End of the First Home Buyer Grant Boost will NOT Hurt NSW and ACT Property

Angus Raine, CEO of Raine & Horne is optimistic for the residential property markets in NSW & ACT in 2010.

“There is some concern the end of the First Home Owners Boost (FHOB) will hurt the market,” says Mr Raine.

“I don’t agree with this assessment. The Federal Government was smart to extend the FHOB for an additional six months to the end of December 2009. This has given younger Australians contemplating home ownership the opportunity to jump off the rental treadmill and into a home.”

“However I’m not convinced another 12 months of the FHOB will help sell more young Australians into a fi rst home. On the contrary, Mr Raine expects to see investors fi ght back in 2010 and is advising them to get into the Sydney and ACT markets as soon as January.

“This will provide savvy investors with a jump on other buyers particularly with news that a third of Australians are looking to buy a property in the next two years,” says Mr Raine.

Raine & Horne Parramatta’s Lisa Surian agrees with Mr Raine and says the pickup in investor enquiry is already significant. “We’ve seen an increase in enquiries since November as investors anticipate a price adjustment in the wake of the end of the FHOB,” explains Ms Surian.

“Investors want to see what is out there and they’re very yield driven. The majority of enquiries are either for properties in the low end $200,000 to $280,000 and then $350,000 to $450,000.”

While Ms Surian says some of the investors are from Sydney’s northern beaches, she is also receiving calls from as far away as Western Australia. “Most of these enquires are from NSW people who are working on projects in the mineral rich WA,” explains Ms Surian.

Like Parramatta, the St George region is also attracting investors from other parts of Sydney. Raine & Horne, Sans Souci proprietor, Ray Fadel says savvy Eastern Suburbs investors have started descending on the St George area and estimates around 30% of buyers are attracted by the affordable lifestyle alternative and convenience of the region.

“Investors and owner/occupiers are discovering the ‘peninsula’ and the surrounding suburbs which boast bigger blocks of land and better value than much of the Eastern Suburbs,” says Mr Fadel.