The recent Reserve Bank move to cut the official cash rate to a historically low 2.5 per cent should be an encouraging sign for home buyers. With many lenders passing on the rate cut to borrowers, it just may be that buying a first home has become a more achievable goal for Australians. That’s great news if you’ve been plotting a move in the real estate market but have so far found it rough going in the affordability stakes.
In light of the new cash rate, it may be worth having a chat with a mortgage broker about your home finance options. It’s not only buyers that could benefit from lower interest rates, but sellers too. If you’ve got a property on the market, you could be in for a few more enquiries from keen parties.
With more people potentially on the hunt for houses due to more accommodating home loan interest rates, this could drive demand and make conditions better for those hoping to sell their place at a good price. Another piece of promising news for sellers is that house price movement has been positive in 2013.
The Housing Industry Association (HIA) this week noted that revised figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) showed that capital city house prices rose by 2.4 per cent over the June quarter. That meant annual growth had hit 5.1 per cent, which HIA economist Diwa Hopkins said meant prices were now at an “all-time high”.
“These price developments signal increased activity in the housing market, with lower interest rates an obvious contributor,” said Ms Hopkins in an August 6 statement. She said that another factor could be the resurgence of confidence throughout the property sector. Ms Hopkins notes that this hasn’t quite hit previous peaks but that it was nonetheless higher than in recent times. “This compares with the previous year when pessimism was quite entrenched.”
Spring is just around the corner and with it comes a traditionally strong selling period for residential real estate. If you are thinking about putting your property on the market over the coming months, now may be a great time to start planning how you’ll go about it. You can’t go past the knowledge expertise of real estate agents when it comes to marketing your property.
By working with real estate professionals you can increase your chances of maximising the sale price of your home.
Flexible working locations are becoming the norm, but have you perfected your home office set up? Whether you’re working from a kitchen table or you’re lucky enough to have a home office space, here are some of the essential items you need to successfully work from home. How many can … Read more
It was a month of records. We are extremely proud that we served more than 19,000 families and businesses to find a new home or investment property across Australia and New Zealand during the month, representing $8.74 billion in transaction value. This result is up a staggering 92 per cent year … Read more