In a meeting last week I was asked to describe the current market…I ran with ‘a neap tide.’
For those of you that aren’t fishing nerds a neap tide occurs when there is the smallest difference between high and low water. A sort of lull, where the water moves up a little and down a little.
This analogy works when describing the current market as it seems like we have equal parts caution and optimism. This balanced interplay between buyers and sellers is frustrating for real estate agents as more fearful or greedy markets generate more sales (super annoying when you have a $200k lease on a Rangey).
My sense is that the caution stems from a sort of COVID PTSD, interminable inflationary concerns combined with a global political stage that has become stranger than fiction.
Conversely, the counter-optimism is fueled by bullish equity markets and expectations of further rate cuts in the not too distant future.
So how does this play out on the ground? Stock levels are low and this trend has become self-perpetuating. Owners are less likely to list if they can’t see options to buy…this results in a supply chain issue (sounds familiar).
“We don’t want to be out of the market” is what many property owners are saying right now, paradoxically “we don’t know when to get in” is what many pensive buyers are thinking.
So while each side of the dance hall blankly stare at each other, many real estate agents are pulling their hair out with frustration. With less listings, many stockless selling agents are now pivoting to become buyers’ agents, some are even pivoting to become real estate coaches…makes sense right?
Last week I was at an auction for a very good apartment and watched three supposedly interested buyers stand idle and do nothing. We passed it in and all three immediately said “we are interested so keep us in the loop”.
I’m not sure what ‘the loop’ is but I’d say being in the property with the agent, a contract of sale, a pen and an auctioneer is the epicentre of the proverbial loop. Predictably, since that auction several offers have now been made and said property will sell today amidst a bidding war (outside of the loop).
If it all sounds a bit topsy-turvy out there it kind of is. Sorry, I know other agents’ reports are all about champagne and skittles but we’d rather tell you what’s happening. Of course some properties are selling for high prices but many are sticking and taking longer to clear.
What else is happening? The Mini Mos is this Sunday…it will be cold, it will be fun, there will be cake, come along and join the fun!
Until next week,
David Murphy