Sales are picking up and the agents are cheering.
Even most analysts are cautiously upbeat .
When Double Bay real estate agent Michael Finger went to an auction the other night, Hoping to sell two Clovelly properties, he ended up selling three. Buyers were so keen to snap up what he had to sell that one of the vendors ended up putting a property he owned next door on the marker, too. "And all three went for well more than what I expected," he says. "It was amazing." Up on the North Shore, it was a similar week for Pymble agent John Luschwitz. He sold a $2 million house in Wahroonga for more than its reserve before even the first inspection, and another nearby for $1.55 million within the first five days of the campaign.
And at the Holt Property Group in Sutherland Shire, they're still celebrating a record week, with 10 houses sold in five days. Could it be that the Sydney property market has finally turned the corner/
KEEP THE CHAMPAGNE ON ICE
All the experts are cautious. Yes, things are looking up but only slightly. Growth rates are positive but not in all areas. Prices are rising but not across the board. If interest rates go up again - though with inflation apparently under control this seems unlikely in the near future - the improving results could so easily stall. "If we look at houses, we see a 0.73 per cent growth in this last March quarter," says Kris Mathews, general manager for products and marketing RP Data. "The year 2006, overall, showed a negative growth rate - minus 0.64 per cent. So while we have some growth, it's still on a bit of a knife edge," he says. But it's hard, after such a long period of a flat housing market, to postpone the celebrations. According to RP Data, the median house price in Sydney is now $515,200, compared to $512,090 in March last year. There is also a lot more property coming on to the market - 44,823 houses for sale this March against 39,742 in March last year.
"All the indicators are there but it's still sluggish," Mathews says. "We would be keen to see how the next quarter pans out. It's a question of waiting to see if the next quarter maintains the status." At Australian Property Monitors, however, operations manager Michael McNamara says there's a clear distinction between the inner city, east and north shore, which are picking up and areas that aren't. His latest data - the March quarterly figures released this week - show that prices on the lower north shore, for instance have gone up 9 per cent over the past year, with the median house price rising there from $1.03 million in March last years to Similarly, on the northern beaches, prices have increased by 7 per cent. In direct contrasts, prices in the south-west have fallen 6 per cent, from a March 2006 median house price of $350,000 to $330,000, and Canterbury-Bankstown showing falls of 5 per cent from $431,000 to $410,000. "Half of Sydney, the more affluent parts, is definitely in recovery mode and the market is moving up. But the other half is struggling," McNamara says. "They're looking down the barrel of interest rate rises, which could send a lot of people to the wall. The immediate future for them looks bleak. For them, there's little light on the horizon."
But others are more upbeat. At investment research company Advisor Edge, property research head Louis Christopher forecasts a 10.5 per cent median house price rise for Sydney in the coming year, although the west and south-west, he believes, will be slower to catch up. "They're still experiencing a downturn, with last year's interest rate rises biting hard."
THE MOOD'S CHANGING
Many Agents, however, are reporting a real lift in the market mood. In the eastern suburbs, Ray White agent Finger reports selling another $5 million property, this time in Dover Heights, a few days before its first open home.
Most well-priced properties are achieving more than their listing price now, he says. "That's across the board, for homes that cost under $300,000 as much as for those over $15 million. People are now leaving the stock market and buying houses, while improving rental returns are bringing the investors back, too." In Paddington, agent Adam Regan, of Snowden Lane, also says demand is far outstripping supply, forcing prices upwards: "There's dozens of buyers [for each property] around now." Shannan Whitney, of Darlinghurst's BresicWhitney, reports the same spike in sales. In the past two weeks, he's sold a house in Surry Hills with a reserve of $780,000 for $867,000, and one in Darlinghurst for $905,000, when it was expected to reach only $825,000. "The market isn't going backwards any more," he says.
