Eight Months to Clear Housing Overhang
Unsold housing stock is nearing record levels, and would take nearly eight months to clear.
RP Data's Property Pulse has reported that housing stock is piling up, with 7.4 months of effective supply on the market.
Research analyst Cameron Kusher said that sales volumes remain around the same level as last year, which indicates that supply levels have been driven by higher levels of stock rather than declining sales.
"A spike in recent listings data acquired by RP Data suggests that available stock is at near-to record levels and is being driven by mounting levels of re-listings. This result is indicative of slower market conditions and longer than normal selling periods," Kusher said.
Kusher suggested that stock levels may have peaked in some capital cities, though housing stock continued to grow in Melbourne and Adelaide. He said that, while he expects the recent RBA rate cut to see improved sales volumes, this is unlikely to filter through to property value growth.
"My reasoning behind this is because while housing credit growth remains flat, consumers show low levels of optimism when it comes to property purchases and retail trade continues to be slow, at a macro level the property market is likely to be subdued until we see a significant reduction in the number of homes for sale," Kusher said.