Market comment: New records set as Sydney market’s rise is fastest in 32 years

Thu, 15 Apr 2021

Market comment: New records set as Sydney market’s rise is fastest in 32 yearsNew records set as Sydney market’s rise is fastest in 32 years

Here’s what we said on these pages ten years ago, in a Market Comment article 26 March 2011 titled ‘Sydney property is still well-priced’: “Median prices in Sydney remain the highest in the nation; houses are selling at a median price of $588,250 and units are selling at a median price of $452,925. 

“But a look at historical pricing shows that the present price levels of quality Sydney real estate represent genuine value. When demand softens, prices grow increasingly attractive, and today’s prices become tomorrow’s bargains.”

A decade later the market shows we were correct. Data from property research firm CoreLogic shows Sydney's property values have eclipsed the stratospheric heights they reached in mid-2017, and it is now more expensive to buy a home in Sydney than at any other time in history.

The median value for all dwellings in Sydney is now $895,933, and that includes units. Take units out of the calculations and the new median high for detached homes is a staggering $1,061,229. Units are yet to hit their own record highs, with the median value for a flat in Sydney now at $738,254.

The Sydney Morning Herald says that Sydney’s median house value jumped $50,000 in March, or $1600 a day. Since the start of the year, it has climbed $100,000, which, if it doesn’t slow, could see the median house price value reach $1.4 million by year’s end.

The Herald’s Matt Wade sums it all up: “Property tropes missing from the city’s narrative for years are back in the news. Dumps are selling for squillions; big crowds are showing up at auctions; reserves are being smashed.”

But are we seeing a new ‘bubble’ develop? The Guardian’s Martin Farrer doesn’t think so: “So, while a bubble might be defined as a market where rising prices are not justified by the fundamentals, the era of cheap money ushered in by the global financial crisis and sustained by Covid, has fundamentally changed those fundamentals. There is an expectation that authorities will do anything necessary to keep the party going.”

Domain’s Elizabeth Redman adds a bit more detail: “The housing market is booming off the back of ultra-low interest rates and expectations they will stay low for years, as well as a recovering economy and a shortage of homes for sale as new listings fail to keep up with strong buyer demand.”

Ian Verrender, the ABC’s resident economist, says that the frenzy that has overtaken the property sector is ‘stunning’: “The final prices routinely come in at well above the indicative range and well above buyer reserves. 

“It's been a bonanza for the two-thirds of households that own a property; heartache for those desperately trying to get aboard the boom. 

“Few would be surprised then that in March, Australian property prices rose at their fastest pace in 32 years,” he said.

CoreLogic's executive research director Tim Lawless said he was not surprised by home prices in Sydney reaching a new record.

"The recovery trend in Sydney following the -15.3 per cent decline from July 2017 to May 2019 was interrupted by COVID-19, with housing values falling by -3.0 per cent through the worst of the pandemic," Mr Lawless said.

"Since housing values found a floor in October last year, Sydney home values have risen 5.7 per cent to reach a new record high.”

This year, the Easter break and the onset of winter weather are unlikely to slow the incredible speed of Australia’s housing market. 

We haven’t seen anything like this in recent years. The last time house prices nationally rose so much and so fast was in the late 1980s in a property boom that was ended by double-digit interest rates and the 1990-91 recession.

Although this is usually a quieter time of year for Sydney property auctions, agents are instead expecting a “second spring” and gearing up for sizeable auctions that will need to be held not just on Saturdays but on Sundays too, just to accommodate the anticipated huge numbers.

Some agents have even reported they’re booked out for auctions well into July as a surge of new listings is about to hit the market.

Domain senior research analyst Nicola Powell said the “unseasonably hot market” could continue for the next six months as a record number of new home loan commitments pointed to ongoing buyer demand across Australia.

“The most unusual thing for me about this market is that all capital cities have so much buyer demand at the same time,” Dr Powell said.

By late March Sydney’s auction market was powering ahead, recording a sky-high preliminary clearance rate of 90.5 per cent one Saturday evening. That meant the city could count seven Saturdays in a row where more than 80 per cent of homes scheduled for auction have sold under the hammer, and that’s a new record.

The last weekend in March, dubbed ‘Super Saturday’ by the media, saw more than 1000 properties go under the hammer in Sydney — the biggest auction day for the city in three years. With such a high volume of listings, 1180 for Sydney, the preliminary clearance rate of 88 per cent showed that the market’s strength was genuine. 

