Top tips for buying in the 2020/21 Holiday Season

The rush to buy before Christmas is always a tough period for prospective buyers, but this year, it seems even tougher to purchase than usual. With Australian’s collectively saving over $110 billion during the pandemic, many buyers are primed and ready to get into the market, spurred on by record low interest rates, relaxing of lending conditions, and revised price increase forecasts for 2021.

Indeed, property prices only fell marginally in 2020, despite the pandemic. Nothing like the dooms day predictions of some research houses such as the Commonwealth Bank and NAB, which were sometimes predicting up to a 30% decline in property value. CoreLogic data shows home prices jumped 0.8% nationally in November with a rebound under way in every capital city. Home loan applications are also at an all time high, and SQM Research is predicting property prices in Sydney will increase in 2021, between 7% – 11%, with national average prices rising between 5% – 9%.

Interestingly, many of these predictions account for a third wave lockdown due to COVID19 affecting us at some point in 2021.

An interesting time indeed for prospective buyers with the Fear of Missing Out becoming a real issue for most.

In terms of the Christmas period, this presents its own challenges which are adding to these complexities, due to the fact that many properties are currently being prepared for sale in 2021, pushing most buyers to heavy competition on stock which is currently sitting on the market.

There are a few considerations to make when it comes to purchasing in this market, and in this period being:

What stock is available now, vs. what is likely to become available soon?

January and February often unfold as hot months for the Sydney property market, with the period after Australia Day often declared as one of the busiest, as the country officially becomes “open for business” again following the Christmas Break. Often this means that a large number of properties may sit ‘off market’ over the break, poised to hit the market when buyers return in January.

This often presents a great opportunity for the discerning buyer over the holiday period, who should continue their search during the holidays, as it is critical to be ahead of the pack when the first weekend of open homes in January comes around, not to mention that many stock standard buyers will drop off during the holiday period, as they go away on their own break.

Are you in the best possible position to move forward in a competitive market?

In a competitive market, it is critical that you have all of your ducks lined up, so you are ready to go when you find the right property.

You should have:

– A fully assessed home loan pre-approval in place,

– Be aware of the lenders processing times over Christmas, as these can often blow out due to high demand,

– Retained a conveyancer or solicitor to complete legal work for you, and be aware of their opening hours over the holiday period,

– If using a Buyer’s Agent, discussed with them your strategy during this time, if the right property were to become available.

Contact us to discuss your holiday property moves

e. enquiries@buyersmarketsydney.com.au

p. 02 9358 4857