Property price falls have extended beyond Sydney’s prestige enclaves to more affordable suburbs as the downturn becomes more widespread.
asserted
downturn → extend → suburbs
Marsfield in the Ryde-Hunters Hill area experienced the greatest price drop, falling 22 per cent in the12 months to September, according to the latest Domain House Price Report.
uncertain
Marsfield → experience → Report
Prestige beachside suburb Bronte experienced the second-greatest fall in house prices, down 15.2 per cent over the same period.
asserted
Bronte → experience → period
Across Sydney, the cost to buy the typical house fell by 5.8 per cent over the year to $1,661,167.
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cost → buy → 1,661,167
For units, prices in Darling Point fell the most, down 16.8 per cent, followed closely by Redfern, which declined by 16.2 per cent.
asserted
which → fall → cent
At the other end of the spectrum, house prices in Prospect and Richmond in outer western Sydney, and inner west heritage suburb Haberfield all rose more than 23 per cent in the past year.
asserted
prices → rise → year
For units, it was Wahroonga where prices rose the most – up 25.1 per cent.
asserted
prices → rise → units
Dr Nicola Powell, Domain’s chief residential economist, said the ongoing effects of the downturn, with house price falls in all Australian capitals over the September quarter, was always felt most keenly in Sydney.
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effects → say → Sydney
“Sydney is very sensitive to changes in interest rates because it is so highly priced,” she said.
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she → price → rates
“When you go into a market of weakness, this is when buyers shift from fear of missing out to fear of overpaying.
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buyers → go → fear
They want every dollar to work much harder than it has ever before.”
asserted
it → want → ?
Ray White chief economist Nerida Conisbee said the scattered nature of the price falls across all parts of the housing market indicated that the downturn had become more entrenched, as the impact of rate rises, higher inflation and Federal budget changes announced in May played out.
uncertain
impact → say → May
However, she said it was still the upper end of the market bearing the brunt.
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it → say → brunt
”Since the budget, we are starting to see a bit more stabilisation at the top end, but the lower end is starting to fall because we are seeing far fewer investors.
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we → start → investors
This has been coupled with fewer listings, week on week, and longer days on market as both vendors and buyers navigate an uncertain market.
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vendors → couple → market
“People think real estate agents want high prices all the time but [they] need turnover of stock.
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they → think → stock
The uncertainty we’re seeing, there are far fewer buyers [active],” she said.
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she → see → ?
Silver lining - for some
For Allanah Zitserman, the recent downturn in the market has come with a silver lining.
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downturn → come → lining
She bought a 19 square metre studio apartment in Potts Point in August for $380,000.
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She → buy → 380,000
“I have been manifesting this for at least eight years,” she said.
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she → manifest → years
“It was all I could dream about.”
uncertain
I → dream → ?
Zitserman, who has bought and sold property in Sydney and regional NSW in the past, said she had been “waiting for this moment”.
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she → buy → moment
“I was prepared for it,” she said.
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she → prepare → it
“When I saw the market going down, I started to ramp up my energy around it.
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I → see → it
I saw probably 30 or 40 places in this area.”
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I → see → area
Zitserman said she first looked around Annandale and Glebe – in the same part of Sydney where she rents a home with her two teenage daughters – before zeroing in on Potts Point.
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she → say → Point
She plans to stay in the apartment in the art deco building when she can, as well as rent it as short stay accommodation.
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she → plan → accommodation
“[Renting it out] is a great way to afford property rather than it just sitting there empty,” she said.
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she → rent → property
The plan is a full lifestyle where I can give everything I can for my children and still have something for myself.”
Sales agent for BresicWhitney East Nuri Shik said his last half a dozen sales had all been to owner-occupiers snapping up studio and one-bedroom apartments in areas such as Darlinghurst and Rushcutters Bay.
“With Allanah’s purchase, the owner had [held] it as an investment for 30 years,” Shik said.
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Shik → give → years
“Once upon a time, an investor would have bought those places.
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investor → buy → places
“I am trying to encourage all first home buyers.
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I → try → buyers
It is the best time to buy when there is uncertainty.”
asserted
It → buy → ?
The hardest thing to sway right now, said Powell, was buyer sentiment.
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Powell → sway → ?
“The market at the moment is a mix of psychology and economics influencing it,” she said.
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she → influence → it
“[There is] a lack of confidence stemming from a perception that property prices will fall further.
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prices → be → perception
“[Buyers] want to feel they are getting good value.”
asserted
they → want → value
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