More loss, less profit for short term property holders
Property owners who bought within the past two years cut their losses as the heat comes out of the market and interest rates bite
2 min
The number of Australian properties selling at a loss is on the increase, new data from CoreLogic has shown.
The CoreLogic Pain & Gain report for the June quarter revealed sales of properties sold within two years of purchase showed a significant rise in the number of those selling at a loss, up 9.7 percent compared with 2.7 percent a year ago.
CoreLogic Head of Research and report author Eliza Owen said the results reflect the turbulence of the past two years, with the market impacted by COVID and increases in the cash rate.
“Two years is a significant time period because we are two years on from the height of pandemic-related lockdowns, low interest rates, and have just passed the peak of transitions from low fixed rates to high variable rates,” Ms Owen said.
“The portion of homes sold within just two years increased by one percentage point to 8.5 percent over the past year, however the portion of these short-term resales where the seller incurred a loss has increased more substantially, from just 2.7 percent a year ago to 9.7 percent in the June quarter.
“This suggests more sellers are willing to incur a loss at the moment, which could in part be the result of high interest rates.”
The losses were felt in far greater numbers by owner/occupiers, who made up 72.1 percent of short term resales, compared with 27.9 percent for investors. Vendors in regional areas were also more likely to be feeling the pain, an indication that the treechange love affair is over for some.
“Around one in 10 regional Australian property sales were held for only up to two years,” Ms Owen said.
“A further breakdown of this data by SA4 regions shows some of the highest concentrations of short-term resales were in parts of regional Queensland, including Wide Bay (17.3 percent), the Gold Coast (15.2 percent) and the Darling Downs – Maranoa region (14.4 percent). This suggests that people might be selling up after trying to live, or invest, in more remote regional or lifestyle areas.”
In good news for potential investors, Ms Owen said the outlook for home values this year was positive.
“The rate of profit-making sales tends to follow capital growth trends,” she said. “With home values continuing to rise through July and August, we estimate the level of profitability from resales will also move higher through the September quarter.”
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Atlas Real Estate is reimagining how people connect with property, combining listings, market insights, local stories and lifestyle content in one destination for those buying, selling or simply exploring the market.
4 min
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