A prime example of the Spring market in action involved a four-bedroom home at 79 Sarissa Street in Lalor which, as you can see from the photo, successfully found new owners after the tireless efforts of our highly regarded Sales Consultant, Christine Constantinou.

The home itself generated good buyer interest due to its generous well-zoned floorplan, modern kitchen with stainless steel appliances, double garage and low maintenance block. However, the location proved to be as important as any of these features, with Gilwell Park being a short walk away in one direction, whilst the Whittlesea Public Gardens and the off-leash dog park were just around the corner in the other direction.

As a result, we saw a mix of first home buyers and investors showing the most interest, with a young couple emerging the eventual winners, securing the future for their young family with a strong offer of $620,000.

One of the factors helping to drive the Spring market is the increased borrowing power of buyers after the changes to regulations by APRA. As Melissa Heagney said in her article on page 16 of The Age this Saturday, (September 7th) …

“Some Melbourne home buyers are pushing auction prices well above the reserve as they can borrow as much as $100,000 more after recent changes to bank lending rules.

An increase in borrowing power is behind the large premiums paid, brokers say, along with interest rate cuts and improved confidence in the market.

Banks have been lowering the hypothetical interest rate at which they assess whether home buyers can pay back a mortgage if interest rates were to rise.

After the recent ruling from bank regulator APRA, many lenders are now stress-testing borrowers against a 6.5 per cent rate, down from 7.25 per cent.”

As we pointed out in LAST WEEK'S UPDATE, it really is a great time to be selling in the Spring market of 2019, so if you need any advice or assistance, feel free to call us this week at Barry Plant Thomastown on 9466 3233.

Best wishes,

Con Constantinou

Barry Plant Thomastown