Best markets revealed
A new report has revealed the most favourable markets for buyers and sellers in Australia, with metropolitan markets across the nation recording vastly different performances.
The latest Commonwealth Bank CoreLogic RP Data Home Buyers Index (HBI) has revealed that conditions in Australia’s two largest cities have shifted further in favour of sellers during the year.
According to the index, Sydney and Melbourne are the number one and two best seller’s markets (respectively) in the country.
The results are based on the ratio of properties available for sale compared with the number of housing loans being committed to by the CBA, and encompass the period from May to July.
The areas making the most significant contribution to this swing include Sydney’s inner-west and suburbs in Melbourne’s Boroondara City and eastern middle, according to the CBA.
Among the other capitals, Adelaide and Canberra also experienced a swing in favour of sellers.
Across the country, Sydney and Melbourne were followed by Victoria's Central Highlands, Canberra and Ovens-Murray (Vic) to form the five best seller’s markets.
According to Dan Huggins, CBA’s executive general manager home buying, overall national market conditions remained balanced during the results period.
“At a national level we’re seeing a relatively balanced housing market; however, conditions continue to vary across the different states, territories and capital cities,” he said.
Mr Huggins singled out Hobart and Darwin as two capital city markets that were strongly favouring buyers.
“Although Sydney and Melbourne remain skewed towards sellers, there are favourable conditions for prospective buyers in state capitals like Hobart and Darwin, as well as more regional areas across the states,” he said.
The top five sellers markets were (in descending order): far west NSW, Upper Great Southern Western Australia, Wide Bay-Burnett Queensland, south west Queensland, and northern South Australia.
Conditions in Brisbane and Perth remained balanced, according to the index.
Cameron Kusher, CoreLogic RP Data senior research analyst, said that the index highlights the opportunities offered by regional areas.
“Regional areas continue to offer the best opportunities for would-be homeowners, while sellers are still benefiting from increased demand in metropolitan areas,” he said.
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