‘If the time is right for you, go’: Is now a good time to buy property in Canberra?

Some Canberra home buyers have hit the pause button, according to agents, as uncertainty looms on the property market because of coronavirus concerns. But others argue that now is the perfect time to enter the market. Here’s why. 

Louise Harget of Belle Property Kingston said while there had been a number of buyers who had pulled the plug on purchasing a property, she was confident there would be a strong rebound when the virus passed.

“People’s circumstances change all of the time and their motivation for buying can vary from ‘must buy now’ to ‘I’ll just rent and move into the market in a year or two’, within a matter of a weekend,” Ms Harget said.

“But the buyers who have said to me that they are going to wait for a little while are all shelving the idea for a few weeks, not abandoning their plans altogether.

“Once the world settles down, there will no doubt be a flood of buyers aggressively back in and actively searching.”

Ms Harget’s advice to buyers sitting on the fence about whether they should continue their house-hunting plans is to “listen to your gut”.

“If the time is right for you, go! If it’s not, then just wait,” Ms Harget said.

“It has to feel right and be a well-considered decision to buy. If you are organised with finance, find a property you love, then why not buy? Make the most of the beautiful low-interest rates.”

Ms Harget said if buyers did drop out of the market, it would lend the remaining buyers more opportunities to purchase with less competition.

“If in the next week, couple of weeks or months, some buyers are no longer in the market, for an organised buyer this will be a great time to purchase,” she said.

Johnathan Davis of Carter + Co urged buyers to continue with their house-hunting plans, “because they do not want to risk the perfect home coming to the market in this time and it being sold to someone else”.

“Buyers need to remain vigilant … and pursue the same properties for the same price that they would have otherwise under any other same circumstances,” Mr Davis said.

“The market is still trading, banks are still lending and people still need homes. As long as that need is there, there will always be activity in the market and buyers present.”

Ms Harget urged buyers to “check in with your bank to make sure you have approvals still in place and are ready to jump once you find the house you love”.

Mr Davis echoed Ms Harget’s comments, adding that the new restrictions had placed more conditions for people wanting to book a private inspection.

“Buyers should meet with their mortgage broker and ensure that they are pre-approved for finance,” he said.

“Vendors and agents will be more particular with who inspects property now and will have a range of conditions in place including only allowing qualified buyers through the home and not people who are just taking a peek.”

While some agents have seen a number of buyers ditch their house-hunting plans during the pandemic, Mr Davis said he’d seen “a spike in inquiries with all of my listings through most online portals”.

Ms Harget added that Belle Property Kingston “still have sellers who want and need to sell, and buyers who want and need to buy”.

“We have to work within the restrictions in place … and keep a positive outlook for the future,” Ms Harget said.