After a grim start to the year, Wagga's housing market has begun to make a recovery, with real estate agents reporting a high number of inquiries as house hunters return from lockdown.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
RE/MAX director Dave Skow said the return of auctions and open houses marked a "turning point" for the market, which had been suffering slow sales figures before restrictions were eased.
"We had very depressed sales numbers in the five weeks before that, but we've had a real run of sales and plenty more happening since then," Mr Skow said.
"It's outstanding in the face of what we thought could have been an absolute wipeout."
House prices had remained relatively stable throughout lockdown, however the sales themselves took a significant hit as buyers and sellers alike withdrew from the market during the period of uncertainty.
However, Mr Skow said buyers were now "out in force", with last weekend's open house attendee numbers actually rising to above-average levels compared to a normal operating year.
He said the market was particularly active in Turvey Park and Central Wagga, where demand is currently outstripping supply.
READ MORE:
Fitzpatricks Real Estate director Shaun Lowry said he has also seen a surge in buyer activity, however he said there was still a shortage of supply with nervous homeowners keeping their properties off the market.
"Now is a good time to get in and get appraisals, especially if you've spent the time in isolation doing home improvements," Mr Lowry said.
The metropolitan cities are still suffering from a volatile housing market, but Hore and Davies director John Bittar said he was "pleasantly surprised" with how well Wagga's market was faring.
"Wagga's market has held its own quite well and always has done, and I'm very encouraged by the positive signs off the back of historically low interest rates," Mr Bittar said.
"There are quite a good numbers of buyers in the market at the moment, which is quite an encouraging sign for our industry."