"Credit should be compared to alcohol whereof constant consumption (usage) on a frequent and regular basis is classified as abuse rather than responsible utilization.”
Rohan Lamprecht
Currently, there are just over 150 residential properties for sale in Rainbow Beach (this includes houses, units and land). You would be forgiven for thinking there is many more than 150 as the popular website: www.realestate.com.au displays over
230 residential listings in Rainbow Beach.
Why is there such a discrepancy you may ask? Well – the main reason is that some individual properties appear on the website 2, 3 or even 4 times; listed with separate real estate agencies. This practice is not uncommon and results from sellers ‘open listing’ their property for sale. Unfortunately, the net result is that Rainbow Beach looks like it has a massive amount of property for sale. (Arguably 150 residential properties is a lot, however, the marketing makes it look like there is almost 50% more than that for sale).
Generally speaking, properties are listed ‘Exclusively’ with an agent in more urban areas and in capital cities. This means that one agency is responsible for the marketing and sale of a property. A property can only remain ‘Exclusive’ with an agency for a maximum period of 60 days before the seller has to resign their ‘Exclusive’ agreement with the agency.
When a seller decides to list their property with more than one agency, they effectively make it more difficult for a buyer to find their property (as their house/unit/land appears to get lost in amongst so many other listings). Issues also arise with the accuracy and consistency of information relating to the properties attributes and in some cases the list price for a property may be different according to different agencies. No single agent is accountable to the seller for marketing or inspection feedback etc and in many cases; buyers perceive that a seller must be “desperate” if they have listed their property with multiple agencies. (Unfortunately, it does not increase the chances of securing a sale by having 4 or 5 ‘For Sale’ signs erected in the front yard).
Traditionally, the local real estate agent/agency is who a prospective buyer will contact if they are looking at purchasing a property in a particular area. Over the past decade, over 90% of local properties have been sold by a local agent. Generally speaking, if a prospective buyer is looking for information regarding properties for sale in town, they do not head to Gympie or Noosa or elsewhere. They contact a local agent to discuss local information which many out of area agents do not have access to or simply do not understand the dynamics of the town.
Anecdotally, we recently visited Cairns and travelled north to Port Douglas (approximately a one hour drive north of Cairns city). We spent the day in Port Douglas and saw a lot of property on the market whilst we were there. There was a nice looking unit just back from the beach and we called the agent off the ‘For Sale’ sign to ask for some more details regarding the property. The agent answered our questions but indicated that he wouldn’t be able to show us through the unit that day as it was a long drive for him from Cairns (2 hour round trip). Unfortunately we have heard the same story from prospective buyers more than once here in Rainbow Beach when they have contacted ‘out of area’ agents who are based in either Gympie or Noosa – or even Brisbane.
Despite the commonly held perception that the property market in Rainbow Beach is DEAD (or at least on life support), there have actually been a few sales over the past month or so. There has been minor movement in the market with properties in the $350,000 - $700,000 bracket going “Under Contract” in recent weeks. Our observation is that the market may see some sales over the next 6 – 12 months however there is no evidence of a recovery in terms of property values/prices.
Recent media coverage showing that there are currently record high numbers of individuals and businesses with money owing to the Australian Taxation Office indicates that the health of the national economy is not great at the moment. It is almost as if there are two separate economies running side by side at present with the mining and resource sector going “great guns” and the rest of us struggling with the increased costs of living including groceries, fuel and electricity. Unfortunately the Gillard Government appears intent on dragging Australia out of deficit by relying on the 10% of the nation who is actually making some money by taxing the heck out of them and their businesses.
So called “luxury items” such as boats, motorbikes, jet skis, horses, etc have plummeted in value over the past couple of years as people look to tighten their belts and chop some expenses out of their budget. Unfortunately, the beach house or unit often comes under the heading “luxury item” and hence, sales have significantly reduced over the past 2 – 3 years since the dreaded GFC hit.
The current economic climate has seen a huge increase in the amount of stock on the property market and buyers simply have way too much choice for sellers to avoid having to reduce their asking price in most circumstances. There will have to be a major take up of excess stock on the market, not just in Rainbow Beach, but across Queensland in order for market conditions to improve significantly.
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