With just over 10 weeks until the end of the year, you might think you’ve missed the opportunity to sell your property in 2020. The reality is, there is still just enough time to complete those finishing touches in preparing your home for sale and have a solid Private Treaty campaign, or an Auction date set for early to mid December.
We are often asked whether selling this close to Xmas is a good idea and would it be better to wait until the New Year? If you are planning to sell your Sydney property soon, there is literally no better time than now. There are 4 reasons why we adopt this view and we would like to share these so you can make an informed decision.
- Thanks to the media, there has been a lot of uncertainty amongst homeowners following the COVID-19 pandemic. It is only more recently the news stories have started to take a more positive tone saying the predictions for a major property downturn were wrong. The number of record sales being achieved across Sydney as well as Auction sales well above vendor reserve prices is evidence of this. Unfortunately the media take a while to catch up on what is really happening on the ground and there is now no doubt the market has remained resilient despite our economy falling into a recession. Our Treasurer’s recent announcement he would loosen lending restrictions next year, plus a budget that will create a lot of jobs and increase consumer confidence, is going to hopefully further underpin our property markets. Consumer sentiment rebounded strongly in October, up 11.9% to 105.0, and is now at its highest level since July 2018. This could result in an increase in homeowners taking their property to market early next year. With supply versus demand being the main driver of the property market, this could mean more competition and a decline in values.
- The Spring selling season is well underway, however the number of properties for sale have remained low as homeowners are hesitant to place their property on the market. As mentioned above, this lack of stock has resulted in an increase in record sale prices being achieved which is now beginning to fuel more positive media coverage. Now that the media has begun reporting on this improvement in the market, homeowners will gradually begin to feel more confident about selling their home. At this point, most are thinking to wait until next year as Xmas is almost here so we expect to see stock levels remaining low at least until the end of the year. The best time to sell is when there is a lack of supply of similar properties to yours on the market. This is the secret to achieving the highest price and is what we are currently experiencing in most suburbs across Sydney.
- With Xmas less than 10 weeks away, there is a flurry of activity amongst buyers trying to secure their dream home as soon as possible so they can relax over the holiday break. From our experience and what we consistently hear from buyers is they want to secure something before Xmas so they have plenty of time to pack, and/or prepare their own home for sale. Buying a property this year would mean those who have planned a family holiday can do so with peace of mind knowing their future is secure. To many buyers this is worth paying a little or sometimes a lot more than they originally planned. Just last weekend, we had a property go to Auction and was purchased by a young family who had been looking consistently for 6 months. They admitted going well above their maximum price as they wanted to secure something this year so they had enough time to sell their own unit prior to Xmas. They were also tired of spending every weekend at open homes and wanted to start the New Year fresh. This property sold $110,000 above the reserve price.
- Government support packages are set to cease early next year. Although the Treasurer has announced some new budget initiatives, they cannot continue to give money away indefinitely. Following on from this could see an increase in unemployment, mortgage defaults and businesses ceasing trading. The fallout from this would mean people may be forced to sell their homes coupled with a decline in disposable income. A lot of people will be hurting and although it would take a while before banks step in to take over, many will choose to sell their properties as soon as possible to recover as much money as they possibly can. This could result in an increase in property listings and a ‘fire sale’ mentality for those buyers who are lucky enough to still be in a position to buy.
We’ve outlined 4 solid reasons why you should seriously consider bringing forward your timeline to ensure a 2020 sale. If you start now you would still have a couple of weeks to prepare the property for sale and we can help you expedite this. Speak to us about how to maximise your sale price through budget friendly upgrades and we can then take care of the whole agent interview process for you.
Engaging us costs you nothing as a portion of the agent’s commission pays for our services. Click here for more or call us directly on 0411 522233 to discuss further.
