Spring selling season a roaring success

From multimillion-dollar home sales and record high median prices to least days on market, the only thing holding the Tassie marketplace back right now is the lack of stock to sell. SEE THE SPRING SELLING SEASON WRAP >>

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INCREDIBLE, strong, wild, berserk.

These are some of the words agents have used to describe Tasmania’s buoyant property market through the spring selling season.

From multimillion-dollar home sales and record high median prices to least days on market, the only thing holding the Hobart — and Tasmanian — marketplace back right now is the lack of stock to sell.

The latest SQM Research data shows that nationwide, except Melbourne, homes for sale figures are in decline.

In Hobart that is a 6.1 per cent monthly dip and a 26.1 per cent annual change, the second largest in the country.

And yet business is booming. While not every home will sell in an instant, every other agent has a tale to tell of dozens of people attending open homes, quick sales and multiple offers on the table — often tens of thousands above the starting point.

No.668 Sandy Bay Road, Sandy Bay was sold in 24 hours.

Cross Road, Lucaston home inspired by historic barns.

A fast pace is something Hobart has been accustomed to in recent years, and according to CoreLogic, Hobart’s median time on market is shrinking again. It is currently 28 days for houses and 26 days for units, both the fastest results for a capital city.

In September, Hobart’s median dwelling price, houses and units combined, was a healthy $489,059 — larger than Adelaide, Perth and Darwin.

By October’s end it was $498,073, and then in November it set a new high bar at $505,683 — and only $10,000 shy of topping Brisbane.

Top spring sales in Hobart.

Meanwhile, regional Tasmania posted nation-leading double-digit springtime growth, with its annual median price eclipsing all comers at 10.5 per cent in October, followed by 9.8 per cent and 10.7 per cent through spring.

The volume of spring sales in the top of the market this year has been extraordinary.

In September and October there were 21 and 25 sales in excess of $1 million. But November was another story altogether with 42 sales, far and away the busiest month of the year in this part of the market.

Real Estate Institute of Tasmania president Mandy Welling described springtime as a “surprise”.

“This market is just incredible, I am surprised more and more each day,” she said.

“Across the state, agents are all saying the same thing: there are many buyers and a short supply of stock. As we say often, this is the driver of the market.”

Mrs Welling said Tasmania’s reputation as a relative “safe haven” was playing a big part in the state of the market.

She said an active building industry further bolstered by an extension of the HomeBuilder scheme should see that continue to tick along.

No.55 Fitzroy Cres, Dynnyrne changed hands very quickly.

Peek through the gardens at No.5 Ellington Road, Sandy Bay.

“There are many first-time buyers out there, which is fantastic to see,’’ Mrs Welling said.

“Some had felt the pressure of the market pre-COVID-19, they were feeling pushed out by interstate buyers.

“However the latest REIT report showed an increase of some 50 per cent in first-home buyer activity.”

She said every price range was experiencing a huge amount of interest.

Mrs Welling said regional areas were becoming particularly popular because they could offer great value for money within a 20- to 40-minute commute of cities and built-up areas.

“Given the circumstances and the short supply of property across the entire state, if I were a gambling individual I would put my money on a very active summer,” she said.

“A major fear we have as an industry at the moment is the extension of the eviction moratorium.

“We are concerned this will see investors turn on their heels and place their funds elsewhere.

“With a critical shortage of rental properties across the state, we cannot afford this.”

SQM data shows Hobart’s rental vacancy rate is below 1 per cent.

CoreLogic figures show rental prices in spring trended lower in Hobart but continued to grow in regional Tasmania.

One of the top sales of 2020, No.8 Mona Street Battery Point.

Gorgeous interiors at No.52 St Johns Circle Richmond

Some of Tassie’s most expensive sale prices of the year were transacted in spring.

There was a Sandy Bay waterfront block for more than $2m, and a family home on an even larger allotment fetching upwards of $4.2m.

A stunning home at Richmond got close to the town record at $2.08m, while a 10-bedroom home at Mona St, Battery Point — big enough to run as a boutique hotel — fetched more than $4m.

It has truly been an eye-opening market at the top end.

Mrs Welling described sales such as these as “exceptional”.

“It has been phenomenal,” she said.

“As our inner-city regions give way to suburbia and beyond, it’s only natural that inner-city real estate prices continue to soar upwards.

“To have a median sale price greater than Perth, Darwin and Adelaide and just behind Brisbane is quite incredible.

“Who’d have thought, after all those years of Tassie never rating a mention on the national stage. Show ’em how it’s done, Tassie!”

Open homes crammed

WHEN Kyle and Jess Kingston put their Claremont home on the market, they could hardly get their car out of the street for all the people attending the open home.

And it only took one open home to secure multiple offers and a strong sale price.

Mrs Kingston, 29, said the process was “very, very quick”.

“It was a bit of a whirlwind, we didn’t expect it to be finished up within days,” she said.

The Kingston family at the home they sold in spring. Picture: NIKKI DAVIS-JONES

Mr Kingston, 29, said about 120 people came to the inspection.

“We couldn’t get out of our driveway,” he said.

“Jess had wanted to do a drive-by to see how it was going, but we couldn’t.

“It was set to start at 12pm, but by 11.30am the street was full of cars and they were filling up the surrounding street, too.

“Our agent Jason Andrikonis from Fall Real Estate had to walk here from way up the street.”

The couple bought their three-bedroom home eight years ago and, with Mr Kingston being a plasterer and concreter, slowly gave it a full renovation.

Mrs Kingston said they had put a lot of time and money into the updates to give the house a new bathroom, kitchen, cladding, roof, electrical, plumbing — pretty much everything.

“Kyle finished the last little bits and pieces on the Friday before the open home,” she said.

“It took us eight years … but the value of the property almost doubled, which means we can build our dream home.

“We ended up choosing a lower offer than the top one, first-home owners, which was nice because we remember how hard it was to get into the market, and it’s even harder now.”