Could Christmas 2021 be the best time to buy?

“Often we see property buying clients losing a bit of interest at this time of year, as thoughts turn to summer holidays or more festive pursuits than kicking off with a property search. But with new listings rising, some buyers are sensing a window of opportunity to buy ahead of the international borders reopening in full in 2022, especially in Sydney and Melbourne,” he noted.

But don’t expect the chance to last long, BuyersBuyers CEO Doron Peleg advised.

“There is a brief period of time before record low overseas arrivals numbers [will be] replaced by a new wave of arrivals,” he noted.

“The permanent immigration cap may even be lifted to above 200,000 in due course to alleviate Australia’s skills shortage. Logically, buyers should have less competition and potentially more choice before international travel picks up again in earnest,” Mr Peleg said.

Mr Wargent noted there are likely more than a few in the market who might normally have written off the holiday period but expressed that “December and January can be an exciting time to buy property, with less competition”. 

Agreeing with Mr Peleg, he commented that if an influx of supply does coincide with a drop off in demand, the moment would be brief.

“Immigration has been high in Australia for the past 15 years, and it will be again relatively soon. But for a brief time, there may be an opportunity to snare a bargain purchase,” he said.

But the advice doesn’t come without its own warning. Mr Wargent also warned buyers not to rush in if the moment doesn’t align with their plans.

“Buyers ideally shouldn’t become too focussed on small price movements since they tend to be relatively immaterial over a decade. Try instead to think about where prices will be 10 years from now,” he said.

He tells property buyers to take a medium or longer-term focus with regards to prices.

“Until relatively recently, the idea of monthly or daily housing price reporting was relatively obscure for most people. However, it’s important to remember that due to the transaction costs, property tends to work best if you plan to hold for the asset over a reasonable time horizon.”