And as historical data from Domain indicates, a high clearance rate points to strong price growth. An auction clearance rate of 70 per cent is usually correlated with an annual price growth of about 10 per cent – well within the levels of price growth forecasts from the big four banks.

ANZ economists have forecast that Australian housing prices are set to soar 17 per cent this year – with Sydney expecting a 19 per cent rise in 2021.

“What we’ve seen is a combination of quite strong demand and relatively low supply,” ANZ senior economist Felicity Emmett said.

“Clearly very low interest rates have more than offset the headwinds from higher unemployment and low population growth.

“We’ve seen housing finance really growing very strongly, very high auction clearance rates [and] very strong sentiment about house prices picking up over the next year or so, and that has really pushed demand a lot higher.”

What could all this mean for house hunters by the year’s end? Domain’s Tawar Razaghi has done some calculations: “House hunters could be forced to add hundreds of thousands of dollars to their budget by the end of the year or else make compromises, after new economist forecasts tipped home prices to reach staggering heights,” he said.

“The national median house price was $852,940 in the December quarter on Domain data, meaning if house prices did move in that order they would rise $145,000 by the end of the year to $997,940.

“Sydney is expected to jump 19 per cent in 2021, which would cost house-buyers an extra $230,183 and take the median house price to $1,441,671.”

And for all those who say housing has become a form of investment rather than a way to just put a roof over our heads, you’re absolutely right. 

CoreLogic research found the proportion of properties in the December quarter that changed hands at a profit rose to 89.9 per cent, above pre-COVID levels. Only 4.4 per cent of Sydney houses sold at a loss.

Unit owners were more likely to sell at a loss than house vendors with 12.6 of Sydney units selling at a loss in the December quarter, many as a result of earlier ‘off the plan’ purchases reaching their settlement dates.

FOMO is growing

CoreLogic’s research director, Tim Lawless, had earlier predicted that price surges in Sydney would soon eclipse the record highs set in 2017, and so they have.

Mr Lawless said a primary driver of the current boom could be buyer's fear of missing out – or FOMO – combined with a relatively smaller number of properties on offer. This means more parties competing for the same properties which tends to produce bumper results at auction.

"Housing inventory is around record lows for this time of the year and buyer demand is well above average. These conditions favour sellers," Mr Lawless said.

Real estate veteran and McGrath Estate Agents founder John McGrath told The Daily Telegraph it was natural for buyers to develop a sense of FOMO when they see 10 or more bidders competing for a home at auction but cautioned buyers needed to be careful.

“You don’t want to stretch yourself,” he said. “If you can’t afford the prices anymore, you need to change location. It’s best to be flexible in this market.

“I am telling people don’t panic, but [also] don’t delay because prices are going up,” he said.

“But I think things may start to slow by the end of the year … the market won’t be moving this quickly forever.”

Real Estate Buyers Agents Association president Cate Bakos said that buyers who were repeatedly outbid, frequently the ‘wounded underbidders’ we’ve mentioned before, were often looking in areas they couldn’t afford.

Those disheartened by the strong competition should keep in mind that the best properties would attract the most interest, Ms Bakos said. “It might seem like a good idea to go for properties where there is less interest, but remember that if you buy a bargain, you will sell a bargain.”

Canstar’s group executive of financial services, Steve Mickenbecker, said it had been the perfect storm for the property market - demand is running hot and stock is being absorbed as soon as it hit the market or even before it’s advertised.

“The fear of missing out is becoming a powerful psychological driver as government incentives and low interest rates have encouraged first-home buyers and home builders into the market in a rush,” Mr Mickenbecker said.

“Owners are loath to put a house on the market even at high current prices, fearing they will miss the boat getting back in.”

Buy first or sell first?

New data from Westpac found that seller confidence is even higher now than it was prior to the pandemic. More than a third of homeowners are planning to sell their property in the next five years as record low interest rates and incredibly high buyer demand send prices rocketing upwards.

Westpac also found that one in ten homeowners are already in the process of putting their home on the market or are planning to do so in the next 12 months.

Anthony Hughes, Managing Director of Mortgages at Westpac, said the bank has seen an increasing number of buyers purchasing homes that prioritised outdoor spaces.

"Home ownership preferences have evolved since the start of the pandemic, with Australians seeking more space, peace and quiet, as well as properties which offer outdoor living like backyards and balconies," Mr Hughes told 9News.

"This is fuelling buyer demand and motivating more Australians to think about selling their current property so they can purchase a new home to better meet their future needs."

