It seems that the lead-up to Christmas is the best time to buy a bargain on the Australian property market this year, according to property agents.
Several property agents in the country have said that there are a number of reasons why the property market softens in Australia around this time.
These include the sinking rates of auction clearance and the fact that vendors try to sell off property before the holidays.
According to property website Domain, the reason why people rush to sell their properties before the new year is to avoid having to pay another annual load of land tax.
Gerry McPhee from Hand McPhee buyers' agent has said that people also tend to panic if no one is bidding on their property, which leads to a drop in price before the market goes dead.
What this means then is that now is a smart time to buy property in Australia, as many people will be able to negotiate a good deal on a sale price.
The ideal situation for both sides of the sale is that those looking to buy a new house will meet a seller who already has a new property in which to move.
Domain has commented that people seem to want to be "emotionally settled" before the holidays and particularly before the end of the year.
Senior economist Dr Andrew Wilson from Domain Group has said that the company is "seeing higher listing numbers" in lower north shore, inner west, east and northern beaches areas.
He has commented that these listings indicate that "buyers will have a wider choice of properties" to choose from and means that vendors could be more flexible on prices.
Dr Wilson has picked out a couple of favourite areas to buy a house, which include the suburbs of Balmain East, Strathfield, Marrickville and Leichhardt, due to the number of homes available.
Areas of new infrastructure such as the new metro rail project from Chatswood to the Bankstow line in Sydenham are other good places to look to buy property at the moment due to their potential for capital growth.
