement that is above the industry standard. We call it the “Ultimate Experience” which forms part of our unique selling proposition.
Ph. 02 9420 0083, 59 Tambourine Bay Road, Riverview.
You’re welcome to connect with us on social media:
Real Estate March Madness…
While there’s some talk we are in a property bubble, the harsh reality is that with 100,000 babies being born in Sydney each year, and the inflows of immigration into greater Sydney, it’s hardly any wonder why demand is exceeding supply. As we go into our 5th year of solid growth, what we are seeing is a paradigm shift in both the Sydney and Melbourne markets – Sydney is becoming a true global city and a destination.
Every property listed receives hundreds of email enquiries and there’s no doubt that demand is outstripping supply and will continue to do so in the years ahead. The mere thought of trying to find cheaper housing solutions within the Sydney basin is akin to trying to stop a tidal wave of demand. The banks have tightened their lending criteria for developers, which will have the knock-on effect of tightening supply even more.
We are in the very lucky position to have a number of really interesting properties listed ranging from brand new units in Kensington, to premium properties in Willoughby and Riverview, and mid-range properties in Riverview and Lane Cove.
For those looking for a renovation project or re-build, we have a property coming up in Greenwich very soon. We have more listings that are being prepared for market and encourage you to register your interest and join us on Facebook for real time updates.
The rental market fluctuates with good months and bad months. There’s low stock of houses in Lane Cove at the moment, however there is ample apartment/unit stock within the Lane Cove precinct with rents holding steady.
regards,
Andrew Bruce
Riverview Realty is a boutique agency focused on achieving the maximum price, with a client engagement that is above the industry standard. We call it the “Ultimate Experience” which forms part of our unique selling proposition.
Ph. 02 9420 0083, 59 Tambourine Bay Road, Riverview.
You’re welcome to connect with us on social media:
Welcome to 2016! We trust you’ve had an enjoyable break and spent summer with friends and family. To kick-start our blog for 2016, we thought we would share some insight into the property market and the wider economy for the year ahead.
According to leading chief economist Shane Oliver from AMP Capital, the Sydney property market has become so stretched that price growth will be weak in 2016 and prices are likely to fall in 2017.
“I think because the property market has become so stretched, particularly in Sydney, it has been enough to tip the cycle back down again,” he said. “This year we will see weak price growth and then next year we might actually see price declines.”
Mr Oliver believes house price growth has peaked, and that the wealth effect of rising property prices will begin to weigh on consumer spending for the economy.
However, it’s important to remember that we have seen these cycles go up and down for the last decade:
A downswing in the property cycle is usually triggered by monetary tightening, which has been fairly constrained over the last 12 months. However, Mr Oliver noted that the out-of-cycle rate hikes of the banks towards the end of 2015 dampened sentiment and dramatically shifted expectations.
One of the reasons that investors have backed right off is that sentiment regarding expectations for home prices has completely reversed. It has gone from “we’ve got to get in now otherwise we’ll miss out and prices are up 15 per cent per annum and that will continue”, to a fundamentally dented, more cautious sentiment.
Consequently, auction clearance rates started to fall and house price growth slowed towards the end of 2015. However, as the property market cools down in Sydney and Melbourne, it does provide some scope for first home buyers to get into the market.
In terms of the economy, January is always the month used to predict the share market for the rest of the year. There are a lot of interesting plays influencing sentiment at the moment. Banks are short selling everything which is causing uncertainly. However they capitalise on the bad news by the short sell. China is not heading as far south as the media would lead us to believe – it is easing, but the value of their economy is far stronger than what it was at the height of the GFC.
The current message, perception and sentiment doesn’t always match the numbers. As part of this sentiment, Economist Scott Francis from the Eureka report notes that it’s worth considering whether the “Other January Effect” – the idea that market returns in the month of January predict the overall returns for the year ahead – is a useful idea for investors. He argues that based on past performances, the January Effect holds little weight.
In terms of property, a Chatswood real estate agent shared with me that he had over 41 people through a property’s first open for inspection. If that’s a declining market we will take that any day of the week.
regards,
Andrew Bruce, Samia Malouf, and staff.
