Posts by Cate Bakos
Property price discounts on the rise in most Australian capital cities as hot market shows signs of cooling
Property prices in Brisbane are not being discounted at the same rate as last year. Photo: iStock/Yongyuan Dai Home vendors are starting to offer discounts to secure a sale, new data shows, especially in Sydney and Melbourne where signs point to the super hot market beginning to cool. But as veterans of the longest lockdowns flee the major…
Read MoreHow to make an offer on a house
Before you get serious about buying, it’s important to understand the first step on your home ownership journey – putting in an offer. Finding the right home for you can be a long, time-consuming process. But once you’ve found ‘the one’, you probably want to move quickly – especially in a hot property market –…
Read MoreProperty buyer FOMO eases as lockdowns end, more listings hit the market
More homes have been listed as lockdowns end. Photo: Peter Rae Fear of missing out among potential property buyers is starting to ease as more homes are listed for sale this spring. But buyers hoping to pick up a bargain might have another think coming, with bullish prices still being achieved for the most sought-after homes. “That’s [FOMO] definitely…
Read MoreFirst-home buyers find success at Highton auction
Callan Baldwin and Zalie Allen bought their first home in Highton. A slight easing in conditions for homebuyers and professional help has landed an Anglesea couple their first home at a Geelong auction on Saturday. Zalie Allen and Callan Baldwin were emotional after they secured a renovated three-bedroom house in Highton’s Roycroft Ave. The couple, who said…
Read MorePre-auction offers key in seller’s market
Being brave enough to make a pre-auction offer could be the key to securing a property in the current market, according to a buyers advocate. “In this kind of environment, where you have increased volumes and a declining clearance rate, there is an appetite for pre-auction offers,” Melbourne-based advocate Cate Bakos told AAP. But she…
Read MoreWhy this is our most popular blog
We’ve been writing weekly blogs for over a decade now and in this time, we’ve documented trends, various clients’ property adventures, our coal face insights and market updates. From the lows of the 2012 and 2019 market to the highs of our 2013-2017 run, the credit-squeezed pre-May 2019 period to the turbulence throughout COVID lockdowns……
Read MoreInterest rate speculation
This week’s blog is delivered following popular demand. Many consumers misunderstand the interest rate news right now, and there are two common elements that are getting confused; interest rate increases: currently only fixed rates, not variable rates increased buffer rates, as initiated recently by APRA Back to the first point…. So many people are feeling…
Read MoreThe best kind of moral support
We get to enjoy so many exciting journeys with our clients. Many come to us for assistance because the task of finding a home can feel daunting or overwhelming. A large proportion of our clients are first time buyers, yet even for those who are upgrading, the enormity of the task can often trigger these…
Read MoreWhat Sydney’s median unit price of more than $800,000 can buy you in other cities – Domain
Sydney unit prices are now higher than the typical house price in Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Hobart and Darwin. Sydney apartment prices have reached a record high, climbing past the $800,000 mark and outstripping house prices across most of the nation’s big cities. 4 Edro Court, Bundoora VIC 30834Beds1Bath1ParkingView listing Buyer’s advocate Cate Bakos, of Cate…
Read MoreMaking good decisions
I recently listened to a great documentary on ABC National radio’s Ockham’s Razor. A marine science expert, Paul Hardisty spoke about the plight of saving the Great Barrier Reef. “Every day we make hundreds of choices, big and small, that build to become the story of our lives – the friends we make, the careers…
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