‘It is what it is’: Will the Omicron virus affect Canberra's real estate market?

Canberra’s real estate market is shifting towards online operations as the latest Omicron variant of COVID-19 puts a strain on the day-to-day functioning of the industry. 

Cautious real estate agents and property managers are also implementing varied work rosters to make sure staff are available to cater for the needs of those buyers, sellers and renters who are not keen to shift online.

Real Estate Institute of Australia ACT president Hannah Gill said while virtual tours and online auctions weren’t mandatory in the capital, a number of agencies were adopting the practices in a bid to mitigate the effects of the virus.

“The outbreak is different this time around than the last outbreak and if you speak to any other agency in Canberra, they’re probably going through the same thing,” she said.

“We learnt a lot in the last few lockdowns we’ve been through and the industry is ready to go ahead with just-online practices should restrictions tighten.”

With more than 900 cases recorded in the capital on a daily basis, a shortage of Rapid Antigen Tests and long queues at COVID testing clinics, ACT chief minister Andrew Barr has encouraged Canberrans to work from home to reduce the spread.

“While many employees will need to return to the workplace to meet business needs or for their own wellbeing, working from home where possible will help to reduce transmission while we continue to learn more about the impact of Omicron – not just in the ACT but across Australia,” Mr Barr said in a media statement in December.

For Belle Property Canberra principal Dan McAlpine, who is currently isolated at home because of the virus, splitting staff rosters has helped maintain the day-to-day operations of the business.

“We’re working from home where possible but, of course, those unable to do so are working from the office,” he said.

“We’re in a fortunate position in that we have a number of team members so if someone is down, we have people who can pick up the pieces – whether that person broke their leg, has a stomach bug or gets any variant of the COVID virus.

“At the moment, I’m not able to attend any open home inspections myself, so we have team members who’ll do it on my behalf.”

Mr McAlpine said online auctions would also be reinstated across the business in a bid to reduce the spread of the virus at on-site auctions.

“We believe that online auctions are now a firm part of the auction process and something we continued even after restrictions eased last year,” he said.

“As much as we’d like to do things on-site, the reality is in this world at the moment, I think online will be back in force for the foreseeable future. We’re not the only ones going through this – the pandemic has seeped into a number of industries. It is what it is.”

Ms Gill, who is also the director of property management at The Property Collective, said virtual and private inspections would also be utilised now.

“For the most part, the rental demand has been pretty strong and we haven’t seen a shortage of people wanting to rent at the moment,” she said.

Ms Gill said she anticipated rent and house prices would remain unaffected, despite the quick spread of the latest variant.

“In terms of pricing, if the last few lockdowns were anything to go by, what we saw was an upswing in prices to both the housing and rental market,” she said.

“I think the issue in Canberra is just the supply of stock – people are keen to buy and rent. The affordability factor in the rental space is a big issue as well and, with our international students starting to return, I can only suspect prices will continue to ramp up.”