Riverview Realty is a boutique agency focused on achieving the maximum price, with a client engagement that is above the industry standard. We call it the “Ultimate Experience” which forms part of our unique selling proposition.
Ph. 02 9420 0083, 59 Tambourine Bay Road, Riverview.
You’re welcome to connect with us on social media:
Two of Sydney’s best-kept secrets? No, it’s not Samia and I, it is of course Lane Cove and Riverview. Last Sunday, our thoughts on the local market were featured in Domain. Please see the story below.
click on the image above for a larger version
Lane Cove and Riverview are perfectly situated to advantage of close proximity to the CBD, Chatswood, North Ryde, and the Macquarie Park business district. Families and young professional couples make up the bulk of the local population, and enjoy a variety of local shopping and dining options, parks and outdoor spaces, and access to excellent private and public schools. Quick access to Chatswood and Macquarie Centre provides residents with greater shopping and entertainment options.
Due to recent development in Lane Cove, Lane Cove North and Linley Point, unit stock is in good supply. Housing stock has been in over supply for the spring season and will tighten up for Christmas and the New Year. Lane Cove house stock consists of three main property types: Original Post War, Original renovated, and new build. The price points for these homes are $1.8-$1.9m, $1.9-$2.5m, $2.7-$3.4m respectively.
Both Andrew and Samia have lived locally for over 20 years and believe Lane Cove and Riverview are Sydney’s best kept secret. There’s good buying at present. Who knows what is ahead for 2016? Recent commentary suggests low single digit growth next year.
regards,
Andrew Bruce, Samia Malouf, and staff.
Riverview Realty is a boutique agency focused on achieving the maximum price, with a client engagement that is above the industry standard. We call it the “Ultimate Experience” which forms part of our unique selling proposition.
Ph. 02 9420 0083, 59 Tambourine Bay Road, Riverview.
You’re welcome to connect with us on social media:
The latest data provided by CoreLogic, shows house price growth continued to surge in Sydney with capital growth of 18.4 per cent over the last year.
Especially after recent rate increases on investor loans and changes to loan-value ratios? APRA (the Australian Prudential Regulator) flagged to banks that investor lending growth that is over 10 per cent will be viewed as a risk indicator in considering whether further action should be taken. With approval from the Reserve Bank, commercial banks have independently raised rates on new investor loans by between 0.27 per cent and 0.29 per cent. Many have also lowered the acceptable loan to valuation ratio (LVR) for new loan applications.
Debate about Sydney’s property boom bombards us almost every day, but as the chart from CoreLogic shows, even in Sydney, house price growth has been reasonable. An average annual growth rate of 5.7 per cent over the last 10 years is nothing to be alarmed of.
regards,
Andrew Bruce & Samia Malouf
Riverview Realty is a boutique agency focused on achieving the maximum price, with a client engagement that is above the industry standard. We call it the “Ultimate Experience” which forms part of our unique selling proposition.
Ph. 02 9420 0083, 59 Tambourine Bay Road, Riverview.
You’re welcome to connect with us on social media:
There was a very healthy turnout for one of our recent auctions in Lane Cove. There’s strong demand as a recent Domain article by Kate Farrelly suggests.
With a swath of apartment developments under construction or newly built, there are plenty of units to choose from, but only nine houses on the market as Domain went to press.
So it’s little surprise that the median house price rose 19 per cent in the 12 months to March this year and now sits at $1,538,750, edging closer to the traditionally more expensive suburb of Willoughby, which has a median house price of $1.63 million.
Properties close to the newly upgraded village centre are keenly sought, with large family homes pulling record prices. There have been eight $2-million-plus sales over the past year, the highest in Little Street, which sold for $2,875,000 in November.
Locals like
It’s less than 10 kilometres to the CBD via the Gore Hill freeway and a short drive to the shopping and dining mecca of Chatswood. There are large expanses of bushland, including a slice of waterfront reserve, good primary schools and a growing choice of shops in the village and on Burns Bay Road, where a new IGA Express has opened its doors.
Andrew Bruce, Principal of Riverview Realty said: “We’ve seen massive price increases in the Willoughby Council area including Chatswood, Willoughby, Naremburn, and Chatswood West and it appears that some of this is rubbing off in Lane Cove with strong, above-market prices. The value-proposition of Lane Cove is finally being understood.”