But rapidly rising property prices in Sydney and fierce competition for houses is making it harder to buy and sell in the same market. leaving homeowners with a few difficult choices to make.

Do they sell first, then risk of not finding another home before settlement? Or do they buy first, then hope they can sell their existing property quickly for a price they’re happy to accept?

“In the ideal scenario your transactions are as close as possible, but that’s not always possible,” says Domain senior research analyst Nicola Powell.

“Last year, sellers were more inclined to sell before they bought because there was so much uncertainty with prices. [But now] if you sell first before you purchase, what many may now be finding is that the market is running away from them and gaining in price. 

Selling agent Catherine Murphy of The Agency North told Domain it’s now harder to sell and buy in the same market: “The old saying is that you should always buy and sell in the same market; if you don’t, sometimes you can win, sometimes you can lose,” Ms Murphy said.

“Sometimes the gap between the two is bigger. At the moment, because it is so difficult to buy a property and relatively easy to sell a property, a lot of people have decided to try and secure a property first.”

There’s also a possibility that the shortage of stock could spiral, with the lack of supply dissuading potential vendors from putting their homes on the market in case they can’t find anything to buy, further reducing the number of properties available.

What isn’t selling fast

There are not many homes being passed in at Sydney auctions, and agents report that any leftovers are usually stock-standard units or homes with unrealistic seller expectations.

Oasis Skeen Property senior buyer’s agent Paul Wilcox says that most of the time they are units: “The ones struggling are vanilla-ish, properties in high rises,” said Mr Wilcox. “The generic two-bedroom units are the ones that are copping a bit of a hit.”

Michael Yardney, a property writer and advisor, sees it this way: “While well located, family friendly apartments in Sydney’s inner suburbs are likely to perform strongly due to increasing demand from owner occupiers and investors, apartments in high-rise towers are likely to continue to languish.”

Property price data backs this up. Sydney’s worst-performing suburbs and property type, over the past five years, are almost entirely units in the western suburbs.

Architect and City of Sydney councillor Phillip Thalis, who helped develop a number of Sydney’s most important urban projects, including the Sydney Olympic Park 2025 Plan and Parramatta City Centre Plan, told Domain: “This is the most rapacious period in Sydney’s history. 

“The rate and scale of change is shocking to many people. There are a lot of people building buildings who wouldn’t want to live in them themselves.”

High-rise unit prices have continued to drop in price, mostly due to the large number of apartments constructed, creating a market surplus of one type of housing.

The decline of unit prices was set in motion before the pandemic, in December 2018 when stories of defects in the Opal Tower were widely reported. That has continued to drag down prices in Sydney Olympic Park almost 20 per cent in the past five years with a 6.4 per cent decline recorded in the year ending December 2020, according to Domain data.

And when the pandemic hit, working from home became popular and units fell even further out of favour. Houses became the preferred form of accommodation and losses were further compounded.

But apartments may have their day once again, according to BresicWhitney head of sales and chief auctioneer Thomas McGlynn.

“The difference between what an apartment would sell for compared to a house has widened. The value proposition is far greater than potentially stretching to buy a home,” he said.

“The farther away house prices will get to apartments, people will turn back to apartments simply because of the value that’s on offer.”

RBA and interest rates

After the central bank kept rates at the historic low of 0.1 per cent at its monthly policy meeting in April, RBA Governor, Philip Lowe, again indicated the higher inflation needed to see a rise in rates would not return until “2024 at the earliest”.

The Governor said the outlook for the economy had improved in recent months as vaccines are rolled out and global trade has picked up while commodity prices have increased.

“While the path ahead is likely to remain bumpy and uneven, there are better prospects for a sustained recovery than there were a few months ago ... Even so, the recovery remains dependent on the health situation and on significant fiscal and monetary support,” he said.

(And just for the record, the International Monetary Fund [IMF] is forecasting Australia’s economy to grow 4.5 per cent in 2021, and unemployment to drop to six per cent – a very healthy outlook.)

Mr Lowe also noted that housing markets were strengthening: “Housing credit growth to owner-occupiers has picked up, with strong demand from first-home buyers,” he said, adding investor credit growth remains subdued. 

“Given the environment of rising housing prices and low interest rates, the Bank will be monitoring trends in housing borrowing carefully and it is important that lending standards are maintained.”

CommSec chief economist Craig James agreed a rate hike was not imminent. “We expect no change in rates before 2024,” Mr James said.

