discobay

I'm thinking of selling my former-home in Bris-Vegas but the price I've been given is only slightly above what I bought it for three years ago. Take away the solicitor, agent, advertising and government fees and I will only break-even. Further if you subtract the loan interest that I have paid the last three years then I've made a loss. Not having followed the market in Brisbane for a couple of years what is the consensus - sell now or wait another few months until the first quarter of next year?

LongWayHome

I am hearing there are loads of houses on the market in Brisbane right now. Better to wait maybe. Then again, could be the beginning of the end.

harrip

Three years is a short period of time as far as property is concerned. Getting your money back, considering the initial costs such as stamp duty etc initially is not to be sneezed at.

littda01

Agree.

Noone knows where the markets going of course, but what is the risk to you if prices drop further, mortgage rates rise etc? If you could afford to hold for 10-15 years, then probably the risk is not that bad. But if you're thinking of getting out well before that, I wouldn't quibble over a few % points.

IMO, the potential upside is probably quite small e.g. a small rise over the next couple years, and you time it well and get out. Whereas the potential downside is quite large e.g. a significant drop and serious difficulty in selling, in an environment of rising interest rates.

JMO, good luck!

Steve2009

Until you have a contract in your hand you've no way of telling what it will sell for. The market in Brisbane seems to be pretty poor at the moment. There's no guarantee that prices will appreciate in the medium term either though. I guess the question is what are your motivations for selling and what do you hope to achieve by holding? As for mortgage interest / rent being dead money, you presumably got some housing utility out of the place.

discobay

What's that?

DadAgain

He's referring to your comment that if you 'break even' after paying soliciotr costs etc etc that you're actually making a loss due to interest paid over the last 3 years.

BUT the reality is that if you werent paying interest on that loan for the last 3 years you'd have been paying rent somewhere else so therefore your 'losses' are much smaller than they might appear. Furthmore - you may have had 'non-quantifibale value' from being a home owner (piece of mind over the last 3 years, ability to hammer in picture hooks and cut down trees without asking for permission of a snotty rental agent etc etc).

As far as the original question goes - Id say selling now is likely to be a better outcome than selling in the next year or so. As the littda01 pointed out the chances of significant rises in property in he short term are pretty remote - but the chances of a complete collapse in pricing are always there.

discobay

The rationale behind selling is to buy here in Perth. Renting is so soul destroying.

discobay

Yep totally agree and I understand the loan payments vs rent payments argument. I was merely putting it out there. All opinions gratefully received.

Amazulu

Whatever you do don't take advice from BE's property 'experts'!

Steve2009

That's understandable, so once you've established why you want to sell the next thing you need to establish is why you would not sell. What do you hope to gain by holding onto the Brisbane property?

discobay

Personally from what I have read not much. I do have more hair to lose though with every month there seems to be another f**k up with the tenants/property managers.

Steve2009

Those are some of the negative points of keeping on the asset, you'd have to weigh those against any potential upside you could anticipate and make a decision about whether it's worthwhile. Property is never guaranteed to appreciate (in real terms) or make you money. It seems like your choice is between becoming an investor or a homeowner.

jad n rich

Our property managers just informed us that the latest water/rates increases cant be passed on, so another 1000 a year out of our pockets.

We actually have pretty good tenants right now, clean, sane and amazingly pay the rent.

The selling up question will loom soon though as kids end school and we leave. Dreading the entire selling process, cost and RE agents

littda01

Not as soul-destroying as being stuck in/with a place worth 20% less than you paid for it, paying 8%+ in interest, and knowing if you sell you will crystallize your loss. And/or having to sell and take the loss because the bank has reduced its valuation of your home, reduced its LTV policies, and you now need to find the difference in order to refi at a more sensible rate.

Thats soul-destroying... but obviously I paint a bleak scenario here