The Perth market is beginning to look different from the one buyers and sellers experienced at the beginning of the year.
At the end of July, there were 6,718 properties listed for sale, up 9.6 per cent from June and more than double the level recorded a year earlier. Houses took a median of 23 days to sell in July, compared with 18 days in June and 13 days a year earlier. Units took a median of 19 days.
This does not necessarily reflect a sudden surge of owners deciding to sell. REIWA says new listings have largely returned towards longer-term norms at the same time as buyer demand has moderated, allowing available stock to accumulate.
Prices, meanwhile, have continued to increase. REIWA reported its July median house sale price at $950,000, up 18 per cent year-on-year, while its July unit figure was $681,000, up 22.7 per cent. REIWA says the rate of growth has peaked, rather than suggesting the market itself has collapsed.
What this means for sellers
Sellers can no longer assume that every property will attract immediate competition simply because it has reached the market. Buyers now have more choice, more time to compare properties and greater capacity to negotiate.
That makes correct pricing, presentation, marketing and negotiation considerably more important than they were during the most undersupplied phase of the market.
What this means for buyers
The change provides something Perth buyers have had very little of recently: breathing room.
More stock and longer selling periods can create greater opportunity to compare properties, complete due diligence and make decisions without the same pressure that characterised the market earlier this year. REIWA nevertheless cautions that individual suburbs and property types can behave very differently from the metropolitan-wide figures.
