About Melbourne
Melbourne is approximately 9,992 square kilometres in size and currently ranks as the second most liveable city in the world. It was also ranked as the world's most liveable city for seven years in a row, from 2011 until 2017. The population of Melbourne is approximately 4,9 million. The predominant age group in Melbourne is 25-34 years. Households in Melbourne are primarily childless couples and are likely to be repaying between $1800 - $2400 per month on mortgage repayments. In general, people in Melbourne work in a professional occupation. In 2006, 32.9% of the homes in Melbourne were owner-occupied compared with 34.5% in 2011. (source: Australian Bureau of Statistics).
Agent commissions in Melbourne
Agent commissions in Melbourne are lower than most other states, to sell a property in Melbourne with a conventional agent you can expect to pay around 1.99% - 2.05% plus GST on average. On top of the commission, you would also generally have to pay additional advertising fees such as Realestate.com.au upgrades, 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 through an agent, as opposed to as low as $694 if you sell your home yourself with the help of PropertyNow.
The real estate market in Melbourne
The real estate market in Melbourne has been speeding up with the change in the Australian market over the last six months. Dwelling values in Melbourne, much like other capital cities, have risen as we come into 2020. Dwelling values increased by 6.4% over the last three months, leaving them 2.2% higher over 12 months. From a broader perspective, we’ve seen annual growth of 4.4% over the past decade.
The median dwelling price in Melbourne is $666,883, with median house values at $774,023 and median unit values at $572,0398, which is lower than in previous years.
Rental rates and yields for the past year show weekly rent at $430 for houses and $430 for units, almost no change since 2018. The gross rental yields are slowly climbing from previous years, up 2.9% for houses and 4.1% for units as of January 2020.
The average number of days on the market for sale properties stays steady with previous years, with 30 days on the market still being the average as of January 2020.
Auction clearance rates have taken a jump up to 73% (compared with 43% the previous year).
Coronavirus and the Melbourne property market
Melbourne is one of the two capital cities that experienced a slight downturn in Australian property prices during the Coronavirus pandemic, with -0.3% slip during the COVID-laden month of April, 2020. Furthermore, the populated capital city had 1.4% growth for the quarter and is still sitting at an impressive 12.4% annual growth so far.
According to experts, the property slide during the pandemic is not alarming and was somewhat expected, as larger capital cities (such as Sydney and Melbourne) are more vulnerable to a higher level of downside risk, due mainly to overseas migration. As of May 2020, Melbourne’s rental market was holding firm with yields still on track at 3.2% growth.
Selling property in Melbourne without an agent
Given Melbourne's cooling market, selling your home without an agent could be a great option to save on agent fees. By not paying a commission, you give yourself more room to negotiate the sale price with buyers.
So where to start if you want to sell your own property? If you are in Victoria, particularly in Melbourne and want to sell privately, your first step is to determine the market price of your property. In this way, you can reasonably assess your property and avoid under or overpricing it. Fortunately, you can request a free property value report from us here at PropertyNow.
We also provide access to agent-only websites like realestate.com.au as well as a full platform to manage your listing for a flat fee of $694.
If you'd like to know more about selling your property privately in Melbourne, simply contact us for more information or a free guide.
Reviews from people who sold their house privately with PropertyNow
Julian sold his property in Fitzroy North and said "Great customer service, quick response and good chat function."
Angela sold her property in Mill Park and said "PropertyNow provided the support and knowledge I needed to have the confidence to sell my property on my own. Their support and feedback throughout the process was great. I highly recommend them."
Eve sold her property in Montmorency and said "I can't recommend PropertyNow highly enough. Forget about paying real estate agent percentages and just do it! The site is easy to use, all the information and all the help you need is available at a moment's notice, with friendly good humour and excellent knowledge, experience and professionalism. Signage has a very professional look (unlike some agent-assisted sales sites), extras are not expensive and well worth having, and everything is done with a minimum of fuss or delay. I haven't been able to think of anything that could have been done better. Even if there is a minor mistake on occasion, it is rectified straight away once queried. I expect I will use PropertyNow for any property that I sell in the future. Thank you again!"