As house prices continue to climb across Wagga, homeowners in the city's most prestigious suburbs are still unlikely to take the opportunity to sell.
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Demand continues to outstrip supply in Central Wagga and neighbouring Turvey Park, with relatively few properties going on the market in those traditionally high-demand areas in recent months.
Remax Elite director Dave Skow said there had been a "sharp" increase in house prices in the central suburbs over the past six to nine months, with anecdotal evidence indicating prices were up about 15 per cent.
When houses are up for sale, Mr Skow said they were often selling after the first inspection, comfortably above expectations.
"That is all due to a sharp demand and a low supply," he said.
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Fitzpatricks Real Estate's Shaun Lowry said buyers were paying competitive prices due to the scarcity of central homes on sale.
"Theyre very tightly held areas, there's probably mainly half a dozen (on the market) at the moment between the two suburbs," he said.
PRD Wagga's Amanda Tilyard said there were more sales happening than a casual observer might think, with central homes often sold to registered buyers without going on the market.
"Some people think there's nothing on the market but our sales volume is still there," she said.
To avoid missing out, she said buyers needed to keep in contact with their local real estate agents and make their intentions known, as well as making sure their finances were sorted.
Despite central houses generally selling comfortably above vendors' expectations, Ms Tilyard said Wagga's homeowners were hesitant to capitalise on the conditions by selling their own home.
"I think the fear with people is, where do I go? You've still got to buy somewhere else," she said.
She said unless a family needed to upsize or downsize, home ownership was cheap at the moment due to low interest rates so for many people selling was not necessary if they were enjoying their home.
"People just don't want to sell because they're comfortable," she said.
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Mr Lowry said Fitzpatricks were also hearing many homeowners were happy to keep their properties rather than testing the Wagga market.
"Our feedback is people don't know where they're going to go when they sell ... even renting is a challenge," he said.
"A lot of people are sort of sitting back because they're probably honestly feeling there's still a bit more growth to come."
Mr Skow said people were more likely to sell a central property if they already had their next move lined up, whether it be a downsized property or a move out of town.
However, he said the associated costs of moving meant there were people choosing not to downsize to avoid stamp duty and other fees.
He said he expected the sharp price increase was part of a cycle which saw prices spike in 2003 and 2012.
"They don't spike but they correct, its growth we probably should've seen in the last nine years," he said.
Mr Skow said these spikes generally lasted about nine to 12 months and he was expecting a return to Wagga's more steady growth by the end of the year.
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