Cairns real
estate continues to move from strength to strength as we gather momentum for a
better than expected, galloping finish to Christmas. To many, there is a sense
in the market that now is the time to sell, taking advantage of the strongest
market conditions since 2007. There is clearly a wariness about the direction
of the market next year but, the news for buyers is, well priced properties are
still getting snapped up at a rate of knots!
The lower
range properties are obviously receiving a lot of attention. One 2 bedroom unit
advertised at $115,000 on the internet had 5 offers on it within 2 hours of being live! Whist buyers are more
educated than ever to market prices, they are still looking at past prices quoted
on sales data websites, often the information is well over 3 months old. As a
consequence, in a rising market, more people than ever are complaining about
“the one that got away!”…some offers are coming in too low! Look forwards, not
backwards. Sellers have no problems looking forward - funny that. Buyer frustration
is becoming stronger by the day with quality stock in low to mid-range price
brackets becoming severely depleted.
While there
is plenty of activity about the City, locals still tread with caution as,
sadly, there are still business foreclosures evident with some of our long term
favourites simply running out of cash reserves to keep going. Ask any real
estate agent about the prevalence of residential property owners in strife with
their mortgages. There is a fair bit of that going on, sending mixed messages
to the local market. All is not completely rosy in paradise, but we are
certainly looking forward to a very positive 2014. For the latest on the Cairns
property market movements, here is the Herron Todd White Report, CLICK HERE:
