Buyer confidence and concerns about job security will dictate this spring property season says the Real Estate Buyer’s Agents Association of Australia (REBAA).
REBAA spokesperson Byron Rose said buyer confidence was a big issue affecting the current market and two successive interest rate cuts would not guarantee a flurry of buyers.
Mr Rose said cooler prices and high rents made it the ideal time for property investors who had the money to buy now.
“Historically speaking this would be a great time to buy with interest rates low but there are a lot of buyers out there who have been in their jobs for 10 years and, with unemployment tipped to rise, they’re worried if they will have a job tomorrow,” he said.
“On the flipside, for those people who are self-employed or who are in secure employment, then they have the ability to buy at a time when prices have come off and interest rates are low.”
He said properties above $1.5million were attracting limited interest and were in limited supply.
“We are seeing properties in the $350k to $1million bracket as being the strongest sellers in a soft market but even here there are still opportunities to be found,” Rose said.
“We are in a cycle where we will look back in years to come and say ‘if only’.
“There are definitely some great opportunities for those buyers who do their research well and those who seek professional advice from an accredited buyer’s agent on where best to buy.”