Fast 50 suburb starting to boom
A south-eastern suburb of Perth tipped in Smart Property Investment’s Fast 50 report has already seen unexpectedly fast growth over the past two months, according to experts on the ground.
Where Armadale properties could be bought sub-$300,000 just weeks ago, much of this has been absorbed by heavy demand, pushing prices even higher, wHeregroup’s Todd Hunter told Smart Property Investment yesterday from Perth.
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Having bought between 20 and 30 properties in the region, he said that it was “not as many as [he] wanted” with the turning tide of the market much quicker than he had expectations for.
He explained that while there is still growth left in the market, the first $30,000 has already really been made by investors who bought in earlier.
The Fast 50 report tipped the suburb of Wungong, in the City of Armadale, for growth this year on the back of its affordability, developments and projections for significant population growth. This growth seems to have already begun to be realised.
Sales and marketing director for Century 21 Armadale, Craig Abbott, said that he had also seen this unexpected surge.
He attributed this to the first home buyers and investors currently active in the area.
“Right now the amount of listings on the market [in Perth] is half of what it was a year ago,” said Mr Abbott, “A year ago it was around 16,000 and we’re shooting towards the 8,000 mark.”
He explained that his office is currently selling properties at around $20,000 above asking price, occasionally with as many as 10 or more potential buyers putting in offers.
“The first home owners and investors are out in force,” he added, “We’re selling at the first home open for more than asking price.”
Momentum Wealth’s Damian Collins told Smart Property Investment that this upsurge is being seen across Perth at the moment, with low interest rates and increasing rents pushing first time buyers into the market.
“We’ve seen activity across the whole Perth market in the last three or four months,” he said. This is particularly the case in the sub-$500,000 market where stamp duty exemptions for new buyers still apply.
He also pointed to investor competition in areas that have been flagged for future re-zoning in the recent government plan for Perth, due to their development possibilities.
“Anything that’s proposed for long-term new development is seeing investor interest,” he said.
His expectations for Perth’s overall growth are nine per cent over the year, from January 1st.
