You probably lost a few dollars at the races but you probably took a bigger hip pocket hit as the Reserve Bank of Australia hiked rates again.
This is the seventh straight rate hike and it’s triggered six straight months of national home value declines.
CoreLogic data shows home values across the country fell 1.2 per cent in October from a month earlier, with the median home price now at $721,018.
In Brisbane we saw a 2 per cent drop last month, taking our median price to $728,615. This was the largest monthly drop of all capital cities. However, Brissie property values are still up 8.4 per cent from where they were a year ago.
So how far will they fall? Pick a number. ME Bank is tipping a 15 per cent drop peak to trough reports Mortgage Professional Australia magazine. But the reality is it’s hard to predict. There’s a general view that prices will level out when rates do.
So what’s a home buyer or seller to do in the current market?
If you’re buying a home to live in – keep it simple. Set a budget, with a rate rise buffer, and buy a home you can afford. Over the long term, the price you pay today won’t mean much in 10 or so years. (Fun fact: the average length of home ownership in Queensland is 11 years according to Statistica so there’s a long time ahead for rates and values to make all sorts of merry moves.)
For sellers, it can be daunting to sell in a dropping market. But good value homes will continue to sell for reasonable asking prices, and still above pre-pandemic prices.
Thinking of making a move? Contact us for a chat, view our current listings for sale or talk to us about selling.
