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This week, Mike, Cate and Dave take a data-driven look at the property predictions that missed the mark. From mortgage cliffs to phantom crashes, the Trio revisit some of the biggest doomsday headlines of recent years and unpack what actually happened in the market. 

💥 The Mortgage Cliff That Wasn’t
Remember the panic about borrowers “falling off a cliff” when fixed-rate loans expired? The Trio revisit those 2023 headlines that warned of a 63% surge in repayments and a flood of defaults. While repayments did bite, the wave of foreclosures never arrived. Borrowers used buffers, refinanced, and adapted, and instead of collapsing, home values rose nearly 9% through the year. Cate points out that strong employment and low supply were the shock absorbers that kept the market steady.

📉 The Crash That Never Came
When ANZ predicted a 20% house-price drop, commentators braced for disaster. Instead, the market dipped 8.4% peak-to-trough before rebounding almost the same amount within a year. Mike calls it “a blip, not a bust,” while Dave explains how migration, tight listings, and undersupply pulled prices back up faster than expected. Cate reminds listeners that “fastest fall” doesn’t mean “deepest”. Many headlines confused speed with severity.

🏠 Distress vs Data
The Trio also tackle repossession myths and “negative equity” scares. Bank repossessions rose 160%, but this figure rose "from virtually nothing to slightly more than nothing", according to Mike. Only around 5% of resales were loss-making by late 2024, and even at the trough, nine in ten sellers made a profit. Dave sums it up: “Australians hold for the long run, you don’t crystallise a loss if you don’t sell.” 

📊 Myths, Models & Misreads
From 18-year-cycle theories to “foreign exodus” fears, the Trio show how simple narratives often ignore complex fundamentals. Migration, supply, and employment keep shaping the market far more than any cosmic cycle or international buyer movement. Cate reflects that property astrology might be fun at parties.... but it’s useless for planning. 

As Dave says, “Doom sells, but data wins.” The Australian property market keeps bending, never breaking, and that resilience is worth remembering the next time a headline screams catastrophe. 

And our gold nuggets!.....

Dave Johnston's gold nugget: As Dave says, “Doom sells, but data wins.” Dave reflects on the elements that mitigate crisis in our property markets. 

Mike Mortlock's gold nugget: Mike wanted to share some resilience for people who can get scared by these types of headlines. "If you see a headline predicting a disaster, remember that Australia's proeprty market is much more rubber ball, than crystal vase." 

Cate Bakos's gold nugget: Cate reflects on the previous downturns we've had and she encourages listeners to check out the chart cited in the show notes. 

Shownotes:  https://www.propertytrio.com.au/2025/10/27/media-predictions-about-crashes/