 About 20% of home owners bought their property in the past five years, CoreLogic has estimated. The data shows that 2021 was the most common year in which homes were last purchased, with 5.3% of all homes being bought in that year.
It makes perfect sense for people to buy and sell homes every few years, because as circumstances change, we may need to upgrade, downgrade or relocate. That said, if you are able to hold onto a property for the long-term, there can be enormous benefits. First, you can avoid the transaction costs associated with buying and selling. Second, you can potentially enjoy strong capital growth. CoreLogic reports that the nation's median property price has increased by 70.2% over the past 10 years, 157.9% over the past 20 years and 425.9% over the past 30 years. Depending on your financial circumstances, it might be possible to move without selling your existing home if you turned it into an investment property. While you’d then have two mortgages, some of that extra cost would be offset by the rent you’d start collecting. If you want a larger or newer home, another alternative would be to renovate instead of moving: potentially, you could finance the project by borrowing against the equity in your home.  Home hunters have considerably more stock to choose from than earlier in the year, putting buyers in a stronger negotiating position.
SQM Research has reported that the total number of listings across Australia in August was 7.9% higher than the month before and 11.1% higher than the year before, while the number of new listings (those less than 30 days old) rose 11.8% month-on-month and 8.5% year-on-year. “Going forward, the spring selling season will provide a significant level of choice for buyers, particularly in Sydney and Melbourne, with listings at their highest levels in some years,” according to SQM Research. This is good news if you’re thinking about buying a property, because it means you’ll face less competition from other buyers. But it’s not such good news if you’re thinking about selling, because you’ll face more competition from other sellers. As a result, buyers will be encouraged to make lower offers and sellers might be forced to settle for less.  The federal government's Home Guarantee Scheme (HGS) helped 43,800 buyers enter the market in the 2023-24 financial year, Housing Australia has revealed. The HGS contains three separate programs:
 The federal government has allocated a combined 50,000 places for the three programs in the 2024-25 financial year.
All three programs are reserved for owner-occupiers, have income limits ($125,000 for single applicants and $200,000 applicants) and property price caps (see table above). Please contact me if you’re thinking about taking advantage of the HGS. I can advise you if you meet the eligibility criteria and manage your home loan application.  Property investors committed to $11.71 billion of home loans in July 2024, which was the second-highest month on record, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. It was also 35.4% higher than in July 2023, showing the enormous growth in investor activity during that time.  Here are five reasons why so many Australians consider property investing a great way to build wealth:
 One of the great things about constructing your own home is that it can be tailored to your specifications. If you’re interested in building rather than buying your dream home, here’s the process you need to follow:
It’s worth noting that the rate of annual growth in house-building costs increased from 3.9% in September 2023 to 4.3% in June 2024, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Given that costs will likely continue to rise, the sooner you build, the cheaper it could be in the long term. If this is something you’re thinking about doing, you should explore your options soon. |