“There will always be upside and downside risks, but there still remains significant slack in the job market.

“Unemployment would need to fall much more quickly than expected and wages lift sharply for any thought to be given to lifting rates.”

The Federal Treasury’s deputy secretary Luke Yeaman told a Senate estimates hearing that his department was watching the property market carefully, but there were no signs of a bubble forming, nor was there a decline in lending standards.

He said that higher house prices were actually boosting the overall economy: “At this stage … the support the strong housing market is providing for consumers, through to household wealth, we see as a sign of strength in the recovery,” he said.

Responsible lending laws relaxed

The federal government is looking to wind back responsible lending laws after a government report warned home loan approvals were taking too long and were too invasive.

A Senate committee argued the change would not undermine consumer protections, saying there are other protections for consumers and that the principle of responsible lending was still embedded in other bank regulations.

Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has previously said that responsible lending obligations would still apply to small amount credit contracts (SACCs) below $2,000 and to consumer leases. He also said the government had introduced a number of reforms to strengthen consumer protection.

He said these reforms included handing more power to the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC), initiating a statutory obligation for mortgage brokers to act in the best interests of consumers and requiring them to prioritise consumers’ interest when providing credit assistance, increasing financial sector civil and criminal penalties, and establishing the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA).

In a Financial Review article, APRA chairman Wayne Byres queried whether there was a problem that needed to be dealt with. In 2015 and 2017, he said that APRA intervened to cool off speculative investors fuelled up on interest-only loans. This time, he says, the rising ratios of loans to value and household debt to income are just a natural result of more first-time buyers taking advantage of cheap money.

Brokers say the maximum amount people can borrow has increased due to the lower interest rates used to assess loans and a take-home income boost from recent tax cuts. But the increase has also been limited by a rise in the living expenses benchmark most banks use to assess loan applications.

Someone on a lower income of $50,000 could have upped their budget by nearly $19,000 over the past year, on the lowest variable rate, while a high-income earner on $120,000 could increase their budget by $57,500.

Other sources within the broking sector told ABC News that borrowing capacity has increased by around 7.5 per cent since July 2019 for a typical family on a $150,000 household income with two children.

For mortgage brokers, that has meant a boom in business: "General inquiry in the last six months has been busier than I've had in the past 16 years of being a mortgage broker," Sydney based mortgage broker Terri Unwin said in an interview with ABC News.

Ms Unwin said, so far, access to funding has not been made easier, but there was less paperwork being required when banks sign customers up.

"Overall borrowing capacity has remained pretty level because of the increases in living expenses that the banks are benchmarking." Ms Unwin said.

AMP Capital chief economist Shane Oliver says he is concerned that at some point in the future interest rates will rise and people will then be unable to pay their mortgages: "With the removal of responsible lending obligations and the property boom underway, the risk is that those lending standards will be eased and people who maybe shouldn't have got a loan will end up getting one." 

But he added that he felt higher rates would not be on the cards for another few years: "The greater likelihood is the Reserve Bank will, with other bank regulators — particularly APRA, put pressure on the banks to slow down the pace of lending and tighten up their lending standards," Dr Oliver said.

First-home buyers

Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows first home buyers are taking out mortgages at the highest rate since 2009.

Some first home buyers are also taking advantage of the federal government's First Home Loan Deposit Scheme (FHLDS) that waives costly insurance on loans for first home buyers that do not have a 20 per cent deposit.

Places in that scheme for existing home purchases have been especially popular and there are now waiting lists at some banks to get on it.

"The scheme is cutting years off the time it takes Australians to save for a deposit, and it is working, with first home buyers now entering the market at the highest level since October, 2009," Minister for Housing Treasurer, Michael Sukkar, said.

However, Sydney mortgage broker Rob Lees says he’s seen a slowdown of first-home buyer activity in recent weeks: “The big challenge at the moment is just finding a property.

“A lot of first home buyers are starting to feel like they’re being priced out of the market, so there is a lot of frustration and disappointment,” he said. “And a lot [of pre-approvals] are expiring because people can’t find a property in time.”


While there has been an encouraging lift in borrowing by first time buyers in recent months, Grattan Institute economist Brendon Coates does not expect that to have much effect on the overall level of home ownership.

“Some first home buyers have made gains recently, but the reality is the bottom 40 per cent of income earners are priced out of most of our major cities,” he says. “I wouldn’t expect to see a big jump in home ownership rates among that lower income cohort which is the group we are more worried about.”

