WIN FOR BUYERS

Bargains snapped up as properties take price hit

BUYERS are back in the box seat as more Gold Coast properties sell at bargain prices.

The March quarter CoreLogic Pain and Gain report showed 12.2 per cent of Glitter Strip dwellings traded for less than what they previously sold for.

But according to experts, the figures are tipped to soon change.

BUYERS are back in the box seat as more Gold Coast properties sell at bargain prices.

The March quarter CoreLogic Pain and Gain report showed 12.2 per cent of Glitter Strip dwellings traded for less than what they previously sold for, equating to a loss of more than $20 million.

The average hold period for these properties was nine years, with a median loss of $38,000.

The percentage of homes that resold at a loss was the highest it had been in almost three years. Resales of units have bore the brunt of the market downturn, with 20.8 per cent selling for less – a total loss of almost $16 million.

But what was a loss for vendors meant buyers gained, according to REIQ Gold Coast zone chairman John Newlands.

“The market has certainly contracted in those particular months due to fewer buyers in the marketplace and tighter credit regulations making it harder to get finance,” he said.

“The buyers that have been purchasing have been very cautious and trying to get extremely good value for money.

“Where sellers have needed to sell, for one reason or another, they might have chosen to sell at a loss to move onto something else.”

Mr Newlands said houses had remained stronger due to supply and demand and felt figures were tipped to change.

“We are going to see a solid market with moderate growth,” he said. “We are positioned far better on the Gold Coast than other markets nationally.”

The March quarter still had some big profit-making deals with 87.8 per cent of sales adding a healthy median gain of $133,000. Overall, sellers pocketed $464 million in the three months to March, but this is down on the $529 million gained in the same period last year.

Report author and CoreLogic research analyst Cameron Kusher said most major coastal markets across Australia had experienced the pain.

“Although the proportion of loss-making sales has increased in most of the regions, resale losses generally remain at quite low levels,” he said.

Knight Frank Queensland head of project marketing Chris Litfin said the data was surprising with apartments in the Gold Coast’s up-market areas selling strong.

Mr Litfin also believed buyers and sellers now had an even playing field, particularly with the interest rate drop.

“Buyers can be a lot more aggressive than they have been and unless they have a good reason to sell, sellers can sit on their hands,” he said.