In the north, Lushwitz of Lushwitz Real Estate says there's a lot of more stock coming on to the marker and a lot more buyer activity. "It's excellent at the moment," he says. "We're getting good results at all price points. I think a lot of people have been waiting to see how it was going to work out and now they're coming into the market again." In Mosman, the shortage of stick is keeping prices buoyant. "The buyers are making prices extremely positive," says Geoff Smith, of LJ Hooker. In the south, Brad Miles, of the Holt agency in Menai, is smiling, too. "March was a record month for our business," he says. "Properties are selling a lot quicker than we though and fore more. We can't get enough stick. People seem to know we've hit the bottom now and we're on our way back up." In the south-west, in Bankstown, Charles Frank Real Estate agent Frank Sotto says things are going well. "We're getting 10 inquiries a say on average," he says. "Vendors are pretty happy and we're all feeling optimistic. It's the same in parts of the west. Steve Phillips of Raine & Horne Penrith says inquiries are increasing on a daily basis. "It's slowly on the increase," he says. "Not having an increase in interest rates has definitely helped."
HOPE ON THE HORIZON
Some of the fringe areas and outer suburbs are lagging behind the rest, which is to be expected in any growth cycle, says Residex managing director John Edwards. "The outher areas are the last to show growth," he says. "The fringes improve more slowly than the inner city. But we are indeed into a new period of growth."
It's a view shared by PRDnationwide research director Tim Lawless. The bottom of the market was this time last year, he says, now it's back on the way up. "In the main, Sydney has definitely left the worst of the market behind. We're seeing a return of investors because of improving yields and the prospect of capital growth is now starting to enter people's minds. Any growth is encouraging."
Michael McNamara from Australian Property Monitors says; "A real dichotomy is opening up between Sydney's affluent suburbs which are in recovery and the outer suburbs where the horizon is bleak."
John Edwards from Residex says; "Over the last three to four months we've seen the market rising. There's a clear upward trend and we would expect the market to continue to correct."
Rod Cornish from Macquarie says; "Conditions will improve and the next phase is stabilisation which will see fairly moderate growth sand sales volumes increasing - depending on fairly flat interest rates."
Kris Mathews from RP Data says; "There's still a long way to go and it's still a bit sluggish, but clearance rates are lifting and there has been positive growth for this last quarter."
Tim Lawless from PRDnationwide says; "Sydney has defiantly left the worst of the market behind. Activity is increasing and prices are trending upwards, but it's still at a pretty small level."
Louis Christopher from Adviser Edge says; "It is clear the Sydney residential property market is now in recovery. Overall, our forecast is that the Sydney median house price is likely to rise by 10.5 per cent this year."
Even most analysts are cautiously upbeat .
When Double Bay real estate agent Michael Finger went to an auction the other night, Hoping to sell two Clovelly properties, he ended up selling three. Buyers were so keen to snap up what he had to sell that one of the vendors ended up putting a property he owned next door on the marker, too. "And all three went for well more than what I expected," he says. "It was amazing." Up on the North Shore, it was a similar week for Pymble agent John Luschwitz. He sold a $2 million house in Wahroonga for more than its reserve before even the first inspection, and another nearby for $1.55 million within the first five days of the campaign.
And at the Holt Property Group in Sutherland Shire, they're still celebrating a record week, with 10 houses sold in five days. Could it be that the Sydney property market has finally turned the corner/
KEEP THE CHAMPAGNE ON ICE
All the experts are cautious. Yes, things are looking up but only slightly. Growth rates are positive but not in all areas. Prices are rising but not across the board. If interest rates go up again - though with inflation apparently under control this seems unlikely in the near future - the improving results could so easily stall. "If we look at houses, we see a 0.73 per cent growth in this last March quarter," says Kris Mathews, general manager for products and marketing RP Data. "The year 2006, overall, showed a negative growth rate - minus 0.64 per cent. So while we have some growth, it's still on a bit of a knife edge," he says. But it's hard, after such a long period of a flat housing market, to postpone the celebrations. According to RP Data, the median house price in Sydney is now $515,200, compared to $512,090 in March last year. There is also a lot more property coming on to the market - 44,823 houses for sale this March against 39,742 in March last year.
"All the indicators are there but it's still sluggish," Mathews says. "We would be keen to see how the next quarter pans out. It's a question of waiting to see if the next quarter maintains the status." At Australian Property Monitors, however, operations manager Michael McNamara says there's a clear distinction between the inner city, east and north shore, which are picking up and areas that aren't. His latest data - the March quarterly figures released this week - show that prices on the lower north shore, for instance have gone up 9 per cent over the past year, with the median house price rising there from $1.03 million in March last years to Similarly, on the northern beaches, prices have increased by 7 per cent. In direct contrasts, prices in the south-west have fallen 6 per cent, from a March 2006 median house price of $350,000 to $330,000, and Canterbury-Bankstown showing falls of 5 per cent from $431,000 to $410,000. "Half of Sydney, the more affluent parts, is definitely in recovery mode and the market is moving up. But the other half is struggling," McNamara says. "They're looking down the barrel of interest rate rises, which could send a lot of people to the wall. The immediate future for them looks bleak. For them, there's little light on the horizon."
