About Canberra
Canberra is the ACT’s capital city and Australia’s capital city. Canberra has a strong economy with a low unemployment rate. With a population of 403,468, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. Compared to the national averages, the unemployment rate is lower and the average income higher; tertiary education levels are higher, while the population is younger. Property prices are often relatively high, in part due to comparatively restrictive development regulations.
Traditional agent commissions in Canberra
Agent commissions in Canberra are lower than in other some cities. To sell a property in Canberra with a traditional agent you can expect to pay around 1.99% on the lower end to around 2.25% plus GST on average.
On top of a commission, if you sell with a traditional agent, you would also generally pay additional advertising fees which can increase your total cost significantly. All up, your total cost is likely to be $14,000-$20,000+ if you decide to sell with a traditional agent as opposed to as low as $694 if you sell your home yourself with the help of PropertyNow.
The real estate market in Canberra
The real estate market in Canberra is slowly improving, much like the rest of the housing market moving into 2020.
Dwelling values in Canberra show annual growth rate of 3.0% over the last 12 months (which is much higher in comparison to the annual growth rate seen in the previous two years).
As of January 2020, the median dwelling price in Canberra is $611,841 with median house values at $687,799 and median unit values of $434,999, showing annual growth of 2.3% over the past decade.
Housing demand in Canberra is still going strong and steady and this is shown in the weekly rent and yields figures. Rentals yields are among the highest throughout the capital cities, with weekly rent sitting at $510 for houses and $530 for units. The gross rental yields currently are still climbing from previous years, with a fair jump of 4.3% for houses and 5.8% for units as we move into 2020.
The clearance rate for Auctions is at 63% in January 2020 as opposed to 44% this time last year.
The average number of days on the market for sale properties decreased with 30 days on the market being the average (slightly less than the average of 34 days on the market this time last year.)
Coronavirus and the Canberra property market
Surprisingly, during the Coronavirus pandemic, Australia’s capital Canberra was somewhat unaffected and recorded a nil change in property growth and a 1.4% growth for the first quarter of 2020, when the pandemic restrictions were most rampant in Australia.
Canberra property prices are on track for a hefty annual growth of 9.3%, the fourth highest of all eight capital cities. Experts say the Canberra property market will be somewhat resilient to the after-effects of Coronavirus due to the high portion of Government workers, where job losses have been minimal.
Selling property in Canberra without an agent
It is advisable to know the specific laws that are involved in selling or acquiring a property in Canberra. One such law is the Real Property Act 1925 and the Land Titles Act 1925. Another law that would apply to selling your own property is the Civil Law (Sale of Residential Property) Act 2003. We recommend acquiring some expert advice to help you in the process of selling your property.
Buying or selling a property nowadays is easier because of direct access to information from the web. But the ever-present issue of steep prices and hidden charges made by agents and real estate firms makes it harder for a buyer or seller to sell or buy a property.
By not paying an agent a hefty commission you give yourself more room to move on the sale price, giving yourself an advantage against similar properties in the market. You can also know for sure that enquiries are being responded to as quickly as possible and are properly followed up. If you're not sure of how to price your property, we can provide you with a detailed breakdown of sale statistics for a specific suburb of Canberra, as well as an estimated value of your property itself.
Review of selling a house privately in Canberra region
Kirsten sold her property in Narrabundah privately in April and wrote, "Quite easy to use and very helpful staff."