*Source: Aidan Devine
Homeowners have been drawn into a “Mexican standoff” expected to drain Sydney of real estate listings and make it harder for buyers to find their dream home.
Agents claim many would-be sellers have been holding off listing their homes for sale until prices stop falling and they see strong sales results in their area.
But because multiple owners have adopted this attitude too few homes are being listed to provide the evidence of an improvement they're seeking, creating a cycle where no one is listing because none of their neighbours are.
Sales records showed the number of Sydney properties advertised for sale dropped 11 per cent over the past month, the first time listing figures recorded a major drop since housing prices began falling in 2017.
Real estate experts said the nearly 35,000 homes available for sale across the Harbour City was still well up on listing numbers in preceding years, but many of the homes were “old stock”.
These properties had been languishing on the market unsold for months — often because they had attributes buyers didn't like such as a location on a busy street or were overpriced.
Some of these properties were also overly concentrated in pockets of the city where there was rampant unit construction and an oversupply of high-rise apartments.
Buyer's agent Peter Kelaher said the number of fresh listings, notably houses in lower-density suburbs, has actually been decreasing, creating a shortage of “quality” listings.
“Owners with good homes who can choose when they sell have been holding off on sales,” Mr Kelaher said.
“They don't want to sell when prices are falling or when the market is at the bottom so they wait until signs of a recovery.”
Many of these sellers were also planning a purchase but didn't want to sell until there was more stock for them to purchase.
“That's the standoff. No one sells because there is nothing to buy, so there continues to be nothing to buy,” Mr Kelaher said.
Freshwater residents Ali and Stephane Lelievre said they were reluctant to list their three-bedroom house on Soldiers Ave fearing they wouldn't be able to find their next home.
“There wasn't much we liked for sale,” Mrs Lelievre said. “There were only a few that were suitable for us but there was a lot of competition … our area has become very popular.”
Stone Real Estate-Manly agent Eddy Piddington said declining listing numbers coincided with improved buyer confidence.
More buyers were returning to the market following recent rate cuts and the federal election, creating competition for listings that would help sellers, he said.