John McGrath: Buy now! $1 invested in QLD property better than anywhere else

Real estate guru says buy now, and buy in Queensland, as the worst is already halfway over for the housing market.

John McGrath, founder and executive director of McGrath Estate Agents, at his office at Pyrmont. Photo: John Feder.

IF John McGrath was to invest a dollar in property anywhere in the country right now, he would pick Queensland.

The real estate guru says now is the time for savvy homebuyers to snap up a relative bargain on a property they would not have been able to afford a year ago.

Speaking exclusively to News Corp ahead of the sold-out Australasian Real Estate Conference (AREC), starting today on the Gold Coast, Mr McGrath said the housing market was already halfway through a correction and there was no need for doom and gloom.

“If you buy this year, you can be confident of getting a five to 10 per cent discount on last year,” he said.

“We think the market is probably down five to eight per cent from its peak in October and with, maybe, a few more per cent to go through the next six to 12 months, but we do think we’ve seen at least 50 per cent of the correction.

John McGrath predicts good things for Queensland’s property market. Picture: Richard Walker.

“You’ve got to remember that that five per cent decline is coming off a 35 to 40 per cent increase in the last few years. Most Aussies are still well ahead in terms of their investments and mortgages.”

And he sees the Sunshine State leading the recovery.

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“$1 invested in Queensland real estate will be better than anywhere else in Australia,” Mr McGrath said.

“I think Queensland has a lot of positives going for it. Relative to Victoria and NSW, it’s still relatively affordable … and the Olympics are going to have a positive impact.

A house for sale in Brisbane. Picture: John Gass.

“We’ve seen a pause in immigration and investment from overseas, but we will see that recommencing, and Brisbane and southeast Queensland — with what’s happening going forward — will also get a larger slice of that.”

John McGrath says mortgage holders should not be too concerned about the Reserve Bank of Australia raising interest rates.

Mr McGrath, who last month returned as CEO to the eponymous agency he launched three decades ago and floated on the stock exchange in 2015, said he expected further interest rate rises of between 1.25 and 1.75 per cent over the next 18 months.

That would result in mortgage holders paying an average interest rate of 3.5 to 4 per cent.

“The average over the long-term is a 7 per cent payment on mortgages, so while we recognise any increase in mortgage payments will impact affordability, we still think in the long term we’ll settle at rates well below historical averages.”

With the election now out of the way, Mr McGrath is expecting “more optimism”.

“I think from a real estate perspective it will be positive,” he said. “There was a clear mandate in terms of people liking what the Labor Government was saying.

Real estate influencer John McGrath speaks at the Australasian Real Estate Conference in 2021. Picture: Social Focus.

“Generally, we find after federal elections there is a positive feeling in the economic world.”

More than 3500 of the country’s top real estate agents will flood the Gold Coast this weekend to attend the conference Mr McGrath founded 24 years ago.

The star keynote speaker at this year’s event will be Oscar winning actor Matthew McConaughey.

“In addition to his celebrity status, (McConaughey) has a great story behind him about the challenges of getting into acting early on and how difficult it was for him to get any momentum in the industry,” Mr McGrath said.

“I think the process he’s undertaken and the way he’s thought about his business is very relevant to real estate agents.”

Movie star Matthew McConaughey will be the keynote speaker at AREC. Photo: Emma McIntyre/Getty Images.

Other keynote speakers include marketing guru Seth Godlin and international bestselling author and personal development coach, Mel Robbins.

“This is the best line-up of speakers we’ve had in a quarter of a century at AREC — both in terms of keynote speakers and local agents in Australasia,” he said.

“I think right now, a lot of agents have realised the industry’s changing signficantly and if they’re not abreast of the technology and strategies adopted by top agents, they’ll start falling behind.”

The real estate empowerment event, which will run for two days at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre from May 29 to 30.