Right now there are about 385,000 properties for sale in Australia according to Louis Christopher from SQM Research. That is upby about 15% on this time last year. Brisbane alone has 30,000 properties on the market at this point in time.

RP Data says that at present we have 7.4 months worth of stock on the market compared to 5.6 months worth a year ago. That means that if no more properties were listed it would take until theend of June next year to sell what is already listed for sale.
That may seem a bit gloomy especially if you are trying to sell. Great if you are a buyer because of the bargaining power and choice that you have.

Let me make a few points though:

• The amount of stock coming on the market is slowing. We are coming into a period – the end of the year – when theactivity slows a bit although, I should point out that properties sellall the way through the Christmas/New Year period. I sometimesthink it is just the agents who stop.
• So, if you are selling, now is a good time to stay focused, get your agent to continue to work the property and make use of thefact that some properties will be withdrawn and there will be less competition.

Do the opposite to most others and use this time to have your property ready for a potential buyer.

All the best for Christmas and the New Year.