Are these record house prices sustainable?

By Ian Pepper, of Ray White Helensburgh

With recent records being broken in most suburbs across the 2508 and 2515 postcodes, people have been asking me: “Are these prices sustainable?”

It seems no one wants to sell at the moment for fear of nowhere to go and/or not wanting to miss out on any continued price gains. The Reserve Bank has forecast prices could rise 30% over the next three years, so owners are questioning whether now is too early to sell.

The result of all this is a dramatic “lack of stock”, as they call it in real estate, meaning there are not enough houses for people to buy who want to move to the area. The same actually goes for the rental market as well at present. Historically, what normally happens in these situations is owners see the high prices being achieved and eventually give in and put their property on the market.

Once more stock is available, then the dramatic under-supply of houses should cause prices to become more stable.