Got a question for the trio? - https://zfrmz.com/uLtjhyBskV96PY6eJfaI 1. Nationally a 1% median price reduction was our smallest rate of decline since June last year All falls for capital cities were also less than their falls last year – an interesting observation considering the unwelcome December rate increase. 2. Melbourne’s median value may fall to below the pre-pandemic level in the coming month – an interesting one to watch! But many of the other capital cities seem likely to remain above their last pre-COVID peaks. 3. Unit rents are still climbing in many cities, and while house asking rents have slowed their pace of growth somewhat, the rate of growth is still positive across the board. Units asking rents in every state remain problematic for renters. Combined with net overseas migration reaching a record high, the threat to the rental market undersupply issue is further amplified by the announcement from the Chinese Government for overseas students to return to their place of study. 4. Tighter rental vacancy rates – the majority of our capital cities (for both houses and units) are exhibiting further tightening rental yields. The heightening asking rents correlate with the tightening vacancy rates and also the increasing rental yield figures across our various capital city and regional markets. As Cate points out “We’re still seeing a sea of green!” 5. New listings are still low after a particularly quiet spring season nationally - what is causing this though? Our new listing activity is 24.5% lower than the five year national average and buyers at the coalface are experiencing this first hand. 6. Sales activity – people are still buying, but sales volumes are low. Pete explores what factors lead vendors to make the decision to sell in this climate. While we had a little bit of a late flurry of purchasing activity leading up to Christmas, the sales number across combined capitals still remains lower than the previous five year average. 7. What’s changed since our last rate increase? Things aren’t quite as dire as some may have guessed they’d be… tune in to hear more. Dave segues perfectly into our economic conditions and consumer sentiment changes. 8. Thirty percent less people are borrowing for housing – no wonder the banks are being so competitive! Unsurprisingly, refinance activity is very strong in response to three things; increasing interest rates, and hungry banks as a result of this lending reduction. 9. Our bond yields tell a compelling story – and Dave points out the visibility that these yield overviews enable us. The three year bond yield remains sub 3.2 still; and digesting this in tandem with longer term bond yields shows us that we’re reasonably close to the likely cash rate equilibrium. 10. Inflation continues to plague us; particularly house prices. Although Cate notes that recreation and culture haven’t really diminished. 11. And... our gold nuggets! Cate Bakos – The Property Buyer’s Golden nugget: Cate raises an important lender offering that some buyers may wish to know more about. David Johnston – The Property Planner’s Golden nugget:  One for our maths brains…. Dave reminds us that a ten percent rise is not the same as a ten percent reduction! Show notes: https://propertyplanning.com.au/market-update-jan-2023-tight-listing-supply-is-creating-a-few-buyer-challenges-ep-192/