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Creation Date: Thu, 15 Sep 2011 GMT Sydney home buyers awake from hibernationSydney's spring property selling season showed the first signs of coming to life at the weekend with government policy initiatives and data released last week pointing to this trend continuing. The weekend's auction clearance rate rose to 60.7 per cent, much higher than the previous weekend's 51.8 per cent and, more significantly, the highest weekend auction clearance rate in nearly two months. More than 350 properties were listed for auction in Sydney at the weekend - about the same number as on the previous weekend. Of the 265 reported auctions, 179 were sold for a total value of $140.5 million, at an average of $784,916. The median price for houses sold was $850,500 and for units $517,000. The most expensive property was a five-bedroom home in MacMasters Beach at $2.325 million. The most affordable property was a two-bedroom unit in Lakemba which was auctioned for $232,000. Buyer activity in the Sydney market is expected to increase during the rest of the year. Data from the Bureau of Statistics revealed the monthly number of seasonally adjusted loans for owner-occupied homes in NSW rose 1.5 per cent in July, which was the fifth consecutive monthly rise. Despite relatively subdued market conditions, the number of owner-occupied home loans is now 5.5 per cent higher for the seven months to July, compared with the same period last year. However, first-home buyers have been quiet, with the number of home loans for this group tracking lower during the past few months. The proportion of first-home buyers in the market is now the lowest for more than six years. Last week's announcement that the stamp-duty concession for first-home buyers will expire at the end of this year for the purchase of established properties may result in a spurt of buying activity from this group during the spring. Interest rates also look set to remain on hold for the rest of the year, although the September quarter consumer-price-index data due to be published on October 26 will hold the key to a possible rate movement in November Source: www.smh.domain.com.au
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