The common objection I get when dealing with potential downsizing vendors has always been to their frustration, "where do I go!", or "what can I buy?". Fair enough. Historically the most competitive markets have typically been the lower-end. The notion of selling a beloved freestanding home which has served the family well for generations, only to be left with pocket-change, and an apartment is understandably nonsense. Not in 2021!
The great news for owners looking to trade-down from higher priced properties is that unlike the last two booms of 2003 and 2017, this time around the lower end market capital growth is lagging behind by as much as 28%. This translates to downsizers being hundreds of thousands of dollars better off today than they would have been if they had have done the same thing only four years ago. Illustrated in the graphs below.
Employment has continued a great recovery post JobKeeper ending in March, which will fuel the market in months to come. The return to work will strengthen the first home buyer market and we may see a shift toward the lower-end market, in fact preliminary data for this second quarter has already supported this trend.
Suburb price records have been set recently by houses in Maroubra for $14,000,000, in Matraville for $3,660,000, Malabar (confidential), Pagewood for $3,510,000, Rosebery for $4,725,000, Kingsford for $6,150,000, Kensington for $6,000,000, South Coogee for $16,850,000 (14 Bunya Parade), Randwick (Confidential) and Mascot for $3,165,000.
Lovely long-term clients of mine recently sold their home, after we assisted in preparing the property for sale. The process from the initial 'cup-of-tea' to sale ran smoothly. Over no more than 6 weeks, we were able to dictate favourable terms which included a four month settlement, deposit release and a record sale price. We have now helped them in securing a large, beautiful single-level north-facing apartment with district views. They were over the moon and are currently, with a new spring in their step, shopping for an investment property for their 'kids'. Long-story-short? This fairy-tail ending is one of many taking place right now and would have been near impossible four years ago. My take on things is that no matter what, or where the state of the market is, there are always opportunities. If you are prepared to take them!
