A global pandemic has not dampened demand for property in the Far North with many agents posting record sales.
A GLOBAL pandemic has not dampened demand for property in the Far North, with many agents posting record sales.
Elite Real Estate Services sales director Karl Latham said this week had been the firm’s busiest in months.
“Obviously there has been a big impact in a negative way on the share market and bricks and mortar is relatively safe,” he said.
“We’ve got high vacancy rates, the mortgage rate has dropped to about 2 per cent. In any previous economic shift, usually the property market is affected in a negative way, but not now.
“We have just got to adapt, really – there is still an intention out there to buy and sell.
“There are still rental properties on the market, there will still be people taking job transfers and needing homes, people moving away and selling.
“I think the market will go on – the conditions will make it more difficult for inspections, but we will all come out the other side, whether it’s (in) a few weeks or a few months.”
RE/MAX Cairns principal Ray Murphy said that in the past 10 days his office had completed seven cash contracts.
“And they were not small either – they were for properties worth $400,000 to $800,000,” he said.
“We’re finding because the stock market is so vulnerable and unpredictable, people are pulling their money out and putting it in bricks and mortar, and we are seeing a positive flow-on from that.
“I’ve talked to first home buyers who have said ‘if I lose my job, I’ll have to pay rent, so I may as well buy the house because the house is cheaper’.”
An auction held on Tuesday at the Whitfield chapel recorded a 50 per cent clearance rate.
For those who already own property, Mortgage Choice Cairns’s Lindon Reed said there were two ways to take advantage of a highly unusual economy.
“Look at your own individual circumstances. If you are in a casual job and the future is a bit uncertain, talk to the banks,” he said.
“If you’re in a safe job or you’re self-employed but stable and you’re expecting your income might drop a bit, considering refinancing, even if it is a 50/50 combination, so you’re getting that benefit of the reduction in interest rates.
“We are preparing for people to hunker down and take advantage of these low rates.
“People are starting to say the RBA doesn’t have too much room to move, we’re expecting things to flatten out a bit. The banks have already proven they are passing the cuts on. Earlier this month, all they did was drop the variable rate, never touched the fixed. This time (on Thursday), the variable stayed the same and they dropped the fixed. They are hedging their bets.”
With first homebuyer’s grants and the mortgage insurance guarantee certain to continue, according to Mr Reed, the property market should continue to get an injection from the younger demographic.
“The First Home Loan Deposit Scheme is going gangbusters, especially for smaller homes and units,” he said.
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