But others are more upbeat. At investment research company Advisor Edge, property research head Louis Christopher forecasts a 10.5 per cent median house price rise for Sydney in the coming year, although the west and south-west, he believes, will be slower to catch up. "They're still experiencing a downturn, with last year's interest rate rises biting hard."
THE MOOD'S CHANGING
Many Agents, however, are reporting a real lift in the market mood. In the eastern suburbs, Ray White agent Finger reports selling another $5 million property, this time in Dover Heights, a few days before its first open home.
Most well-priced properties are achieving more than their listing price now, he says. "That's across the board, for homes that cost under $300,000 as much as for those over $15 million. People are now leaving the stock market and buying houses, while improving rental returns are bringing the investors back, too." In Paddington, agent Adam Regan, of Snowden Lane, also says demand is far outstripping supply, forcing prices upwards: "There's dozens of buyers [for each property] around now." Shannan Whitney, of Darlinghurst's BresicWhitney, reports the same spike in sales. In the past two weeks, he's sold a house in Surry Hills with a reserve of $780,000 for $867,000, and one in Darlinghurst for $905,000, when it was expected to reach only $825,000. "The market isn't going backwards any more," he says.
In the north, Lushwitz of Lushwitz Real Estate says there's a lot of more stock coming on to the marker and a lot more buyer activity. "It's excellent at the moment," he says. "We're getting good results at all price points. I think a lot of people have been waiting to see how it was going to work out and now they're coming into the market again." In Mosman, the shortage of stick is keeping prices buoyant. "The buyers are making prices extremely positive," says Geoff Smith, of LJ Hooker. In the south, Brad Miles, of the Holt agency in Menai, is smiling, too. "March was a record month for our business," he says. "Properties are selling a lot quicker than we though and fore more. We can't get enough stick. People seem to know we've hit the bottom now and we're on our way back up." In the south-west, in Bankstown, Charles Frank Real Estate agent Frank Sotto says things are going well. "We're getting 10 inquiries a say on average," he says. "Vendors are pretty happy and we're all feeling optimistic. It's the same in parts of the west. Steve Phillips of Raine & Horne Penrith says inquiries are increasing on a daily basis. "It's slowly on the increase," he says. "Not having an increase in interest rates has definitely helped."
HOPE ON THE HORIZON
Some of the fringe areas and outer suburbs are lagging behind the rest, which is to be expected in any growth cycle, says Residex managing director John Edwards. "The outher areas are the last to show growth," he says. "The fringes improve more slowly than the inner city. But we are indeed into a new period of growth."
It's a view shared by PRDnationwide research director Tim Lawless. The bottom of the market was this time last year, he says, now it's back on the way up. "In the main, Sydney has definitely left the worst of the market behind. We're seeing a return of investors because of improving yields and the prospect of capital growth is now starting to enter people's minds. Any growth is encouraging."
Michael McNamara from Australian Property Monitors says; "A real dichotomy is opening up between Sydney's affluent suburbs which are in recovery and the outer suburbs where the horizon is bleak."
John Edwards from Residex says; "Over the last three to four months we've seen the market rising. There's a clear upward trend and we would expect the market to continue to correct."
Rod Cornish from Macquarie says; "Conditions will improve and the next phase is stabilisation which will see fairly moderate growth sand sales volumes increasing - depending on fairly flat interest rates."
Kris Mathews from RP Data says; "There's still a long way to go and it's still a bit sluggish, but clearance rates are lifting and there has been positive growth for this last quarter."
Tim Lawless from PRDnationwide says; "Sydney has defiantly left the worst of the market behind. Activity is increasing and prices are trending upwards, but it's still at a pretty small level."
Louis Christopher from Adviser Edge says; "It is clear the Sydney residential property market is now in recovery. Overall, our forecast is that the Sydney median house price is likely to rise by 10.5 per cent this year."