Coates says “we shouldn’t be surprised” house prices have surged given the drastic interest rate reductions of recent times, now down to just 0.1 per cent.

He points to Reserve Bank modelling published in 2019 which found a sustained reduction in interest rates of 1 percentage point would lift housing prices by 30 per cent over a period of three years.

More about stamp duty

For the past few years, we’ve covered the NSW government’s proposed changes to stamp duty on property transactions. Every now and then the subject surfaces in the news and little by little the perils as well as the claimed benefits are being highlighted.

Briefly, the government proposal would mean the end of stamp duty on the sale of property and replacing the lost revenues by an annual tax on all residential property in the state. So, one tax goes and another one comes in. Sounds reasonable, right? Or maybe not.

The government has claimed broad support for its proposal saying 74 per cent of respondents to an ongoing government survey said they would likely opt-in to the proposed system. Since all the details haven’t yet been revealed, the words ‘would likely’ could be replaced with ‘might’ for greater accuracy.

Johnathan Chancellor, writing on News.com, explains why he’s more than a bit concerned about the plan: “While supporting the desired outcome of encouraging greater turnover to allow more supply at key stages in people’s lives, I fear the reform will not make home ownership easier, or cheaper, but will rather introduce a lifetime long burden for owners.

“There’s an inevitability that the low start property valuation tax will always be increasing as land values rise, but also the annual tax rate will be prone to hikes whenever the state government wishes.”

Mr Chancellor’s calculations are that on a $1 million purchase, homebuyers would now pay stamp duty of $40,335, but under the reform could opt for a “perpetual obligation” property tax, which, depending on the land value and the final rate, will start at around $3000 annually.

He quotes modelling showing that after paying for 10 years, most owners keeping their homes will then see their overall costs exceed what would have been a one-off upfront stamp duty.

He also comments that instead of housing prices falling, vendors will happily hang onto the amount that would otherwise have been paid in stamp duty and property prices would stay the same. 

“It already has a mooted onerous structure as once a home is put under the new system it can’t escape, no matter the next buyer’s wish. I’d anticipate that properties that still offer buyers the choice of stamp duty, and of opting into the new regime, will become more desired than those locked into the annual tax.”

Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand has asked NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet to produce modelling so stakeholders can better understand the impact of any changes on government revenues and property prices.

CA’s senior tax advocate Susan Franks said that while her group supported “moving from stamp duty to property tax”, it had concerns about the costs.

“The transitional method to opt-in is likely to be protracted and complex, with three tax regimes running in parallel for many decades,” she said in a Financial Review article.

“There is currently no modelling available to answer serious questions that range from the sustainability of NSW’s revenue model to housing impacts on retirees and first home buyers.

“Educating buyers around this tax change is going to be essential, otherwise we may end up with a dangerous mix of even higher prices for market entrants, and an ongoing property tax as well,” she said.

Carry on regardless

Top economists tell us that the property market is set to roll on despite economic support measures coming to an end in late March, rejecting long-held worries about a looming fiscal crunch.

Although economists agree there will be financial stress for those who lose government support, they believe it will have few consequences for a housing market that seems to grow stronger with every week.

EY Oceania chief economist Jo Masters told Domain the housing market absorbed changes last year when house prices accelerated and the economy continued to improve despite the economic threats posed by the pandemic.

“I actually don’t think it’s going to have a dramatic impact on house prices and the housing market. We’ve already had two step-downs in support,” Ms Masters said. “The step-down in October was bigger than the one we’re going to see at the end of this month.”

The expiry of the wage subsidy is expected to put about 110,000 jobs at risk, but that’s not going to have much effect on the overall economy, according to Commonwealth Bank’s head of Australian economics Gareth Aird.

“What does that mean for the housing market? We don’t think there will be any impact from the expiry of JobKeeper,” Mr Aird said.

“Back in September, there were a lot more people on JobKeeper and a lot fewer people employed. GDP and production are back at pre-COVID levels.”

NAB chief economist Alan Oster said some parts of the economy would feel economic headwinds, including city centres, travel destinations and the industries surrounding them, such as food and accommodation.

“It won’t change the outlook for the property market,” he said. “We don’t think house prices will keep going at the current rate, but we don’t think it’s going to crash either. It might make things a bit more moderate.

“The economy is in far better shape than any original forecast at the height of COVID last year, notwithstanding such areas as tourism, combined with many industries having a complete lack of applicants for strong employment positions,” Ray Ellis, CEO of First National, Australia’s third largest real estate agency, told News Corp.

