From Monday, November 1, residents of Greater Sydney will be back in the Highlands, potentially in droves.
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And guaranteed to be among them are hundreds of house hunters.
"There are lots of buyers out there, mainly from out of area, most from Sydney," said Andrew de Montemas, licensee in charge of WM Carpenter Real Estate.
"And most of the people I'm selling to, this will be their principal place of residence."
In fact, Sydney buyers were able to inspect properties during lockdown with a permit, and - from October 18 - even without one, provided they were able to prove to the police that they were looking at property.
But the much-awaited easing of travel restrictions on Monday will really open the floodgates.
The trouble is, they may not find as many houses on the market as they'd hoped.
Craig Symons from Di Jones Real Estate said that the last lockdown led to supply "drying up".
"There have been very few listings on the market," said Mr Symons.
"But there's still the level of people wanting to purchase, mostly from Sydney, so with limited stock and high demand that's when prices really started to escalate.
"That started late last year, but more so this year."
Mr de Montemas said the lack of stock had been "brewing for a long time."
"Back in May last year, after first lockdown, there was a ton of interest, loads of inquiries," he said.
"That was sustained throughout 2020 and into this year, but once we entered lockdown the market actually stopped - buyer interest was still really strong, but supply dried up."
"The minute the lockdown restrictions eased, all of a sudden there are properties coming to market and because demand is so strong, prices are going up," he said.
"In every segment of market, there's huge demand, but there are still supply issues in some segments."
Mr Symons said those who were brave enough to go to market, despite concerns about restrictions slowing the flow of buyers, were rewarded.
"We were dealing with pointy end of buying market - ready and genuinely in a position to purchase - or they wouldn't have bothered to get a permit otherwise," Mr Symons said, adding that auctions have become far more popular due to the high demand.
"But the number of properties going to market has already increased in light of Monday (when restrictions will ease).
"That could potentially lead to a bit more of a buyer's market."
He said that buyers were coming from across the spectrum.
"Thera are all sorts of different buyers," Mr Symons said.
"There are lots wanting to relocate as they'd like the larger block, a bigger house, and they can work from home - that's a change due to COVID, and that one's here to stay.
"There are also buyers investing in property to rent or short-term holiday let, which will become more of a phenomenon over the next little while.
And then there are just straight out investors, and some developers coming to town, looking to build medium density or seniors living, so we will see more medium density popping up around town in future."
He added that this sector of the housing market had been in particularly short supply during the lockdown period.
"That demographic seemed to be more fearful of going to market, and they've held off," Mr Symons said.
Rental market squeezes tighter
While the sale prices of Highlands residences continue to climb, it's bad news for renters, and not just because investors are seeking to recoup their purchase price.
According to Louise Schofield, operations manager for Jacksonwall's property management section in Moss Vale, it's also because investors have off-loaded property to take advantage of the market, and the new buyers have moved in rather than rented out, leading to a shrinking number of rentals available.
"It's a fairly tight market, about a 10 per cent drop over the last year," Ms Schofield said.
"We don't have a huge amount of rental properties on the market at all, and the main reason is a lot of investors have made good selling properties in hot sales market, so we've had an outflow of investment properties into the sales market, and 90 per cent of the time they've sold to someone who's moved in."
That lack of supply has driven rental prices up, resulting in what she describes as "a housing crisis for the average person".
"I've spoken to local businesses who say they can't get locals to work for them as there's nowhere to live - they can't afford the rent," Ms Schofield said.
She pointed to a one-bedroom flat in Moss Vale that she advertised yesterday, for which she has now had 17 inquiries.
"That's 16 out of 17 who'll be disappointed," she said.
"It'll be leased by tomorrow at $280 a week.
"At the moment a four-bedroom house in East Bowral is in excess of $800 a week."
CoreLogic rental Review figures released today show that regional dwelling rents rose 2.2 per cent over the September quarter compared to capital city dwelling rents, which increased 1.7 per cent over the same period.
Regional Australia's annual rate of rental growth of 12.5 per cent in September 2021 is the highest annual figure on record, with CoreLogic rental index figures commencing in 2005.
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