Message from Dan White, Ray White Group Managing Director

There was some trepidation among our members as they returned to work after the holidays. What would be in store for them? It’s understandable that the intensity of negative media commentary over the holidays seeded an expectation that things would be challenging.

But the feedback over the past six weeks is that market activity, especially buyer interest, is stronger than when we broke for holidays - significantly stronger in some markets. This activity reminds us that buyers can often move together in new directions, influenced by each other’s movements rather than by instruction.

Higher levels of buyer activity were witnessed in our auction bidder numbers. In November we averaged 2.2 active bidders and 3.6 registered bidders per auction, which increased in January, and so far in February we’re averaging 2.8 active bidders and 4.9 registered bidders. Every January for more than 30 years, Ray White Surfers Paradise hosts The Event on the Gold Coast where over 100 properties are auctioned in one day. This year’s Event was again another great success, with hundreds of people attending, and very strong bidding from local, interstate and international buyers at levels ensuring sensational results.

However, this increased buyer activity hasn’t yet resulted in success on the ‘scoreboard’. January is a tricky month to judge sales activity overall, but in our first month of 2023, we wrote a total of $2.9 billion in unconditional sales across Australia, down 23 per cent per cent on the year prior.

The rise in buyer traffic has contrasted with a decline in new listings. Sales volumes were curtailed by less property coming to market. In December 2022 we listed 3,441 properties (down 22 per cent on December 2021) and in January 2023 we listed 4,945 properties (down eight per cent on January 2022).

Over the years and through many cycles, we’ve often seen strong buyer activity lead to more listings and then to a general upswing in overall activity. The evidence of strong activity creates confidence to come to market. While the evidence of strong bidding is clear, many potential vendors seem to remain reluctant to come to market and take advantage of the lack of competition.

There are many contrasting factors at play at the beginning of this year that will influence market activity. The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has been very clear on its intention to raise interest rates further. We have a state election in New South Wales. However, we expect more migration, and tourism and investment from China given the lifting of restrictions, and alternative investments outside of real estate that offer strong and stable financial returns are hard to find.

Our economics, technology and data teams combine and analyze the data collected by more than 11,000 members across Australia and New Zealand. We’re in a unique position to listen closely to what’s happening in the market and report on it to our customers to ensure they make the best real estate decisions in 2023.

We look forward to sharing our insights with you throughout 2023. Our local Ray White members would be delighted to discuss this edition of Ray White Now with you further.

Dan White
Managing Director
Ray White Group