The Melbourne property market will begin the final month of winter supported by unequivocally strong results reported over the month of July. This weekend well over 700 homes will again be offered for auction in Melbourne which is similar to the 776 auctioned last weekend and well ahead of the 612 auctioned over the same weekend last year.

We are probably seeing the greatest real estate bubble in modern history. It is fuelled by low interest rates, liberal lending and the demand of the largest generation in history. The question is are these trends coming to an end? It is likely that the bubbles that have not peaked or burst yet will in the next few to several years. Birth rates are declining around the world, this will have an effect on real estate and infrastructure.

Melbourne’s cooling property market has put the heat on real estate agents and seen vendor advocacy usage rates soar. In this post, we’ll explain why many sellers are questioning the relationship with real estate agents, and choose to use vendor advocates instead. You may be thinking that a vendor advocate is just another costly middleman within a costly process.

A recent forecast from Morgan Stanley predicts that there will be an oversupply of apartments in Melbourne by 2018. Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane have been driving the surge in unit construction. The concentrated nature of the boom also raises concerns that in some inner city areas there are more units being built than will be in demand. The S&P said in their recent report they thought the potential was greatest for oversupply in Brisbane and Melbourne.

I often get asked what does a buyer advocate do. The simple answer is that buyers advocates source properties for clients. These properties could be ‘to live in’ properties or for investment properties. We source houses, townhouses, units and apartments. JMAC’s expertise in the Melbourne residential property market. Our clients might be local who are time poor or do not have a good understanding of the real estate market. Alternatively, they may be from interstate or overseas.

There has been solid growth in the Melbourne real estate market in the June quarter, defying a slow economy and a moderating national real estate market. The median house price increased 3.6% which brings it to a record high $725,000, the largest  property price growth since September 2015. The biggest growing suburbs being Camberwell, Prahran and Richmond, although growth was widespread across metropolitan Melbourne.

It’s a lot easier to buy a property at below market price than it is sell a property at above market price. It’s also possible to identify properties that are likely to increase in value at a higher rate than the average. JMAC knows how long a property has been on the market, or if  a property is in distress. Of course we aim to get the best possible property in the best possible position. We can very accurately advise our clients the worth of a property.

When buying property in Melbourne, focus on these three sets of data to target suburbs that are likely to increase in value quickly: Average “days on market” is dropping. More properties are being auctioned. Rising yields and rental returns. Statistical information is the secret weapon for Melbourne’s property buyers.  JMAC has access to statistics and data that is exclusive to real estate agents. We use this data to ensure our clients are in a position of strength.

All growth suburbs have peaks and troughs.  Find a way of accessing data that others don’t have in order to make your decisions and gain an advantage. Look for the following when identifying ‘hot’ suburbs to buy into: Average “days on market” is dropping. More properties are being auctioned. Rising yields and rental returns.

South Yarra tops the list of median prices of houses, townhouses and units, for May. The chart above shows us the top fifty Nationally and in Victoria. Note that they are specifically related to bedrooms and type of dwelling. This kind of information is invaluable when buying an investment property or a place to live. It’s also a very wise strategy to look at suburbs surrounding the top 25 Melbourne suburbs on this list as they will also inevitably be strong suburbs.