I have to admit that we’ve been expecting a bit of a turn down in the market. There was a lot of press in the last quarter of 2017 about the market slowing. And, we did in fact see open home numbers drop from an average of 11 groups per open mid year to around 6 groups by the end of the year. I was curious to see how the year would start as open home numbers are our first indicator of market conditions. I was quite astonished that our average open home attendance was 19 groups last Saturday (13th Jan), with one property blocking up the streets with 50 groups coming through. Most of the homes we had open were first home buyer homes, so this may also be a factor in showing just how many first home buyers there are looking.
It is still early days to make any big predictions, but I will say that I’ve never seen averages of this level, so it will be interesting to see how things pan out over the coming weeks as we have quite a few higher end homes coming onto the market.
With many agencies, including two in our area, being charged with under-quoting and some big fines being dished out ($880,000 was one of the most recent fines) buyers should find that agencies are starting to fall in line with their pricing of properties too. Consumer Affairs are definitely keen to make an example of anyone doing the wrong thing. This means that the Statement of Information which is produced for each property for sale should be genuinely comparable and the range given should be a good indicator of the eventual sale price. It doesn’t mean that the property needs to sell within that range – it can sell below or above, but it shouldn’t be deliberately misleading.
If you have any questions about the market or the under-quoting laws, or you’d like to get an updated appraisal of your home or investment property please feel welcome to give me a call or, contact our office to speak with one of my experienced team members.
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