Home Buyers Index: market conditions continue to favour buyers over sellers in August

Australian real estate conditions continue to favour buyers, according to the latest Commonwealth Bank/ RP Data Home Buyers Index (HBI), released today. End Quote

(1888PressRelease) October 15, 2012 - The HBI report for the August quarter 2012, reveals the housing market remained flat throughout the quarter, with the number of properties for sale continuing to outweigh the number of new home loans funded.

As we enter the Spring peak buying season, the latest HBI report will provide prospective home buyers or those commencing negotiations on the purchase of a new home with food for thought, particularly those located within states supportive of a buyer’s market. Queensland and Tasmania are currently experiencing conditions most supportive of a buyer’s market, while the Australian Capital Territory is experiencing more balanced market conditions with buyers and sellers evenly matched.

Other states supportive of a buyer’s market include New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory.

When it comes to those those looking to sell their properties, the nation’s best seller’s market is Canberra with the capital region experiencing relatively strong demand for housing. This is largely the result of comparatively high wages and a closely controlled supply of new land for development across the region.

Other notable key findings across Australia:

Sydney – Sydney’s overall market conditions favour the buyer in most regions, with extreme buyer’s market conditions prevalent in the Gosford-Wyong region;
Melbourne – overall housing market conditions are balanced between buyers and sellers;
Brisbane – extreme buying conditions across almost half of the region, a result of virtually no growth in property values over the past five years;
Adelaide – the housing market is more in favour of buyers than sellers, with Northern Adelaide the only balanced market;
Perth – following declining property values, market conditions in most locations favour buyers.
Clive van Horen, the Bank’s General Manager Home Loans, said, “With the Spring home buying season in full swing, prospective home buyers should take note of the favourable market conditions for purchasing a new home. However, as with all big purchasing decisions it’s important all home buyers look at a variety of options, do their maths and of course due diligence before making the decision to purchase a property.”

Tim Lawless, National Research Director, RP Data, said, “The HBI has remained relatively flat over the three months ending August, with the number of homes for sale continuing to outweigh buyer demand. However, some capital cities such as Melbourne and Canberra are beginning to balance out, offering some encouragement to prospective sellers.”

“The results from the three months ending August show us Australia is overall a buyer’s market, which suggests that buyers can continue to drive a hard bargain when they are negotiating on a purchase, particularly in those markets where stock levels are highest,” said Mr Lawless.

The findings from the HBI report are reflected in the Property Buy/Sell Index – a free online tool for prospective buyers that combines historical sales data and current market information to offer insight into whether a particular region is a buyer’s or seller’s market. The online Index includes expert commentary on each region, and also offers an overview of the national housing market.

To access the report summary visit www.commbank.com.au/hbi

For further information:

Kate Dudman
Commonwealth Bank
(02) 9118 7370;
kate.dudman ( @ ) cba dot com dot au

Editor’s note: About the Commonwealth Bank/RP Data Home Buyers Index Report

The Commonwealth Bank/RP Data Home Buyers Index provides an estimate of the level of supply and demand that is evident within the Australian real estate market. To calculate an estimate of supply, RP Data closely monitors the number of homes available for sale around Australia, including those from leading real estate portal, realestate.com.au and other real estate groups and advertising portals. On the demand side of the equation, Commonwealth Bank is the nation’s largest home loan lender, and as such can provide one of the timeliest and representative estimates of housing demand in the market place. The HBI is produced across a range of geographic boundaries, from a national index to state level indices, major regional indices, capital cities and broad regions within capital cities.

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