Got to be in it to win it!

There may be a housing supply shortage but that’s definitely not the case when it comes to the volume of properties for sale.

So what has happened?

There are 18% more properties available now than at the same time last year and 7.7% above the previous five year average. During the COVID years and from the onset of interest rate rises in 2022, homeowners looking to make a move reconsidered their options and retreated in droves.

Lack of assurance about how high rates would rise led to a quasi stagnation in activity from sellers but not to the same level for buyers. Buyers were fighting over the relatively small number of properties for sale making competition fierce.

Apart from this period of reticence from sellers there are some other possible reasons driving the current above-average level of vendor activity. It is well known that the cost of living has been creating a financial pinch among most of the community in recent times. Some home owners may be looking to offload some of their debt to ease the pressure and others may simply be looking to cash out of the market following a period of significant growth in values.

Despite this uptick in vendor activity and listing numbers, buyer demand in the Sydney market remains high, countering the tendency for prices to soften when supply outnumbers demand. Having said that, auction clearance rates are declining slightly with less registered bidders on average competing for the same home.

It may be a more challenging market for sellers but good agents are still achieving sales that leave both sellers and buyers happy.