Is It A Good Time To Buy?

If you are new to property, you’ll be listening to the news and media and probably be thinking straight up – NO.

In our opinion however, we think the opposite and it is a good time to buy. The reality is this – the goal for most people who are buying property is that it’s normally a long game, and in any long game there will always be cycles. And what we are seeing now in the property market today is just that, another cycle and one that is turning into a buyers market.

Only two years ago when COVID hit our shores, all we heard in the media and from every ‘expert’ in town (banks, economists, financial gurus and the like) was doom and gloom with a barrage of rhetoric telling us “Prices will fall by 20%-30%”, “The property market will crash” and “It will take 3-5 years for the property market to recover” and so on.

And we all know how well those predictions transpired.

What did we see in the SE Queensland property market in 2020? 

  • Stock levels halved overnight (sellers got scared and held off listing their homes). As did the number of property transactions.
  • Open homes and auctions stopped (to eventually start up again online only for a quite few months).
  • Consumer sentiment dropped due to fear of the unknown. Buyer competition as a result, halved.
  • Homes were still selling, there were just less of them offered for sale, and their prices remained at similar levels to previous months i.e. they didn’t drop. Prices just didn’t go up.
  • The rental market was tight, but no one could move so effectively it also paused.
  • Vendor discounting marginally increased
  • Some buyers were waiting for the 20%-30% price drops to snatch a bargain i.e. attempting to predict the market bottom. Which they didn’t and eventually ended up paying more in the end.
  • The economy was slowing, and the RBA dropped the cash rate to eventually 0.10% (Nov 2020). Borrowing money was cheap which stimulated consumer sentiment and in many other markets as well e.g motor vehicles – both new and used.

As a result of the ‘pause’ that the market experienced, buyers held off their purchases which created pent-up demand, which then exploded only 6 months later and started the last upwards cycle that everyone experienced and heard about – from the media. And that’s the problem with the media, it’s only boom or bust…anything to get eyeballs on their content.

TIP #1

Don’t listen to the media and make 30-year purchasing and investment decisions based on the last 30 days’ news.

Be smart and be careful where or who you get your information from. Historically no one has been able to predict future property prices, because no one has a crystal ball…that works.

Fast forward to August 2022, Inflation is up and the RBA has used their one effective economy lever and raised interest rates to try and slow things down, hence access to finance has become dearer. For those of you who have been through a few property cycles would still remember the first decade of this century where the cash rate went up and down like a yo-yo between 5%-7% constantly, and at the time we all managed. We didn’t go broke…we all managed to survive. Properties were bought and sold, people purchased great investments and homes to live in…it was, what it was. We just didn’t have the incessant media and experts out there scarring everyone half to death that world was going to end.

TIP #2

Be diligent with your finances and know what you can afford.

But this has always been the case since time began.

So what are we now seeing in the property market being on the ground every day? 

  • Prices are holding for the quality properties and in the quality suburbs.
  • The overinflated properties that sold 6-12 months ago in the not-so-good areas have started to come back to their true value. The latest figures we have for Brisbane for example is that prices dropped only 1.43% this last month.
  • Stock levels are down.
  • Extremely tight rental market conditions (still).
  • Consumer sentiment is down.
  • Auction levels have dropped. but still active. Home opens are conducted as per normal.
  • Vendor discounting has marginally increased.
  • Buyers are holding off due to fear, hence pent-up demand has started (again).
  • And some buyers are waiting for the 20-30% drop in prices to pick up a bargain (again).

Simply, it has once again become a buyer’s market. And what will happen in the coming months towards the end of the year when this pent-up demand is released? In our opinion similar to what happened only 2 years ago…increased competition. Increased competition and demand equals an increase in prices.

Whist the decision is always yours, if you are thinking of buying a home to live in or an investment property, remember it’s a long game and the market will always go through these cycles.

TIP #3

Just be aware and not alarmed.

Do your research, get your facts and information from many sources – not just one or two.

Whilst there are many moving parts to an economy and the property market, the above is just a simplified view and our opinion of what we are seeing.

We might at a later stage release a more detailed opinion that takes into account all the juicy numbers and figures that the economist in you loves e.g population growth, wage growth, migration, unemployment rate, commodity prices & exports, cash rate, debt levels, household income & savings ratios, LVR, affordability, plus a whole lot more.

If you have comments on any of the above, please email us because we would love to hear your opinion on the above.

If you would like help to buy in today’s market and not overpay…

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Services

Are You Time Poor?

Equity Wealth Buyer’s Agents are an Agency for primary place of residence, investment & development site buyers. We do all the leg work for you and become your eyes and ears on the ground.

The process of purchasing your ideal property can take a lot of time, effort and energy, and in some cases, it can take hundreds and hundreds of hours of searching, investigating, evaluating and inspecting, just to find that right home or investment.

The question is, do you have this time?

Who we help

Let Us Do All The Legwork

To break it down even further, our services encompass the entire purchasing process, from start to finish – from finding that perfect property right up to settlement.

After the initial thorough researching and inspecting, we do the negotiating with agents, we bid at the auction on your behalf, we assist with organising the building & pest inspections, strata reports, conveyancing.

In fact we assist with the entire process right up to the settlement date… when you get the keys to your new home or investment.

What we do

Save Time, Money & Stress

We will not have any vested interests or commissions attached to buying you a particular property like real estate agents do when they sell – meaning we are working in only your corner, and with your best interests to primarily save you time, money and a lot of stress.

We pride on our passion with what we do, our unrivalled enthusiasm and the commitment and integrity that we have with our clients, business partners and professional networks. We’re all about being authentic and real with our clients, and not just about getting that next deal. Our success is directly reflected by your success, so when you win, then we win too.

Property insights

Buying a investment property is different from buying a home

You might hear commentary that ‘cashflow is king’ or ‘growth is key’ or ‘only buy blue-chip properties’ to have a successful property portfolio.

In reality when you’re starting out you need both cashflow and growth.

You want both, you need both.

And blue-chip properties…unless you have a large war chest of funds and an exceptionally high salary, buying only blue-chip properties long term and growing your portfolio quickly can be very tough.

BUT, there is hope… below are some examples of property that won’t put you under financial duress and all sourced and purchased recently. And we are sharing with you the Case Studies with the real viability ‘numbers’ on two of these purchases for first time investors.

Buying process

Buying a investment property requires a different skill set

When you’re starting out, most don’t have a huge bank balance to buy and hold blue-chip properties…I know we didn’t. That’s why we started investing small years ago in solid cash flow properties that are located in up and coming growth areas (and no, they weren’t in mining towns that went from boom to bust overnight a few years ago).

Starting and growing a healthy portfolio does take time, a good strategy, patience, perseverance, buying the right properties in the right locations, and buying them in the right order. And when you get it right you will be able to grow a portfolio very quickly, dependent on how aggressive you want to go.

The end result is the following strategy, one of many that just works. Our clients love it which is why they keep coming back.

Get in touch today & find your next Home or Investment Property with us!