- Interstate inspections decrease amid uncertainty
- Sydney and the Gold Coast see slight increases in inspections
- International interest in Australian properties persists
Buyers are more focused on purchasing property in their own backyard as higher interest rates and economic uncertainty are slowing down interstate buyers.
Little Hinges’ Sight Unseen Report for March found that the percentage of interstate buyer and rental inspections has dropped in almost all major cities around Australia for the first time in the past 12 months.
The two exceptions were Sydney, with a 0.4% increase in interstate buyer inspections, and the Gold Coast, which saw a slight increase in interstate rental inspections, up by 0.3% in March.
Uncertainty to blame
Little Hinges CMO, Mike York, said “While we’re still seeing almost 1 in 4 inspections coming from outside the state the property is located in, it’s clear that the uncertainty in the market is affecting both renters and buyers.”
“This uncertainty has resulted in a ‘wait-and-see’ approach, with more people wanting to stay close to home, or holding off on their decision to make big interstate moves.
“With March being the first month we’ve seen interest rates stay on hold after nine consecutive rate rises, we may see inspection trends bounce back in April, or this may be the new normal for the foreseeable future.”
International buyers continue to be interested in Australian properties, particularly with recently announced changes to international migration programs.
Inspections down
The Gold Coast saw 37.1% of its property inspections from interstate buyers, a 1.9% decrease, and 8.7% from international buyers, with most migrants originating from the USA and the UK.
On the Sunshine Coast, 30.7% of inspections were by interstate buyers, down by 7%, and 6.9% were from international buyers, with the UK and New Zealand being the most popular countries of origin.
In Perth, interstate property inspections made up 20.5% of the total, decreasing by 1%, and international inspections accounted for 6.2%, with the most common countries of origin being the USA, UK, and Singapore.
Melbourne experienced an 18% interstate inspection rate, down by 2%, and 5.8% international inspections, with the top countries of origin being New Zealand, the USA, and the UK.
Brisbane’s interstate property inspections accounted for 18.7% of the total, down by 0.2%, while international inspections made up 6%, with the UK, New Zealand, and the USA being the most popular countries of origin.
While, Sydney saw a slight increase in interstate inspections to 10.6%, up by 0.4%, and 6.2% of inspections came from international buyers, with the UK, USA, and New Zealand as the most common countries of origin.
Little Hinges analysed over 300,000 virtual inspections for the report.
