Newcastle's residential market boom might cool down: HTW

Newcastle's residential market boom might cool down: HTW
Staff reporterDecember 7, 2020

There is a possibility that Newcastle’s residential market might cool down soon, according to Herron Todd White’s recent report.

The property valuation firm says that various factors need to be considered that could potentially end the boom.

“The Newcastle market has been hot for a considerable period of time.

"There are any number of factors that could derail the present state, however the most likely would be the boring and just plain vanilla buyer fatigue.

"This happens at the back end of every boom.

"The market gets so hot that buyers panic.

"The overriding emotion is one of fear - fear of missing out or fear of being left behind.

"Buyers start doing crazy things in order to secure their properties such as putting ridiculous offers in before auction in an attempt to stop it from getting to an open bidding frenzy at auction time.

"That can only last so long though.

"There always comes a point when the market collectively says “You know what? We are done, we can’t take it anymore, we are just going to sit this one out”.

"When that point occurs, and it always does, the market returns to a sense of normalcy.

"Agents have to work that bit harder to achieve a sale.

"Vendors can’t sit back as smugly and causally sift through offer after offer and hand select the best,” the report stated.

Interest rates, coal prices and unemployment could contribute to a stalling market Herron Todd White says.

“The usual macro-economic factors are always in play when it comes to the Hunter housing market.

"Interest rates, coal prices and unemployment rates are always near the top of any list of what may stall a market.

"What happens there is anyone’s guess but changes in any of these metrics will always have a strong impact on the local market.

"As an example, when interest rates increase this correlates almost overnight to fewer valuations being undertaken in the immediate aftermath of a change.

"This doesn’t necessarily impact prices but it does impact the number of homes being sold and transacted.

"The number of homes being sold directly relates to one half of the crucial demand versus supply equation,” the report commented.

A three bedroom house at 18 Courtney Close, Wallsend (above) has been listed with a price guide of between $435,000 to $455,000.

Similarly a four bedroom house at 180 Morgan Street, Mereweather (below) has been listed with a price guide of $890,000.

Newcastle's residential market boom might cool down: HTW

A three bedroom house at 75 Northumberland Street, Maryville (below) was recently sold for $890,000.

Newcastle's residential market boom might cool down: HTW

Similarly a three bedroom house at 172 Denison Street, Hamilton (below) was recently sold for $1.2 million.

Newcastle's residential market boom might cool down: HTW

Editor's Picks