“There’s a lot of talk in the market of a bubble, but according to Alan Kohler’s Eureka Report the Sydney market is about 14% above the historical trend line. What we’ve seen is not your classic property boom as it is now going on three years and it’s been front of mind for quite some time. According to recent reports, housing is set to grow by low single digits next year, suggesting a softer landing as opposed to a crash.”
“It would be fair to say that within the property clock cycle, we are coming up to the 12th hour.”
regards,
Andrew Bruce & Samia Malouf
Riverview Realty is a boutique agency focused on achieving the maximum price, with a client engagement that is above the industry standard. We call it the “Ultimate Experience” which forms part of our unique selling proposition.
Ph. 02 9420 0083, 59 Tambourine Bay Road, Riverview.
You’re welcome to connect with us on social media:
Regular readers of Riverview Realty’s blog would know that underquoting is an issue we despise, but it is a topic that needs to be discussed, an as such, is one that we blog about regularly.
Catch up on on previous blog posts including why Some agents should go to hell, and Sins of the Agent: Underquoting.
In the media release, the Premier of NSW states:
“The reforms will improve confidence among homebuyers and close any loopholes that agents may be exploiting,” Mr Baird said. “Under the new laws, it will be illegal for agents to advertise a property for less than the selling price they have outlined in their agreement with the vendor. We want to create a fairer system for potential buyers who are prepared to spend money on building and pest inspection reports believing the property is in their price range.”
“Agents caught underquoting already face fines of $22,000. Under the new laws, they will also lose all fees and commissions made from the sale. Buying a property is one of the biggest purchases many people will make, which is why we’re taking extra steps to ensure homebuyers have a fair marketplace. Underquoting cheats potential homebuyers and undermines the integrity of the real estate industry and we want to send a clear message to rogue real estate agents that it won’t be tolerated.”
Further in the release, Mr Mason-Cox, Minister for Fair Trading said changes will be made to legislation to clear up the confusion around what constitutes underquoting.
“The laws will be changed to recognise underquoting has occurred if the advertised selling price of a property is less than the price indicated in the agent’s agreement with the vendor,” he said. “The new laws will also focus on advertising and will require all property advertisements to specify a dollar price or price range as opposed to ‘offers over’ to give potential buyers a better idea of the real market value of the property. We’ll also protect vendors from agents who misrepresent a property’s potential selling price in return for the listing. All too often we hear about agents promising vendors a selling price they’re unlikely to ever achieve to secure their listing before pressuring them to agree to a lower price once the property sells.”
NSW Fair Trading has already begun acting on the real estate industry, very publicly probing agencies across the city, particularly in Southern parts of Sydney. Real Estate agents who have their training up to date, and have nothing to hide, welcome Fair Trading’s inspections.
regards,
Andrew Bruce & Samia Malouf
Riverview Realty is a boutique agency focused on achieving the maximum price, with a client engagement that is above the industry standard. We call it the “Ultimate Experience” which forms part of our unique selling proposition.
Ph. 02 9420 0083, 59 Tambourine Bay Road, Riverview.
You’re welcome to connect with us on social media:
Following on from my previous blogs on setting the right expectations, we have heard that some agents, who are over pricing properties to get listings, are also combining a scaled commission approach with the offer.
This may seem reasonable and in some cases scaled commission is normal, but when coupled with over-pricing it becomes a “dodgy” sales technique to mislead the vendor in an attempt to validate the potential for the agent to achieve the highest and most ambitious price promised in their appraisal.
If we peel back the layers of this offer, the difference between the base commission and the higher end commission is only a matter of a few thousand dollars to the agent and structured so that no matter what the property sells for the agent is basically getting close to his full commission anyway.
In the end, the vendors get their expectations reset to the lower sale figure and are “short changed” on the promise of a higher sale price that was never going to materialise in the first place.
Recruit your agent carefully.
Andrew Bruce & Samia Malouf
Riverview Realty is a boutique agency focused on achieving the maximum price, with a client engagement that is above the industry standard. We call it the “Ultimate Experience” which forms part of our unique selling proposition.
Ph. 02 9420 0083, 59 Tambourine Bay Road, Riverview.
You’re welcome to connect with us on social media: