Jellis Craig Bayside Glen Eira June Market Update

Welcome to the June newsletter. It’s been a very big month; we have seen sales activity bubbling along and some very encouraging prices and results in the market.

The election is now out of the way and regardless of your political views the result is a good one for market confidence. There was a great deal of uncertainty around changes to negative gearing and capital gains tax which had buyers and sellers sitting out of the market. Now that there is certainty around this, there is already a different energy in the market.

In the last week we have also seen APRA come out with a proposal to lenders on scrapping the 7% serviceability buffer on home loans. These changes have the potential to increase buyers’ borrowing capacity by up to 10% more. This should encourage more buyer activity in the market and release some of the downward pressure on property prices.

Those looking to purchase their first property also have good news with the introduction of the First-home Buyers’ Scheme. The Government will now top up 5% deposits to reach the standard 20% deposit requirement for 10,000 first-home buyers. This will also allow borrowers to avoid costly lenders mortgage insurance. The scheme is accessible to single first-home buyers earning up to $125,000 or couples earning $200,000.

Stable conditions ahead mean that there is time to assess what the market is offering. The challenge is that stock levels are incredibly tight and more homes for sale would be a welcome relief to anxious buyers.