Acreage Market Wrap - 21st March 2020

Hi, my name is Greg Vincent and welcome to this week’s Acreage Market Wrap where I share an insight into How’s The Acreage Market?

So this week, the Coronavirus pandemic has created a lot of disruption in the market and there is quite a lot of fear out amongst the community at present.

There have been a lot of changes occurring and as a society we have to educate ourselves effectively, change our behaviour, be there for each other, also take this opportunity to protect those amongst our community who at risk and at the same time evolve with the changes plus find new and better ways of doing business.

For example, earlier this week I shared an article on my blog which included an insight into some of the ways that we will be adopting new technologies and moving forward in the acreage market as a result of the current changes taking place within the real estate industry ...here’s a link to that article.

I’m focussed on doing whatever I can to help my clients and my future clients navigate through this current period of uncertainty the best way possible.

Today is now about doing ‘Business as usual, in an unusual way’.

It’s about understanding and embracing the changes in a Calculated, Confident, Competent, Caring, Connected and Calm manner ...and getting through these challenging times together.

Whilst these are unprecedented times, the headlines of panic seem to be getting the most attention with the social media spotlight shining brightly on them constantly and they’re getting so much air time that they’re spreading across the web so fast that it’s creating a lot of confusion and fear.

Hey, I’m not saying don’t be concerned, far from it. You should be concerned, but you should also take the time to educate yourself on the facts, and not get sucked in by all the sensationalism & click bait 'fake news' headlines.

One of my greatest concerns is that it's likely that a lot of people will end up making extremely poor, irrational decisions which can be very expensive mistakes, especially in real estate off the back of all the crazy panic & added pressure.

Which is why it’s important to remember during these highly stressful and uncertain times that…

When Emotion is High, Logic is Low

..and try to remain as logical with your thoughts and actions as possible.

In fact, I also shared another article this week about how the property market is historically sturdy against stock market downturns.

Plus, in between appointments, I tuned into a couple of live streamed property auctions held in different parts of Sydney’s housing sector today and each had good numbers of registered buyers in attendance and the clearance rates were still high.

Last week I mentioned that we had a buyer pull out from an acreage purchase in Annangrove due to concerns about the Coronavirus impacting their business, but, that property was subsequently Sold this week for $2.1m and the owner is extremely happy to be now on her way out to the country where she’ll enjoy being closer to her family.

Smart buyers are buying real estate at the moment because they know that when we get through the other side of this pandemic, we’re going to have the lowest interest rates in our countries history after the RBA called an emergency meeting for the first time this century and dropped the Cash Rate down to 0.25% add on top of that the population growth expected for Sydney this decade along with all of the extra infrastructure required, I anticipate that we should see a quick market recovery.

Actually, it’s come as no surprise to me to see reports now filtering through that investors are coming back into the property market.

You see, previously when there’s been a drop in the stock market like we had back with 9/11 and the GFC, many investors put their money into bank term deposits, but this time around the return on that investment is so low that investors are now seeing the yields from property as being very attractive right now and they like the security and stability that bricks & mortar investment provides during uncertain times.

How’s The Acreage Market?

Well last week, I mentioned that my greatest concern for the acreage market, was that the recovery for the acreage market was still lagging several months behind the price growth in the housing market that the acreage sector may not actually get to the point of price growth in this current property cycle and even though the housing market is still relatively strong, the impacts of an increase in unemployment, business downturns, lack of consumer confidence and sudden financial pressures may create a levelling off of the market, just at the time when acreage looked set to commence its strong recovery.

On a positive note, there are still a number of qualified buyers who are seriously in the market and are committed to buying an acreage property in today’s market regardless of the current conditions, and whilst buyer enquiry hasn’t been at the same levels as they were a few weeks ago, there’s still lots of enquiries from buyers who are keen to move onto acres.

Currently the number of acreages being sold has reduced this week and the increased volume of new listings coming onto the market is presently creating an oversupply.

Currently there a total of 401 acreage properties For Sale across the entire region. This overall total includes 217 acreage properties For Sale throughout all of The Hawkesbury, 126 in The Hills and another 58 For Sale within Sydney’s North-West acreage areas of Penrith and Blacktown.

This week, there’s been another 17 new acreage listings come onto the market but only 3 acreage properties were Sold this week (nearly half the number of sales that happened last week and almost a quarter of the sales that took place the week before) however, some good news is that there’s been an increase in the number that are ‘Under Contract’ with 19 acreage properties currently ‘Under Contract’ across the entire region.

So far in March there have been 55 new acreage listings and 19 properties sold. With both The Hawkesbury and The Hills areas each having 8 sold and 3 sales occurring in the Penrith & Blacktown Acreage suburbs that our acreage data is collated within.

Out in the field, this week, as mentioned before the property at 7 Everett Place, Annangrove was sold, I’ve also listed a magnificent property in Windsor Downs which I will be promoting ‘Off Market’ to my acreage database of buyers first. Also, the property video has just come in for a stunning 25 acre property at 209 Greens Road, Lower Portland which will be launching onto the major real estate portals next week. If you want an affordable acreage playground overlooking the Hawkesbury River then you won’t find a better opportunity than this.

Also, this coming week, I will be launching a spectacular home in Richmond which is absolutely perfect for anyone living on the other side of the Hawkesbury river who wants to downsize from acres and move closer in to transport and amenities.

The attention to detail and high-end finishes makes this home a place that I think you're really going to fall in love with.

I can't wait to showcase these amazing upcoming properties to the market later this week.

If you want a deeper understanding about what's happening in the acreage market make sure you grab a copy of The Acreage Report 2020 (Autumn edition) which features an insight into ‘The Future For Acreage This Decade' and outlines the Two Biggest Factors Set To Impact Acreage Over The Next 10 years.

It includes statistics about exactly what's happening in every acreage suburb within the Hawkesbury, Hills & Sydney’s North West acreage market.

When you download your copy, you’ll also receive exclusive instant access to The McGrath Report 2020 which features some excellent market insights from property expert, John McGrath.

The Acreage Report is FREE, and you can access a copy right now at www.TheAcreageReport.com.au

So there you have it. That’s it for another week’s Acreage Market Wrap.

If you’ve got any questions about anything I’ve shared this week or would like to discuss any of your acreage plans with me, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

Thanks for watching.

Regards

Greg Vincent