Whether you’re a first homebuyer or it’s been a long time since you bought and sold property, working out where to start, what to do and who to talk to can be daunting.
For some people, the Internet may not have been around when they last ventured into the property market. And in the current market, where prices are rising, buyer demand outweighs supply and stock is selling fast, it’s never been more important to know how to get a better understanding of your local property market.
The good news
We are fortunate in WA to still have the most affordable housing in the country while affordability elsewhere is at its worst point since 2008. The weighted average median house price for the eight capital cities increased to $961,059 during the year to September 2021, while the proportion of income required to meet loan repayments increased to 36.2 per cent.
Meanwhile, Perth’s median house sale price (currently $520,000) is the lowest of any capital city in the country.
Below are the key factors to consider if you’re in the market to buy.
1. Median prices don’t paint the full picture
Median house prices are helpful for understanding market trends, however they don’t tell the full story. When doing your research, it’s important to delve deeper to learn about buyer habits, local trends and actual market values (sold prices). For example, while the Perth market as a whole recorded a 13% increase in house sales price growth, many suburbs far exceeded that figure, like Woodlands, which recorded growth of 35%.
2. Suburb profiles
To discover how a particular suburb of interest is performing, the Real Estate Institute of WA (REIWA) website offers suburb profiles that you can research for the latest median prices for houses, units and land and the suburb’s growth rates over the past one, five and ten years. The profiles also include lifestyle information so you can discover what the suburb offers. And the interactive mapping tool makes it easy to compare suburbs of interest all in one spot. Click here to access the suburb profiles section and search for a suburb.
3. Free property reports
Let’s say you have your eye on a particular property. The reiwa.com.au website now offers free CoreLogic reports to search for any address in the state, including your own. The type of information you can discover here for an address is the estimated price range and investment potential, market trends for the area, sales and rental history and how it compares to other properties. It will also give you a suburb snapshot. Click here to learn more.
4. Tap into the expertise of your local real estate professional
A trusted real estate professional is your best asset when looking for the right property to suit your needs. While data and statistics are important, they will never replace an agent’s expertise on the ground and local marketplace knowledge. Best of all, their service and advice costs nothing unless they sell your property for you.
Contact us if you’d like to have a chat about your property goals for 2022.