House sales in Alice Springs ‘strongest in a decade’: Local property expert
HOUSE sales in Alice Springs are the strongest they’ve been for a decade and the trend is only going to increase, according to a local real estate expert
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HOUSE sales in Alice Springs are the strongest they’ve been for a decade, according to a local real estate expert.
The Real Estate Institute of the Northern Territory’s (REINT) Real Estate Local Market report (RELM) for the September Quarter 2020 has revealed Alice Springs house sales increased by 72.5 per cent in the September quarter.
The trend is consistent throughout the NT with house and unit sales booming across the Territory in the last quarter.
The report revealed that the past three months have been one of the most prolific quarters of real estate in recent years.
During the same period, inner Darwin experienced a 22.2 per cent increase, Palmerston had a 15.2 per cent jump and Katherine saw a 111.1 per cent rise.
First National Real Estate Framptons director Andrew Doyle said there were 108 houses sold in Alice Springs for the 2020 September quarter, which was up from 70 in the June quarter and 72 in the March quarter.
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Mr Doyle said all suburbs were in high demand and agents were seeing both first home buyers and people from interstate coming to Alice Springs for work.
“Our employment is strong and cost of funds (interest rates) are low,” he said.
“It’s cheaper to buy than rent.
“Rentals are also in short supply which is resulting in potential tenants buying.”
He said property specialists expected December settlement numbers to further rise.
Mr Doyle said house prices had not risen yet but he expected them to if demand remained at current levels.
“The median house price is $450,000 and the median unit price is $300,000,” he said.
The median house price for the NT rose by 0.5 per cent to $480,000, which REINT chief executive Quentin Kilian said was positive compared to the same period in 2019.
“While that may only be a small move this quarter it is 4.3 per cent higher than at this time last year,” he said.
For units in the September quarter, sales rose by 30 per cent in Alice Springs.
Rental vacancy rates for the same period also dropped in Alice Springs 1.2 per cent to 3.1 per cent.
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