MIGRATION FROM SOUTH

Opening the borders could result in a Christmas wave of new competition

ONCE again I suffer the perils of writing a week in advance in competition with a 24-hour news cycle — while Monday morning the state election was fresh in everyone’s mind, the focus no doubt will now be on the results (or more likely, pending results) of the US election – here’s to sanity…

Coming back to more local matters, with the current government comfortably holding power we should see one thing that 2020 has lacked much of so far — stability. No great change of policies and a continuation of the current attitude towards border control, for better or for worse.

NSW residents, with the exception of Sydneysiders, can now visit Queensland freely, expanding on the previous border arrangements and reintroducing Cairns as both a holiday destination and a potential new home. While this isn’t the open doors that many were calling for, it does at least point to a free border by December, provided case numbers remain controlled as we’ve seen in recent weeks.

As Melbourne exits lockdown and begins a slow march to normality, we might see Victorians offered a similar road map to put us back on their destination list. That said, it will likely be close to Christmas before we see much more concrete information regarding this.

So, what does all this border talk have to do with property? Well, potentially, a lot.

Traditionally we see November as the big month for decision making — that is, buyers and sellers wanting things done by Christmas, leaving December to tidy up the leftovers rather than see too much new stock hit the market. Throw in a relaxed border and the potential for supercharged migration from our southern states though, and we could be looking at a market that continues to charge through the holidays, bringing a bit more Christmas cheer to local owners.

Given an already strong market in many sectors and suburbs, this could also bring a wave of new competition, placing more pressure on local buyers to act quickly, before borders open and those buyers make their way here.

So, if you’re thinking of selling, now is definitely the time to be talking to an REIQ member agent to get things under way.

But if you’re worried you might be too late … never fear, as there just might be time (and buyers) left yet. Good luck!