Prospective property buyers urged to be ‘better prepared’ amid pandemic

Despite the economic challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, there remained strong interest in investing in both the residential and commercial property market, according to Linton Advisory Group managing director Caxton Pang.

In fact, a lot of his investing clients have queried whether now is a good time to get into the property market, especially considering the declining prices.

Rather than give them a prediction, Mr Pang advises them to “be better prepared”.

“I think if people intend to purchase, refinance or [cash out], they must have their financial accounts updated and organised now,” he said.

“The major banks are facing massive delays in turnaround times, and also, as a result of strict compliance procedures, they require full financials to be disclosed.”

Smaller lenders may not require as much financial detail and be more flexible with loan amounts and turnaround times, but their interest rates would be slightly higher, Mr Pang added.

“Given interest rates are so low at the moment and likely to stay that way, the SME clients or investors should probably focus on maximising the loan sizes rather than the interest rates,” he said.

Ultimately, he urges prospective buyers to get their finances and accounts sorted now so there is cash flow available in the event that opportunities may arise in the market – regardless of whether they want to apply to one of the big four or smaller lenders.

Moving forward, despite economic uncertainties, Mr Pang remains confident that Australia will recover from the negative impacts of the health crisis.

“While we don’t have a crystal ball to foresee the future impacts of COVID-19, there are still some encouraging signs for the economy,” Mr Pang concluded.

“We haven’t seen a significant drop in the property market within the good areas. While there has been a lot of pain for many SMEs, there are still businesses performing strongly and hiring staff and merger and acquisition activity is continuing.”