CoreLogic head of research Eliza Owen points out: “JobKeeper has already been reduced significantly in recent months, with no dampening impact apparent on the housing market as a whole.

“Changes to JobSeeker would likely have little direct impact on housing market values,” she concluded.

Sources:

‘Clock ticking for first-home buyers turning to government incentives,’ Kate Burke, Domain, 11 April 2021
‘Why there’s not enough property for sale right now,’ Sue Williams, Domain. 6 April 2021
‘RBA holds interest rates at 0.1 per cent,’ Jennifer Duke and Shane Wright, Sydney Morning Herald, 6 April 2021
‘Bubble or boom? Why ultra-low interest rates mean house prices may never bust,’ Martin Farrer, The Guardian, 5 April 2021
‘Australian home values rise at fastest pace for 32 years: Core Logic research,’ Elizabeth Redman, Domain, 1 April 2021
‘Australian housing ‘boom’ declared as affordability fears mount,’ Rebecca LeMay, News.com.au, 2 April 2021
‘Why the RBA is reluctant to stop the housing boom,’ Ian Verrender, ABC News online, 2 April 2021
‘House prices rising at fastest pace in 32 years as listings can't keep up with demand: CoreLogic,’ Stephanie Chalmers, ABC News online, 1 April 2021
‘Accountants slam protracted NSW stamp duty reform,’ Martin Kelly, Australian Financial Review, 30 March 2021
‘How much extra will it cost to buy a house if prices rise as much as economists forecast?,’ Tawar Razaghi, Domain, 26 March 2021
‘Australian house prices forecast to see their sharpest rise since the 1980s,’ Ben Graham, News.com.au, 26 March 2021
‘House prices could rise 17 per cent this year, locking some first-home hopefuls out: ANZ,’
Elizabeth Redman, Domain, 24 March 2021
‘Real estate: end of JobKeeper and JobSeeker unlikely to force down property prices,’ James MacSmith, News Corp Australia Network, 22 March 2021
‘Housing market tipped to power on despite end of JobKeeper: economists,’ Tawar Razaghi, Domain, 22 March 2021
‘Sydney auctions: Dilapidated Glebe terrace sells for $2.99 million,’ Kate Burke, Domain, 20 March 2021
‘First home buyers urged to proceed with caution as Sydney's housing surge continues,’ Kathleen Calderwood, ABC News online, 20 March 2021
‘Will the housing market keep going up? Agents say yes, they’re booked out until July,’ 
Melissa Heagney Domain, 19 March 2021
‘NSW Stamp duty reform could see some homeowners worse off under the changes,’ Jonathan Chancellor, News.com.au, 17 March 2021
‘Senate committee backs plan to roll back responsible lending rules, citing home-loan approval delays,’ Elizabeth Redman, Domain, 15 March 2021
‘Fears of a debt disaster as property market runs hot and changes to safe lending laws loom’, Nassim Khadem, ABC News online, 13 March 2021
‘Sydney property prices hit all-time high on back of housing boom,’ Stuart Marsh, 9News, 12 March 2021
‘Why are developments still going up in western Sydney – and at what cost?,’ Tawar Razaghi, Domain, 9 March 2021
‘Pressure mounts on RBA to hike interest rates as property prices keep climbing,’ Rebecca LeMay, News.com.au, 10 March 2021
‘These types of Sydney properties are passing in at auction, even in a boom market,’ Tawar Razaghi, Domain, 9 March 2021
‘Real estate mogul John McGrath says home seekers should try not to ‘panic’ in boom market,’ Aidan Devine, realestate.com.au, 9 March 2021
‘More than a third of Aussie homeowners considering putting property up for sale, Stuart Marsh, 9News, 8 March 2021
‘The seller’s dilemma: Sydney homeowners caught out by market moving too fast to buy in,’ 
Kate Burke, Domain, 7 March 2021
‘Record low interest rates until 2024 could deepen divisions between Australia's haves and have-nots,’ Martin Farrer, The Guardian, 6 March 2021
'Buyers are confronting a sense of FOMO': Aussie property prices rise at fastest rate in 17 years’. Stuart Marsh, 9News, 1 March 2021
‘First home buyers are racing to buy — but rising prices make home ownership 'further out of reach,' Emilia Terzon, ABC News online, 2 March 2021
‘Pandemic property boom: will it get too hot to handle?,’ Matt Wade, Sydney Morning Herald, 6 March 2021