As the mortgage brokers at Smartline Rockingham go about our business, we end up learning a lot about the property market. In particular, we pay close attention to the two factors that affect your budget the most: home prices and interest rates. Even if we didn’t make the extra effort we make, we would still know a lot about home prices and interest rates because we work with them every day.
Rockingham, Baldivis and Kwinana often seem insulated from the Perth property market. While other suburbs have been flat over the past year, we have actually seen our prices rise a bit. However, we aren’t truly insulated from Perth trends here. What affects the Perth property market affects all of us.
That’s why we think it is important to have a handle on what the Perth property market is going to do in the near future. For the past twelve months, the Perth market overall has lost 4.2%. We are the only capital city to see a fall in housing values over that time frame. For comparison, Sydney has risen 13.1% and Melbourne has risen 13.9%.
According to Jon Ilievski, who is the head of education for Aviate, a property investment and research firm, the Perth area represents a great opportunity for property investors, even as many are avoiding the area right now. The reason: a chance to invest at the bottom of the cycle.
Why the Rockingham Area Represents a Great Opportunity for Property Investors
We usually do most of the studying ourselves and make our own judgments but Mr Ilievski is the head of education for a firm that buys a lot of investment property. We know smaller investors may not have access to the kind of capital a company like Aviate does but we also know that small investors can do well and benefit by paying attention to their research.
The Rockingham area, especially Baldivis, has consistently outperformed the Perth market as a whole ever since the mining boom. The mining boom has been a double-edged sword. It got us through the Global Financial Crisis in a lot better shape than the rest of Australia. But the subsequent contraction of the resource industry caused us to stagnate even as the rest of Australia was beginning to recover and grow.
The main focus for investors should be future drivers of capital growth; plenty of those drivers are in place for Perth to be a thriving market, especially in suburbs such as Rockingham, Baldivis and Kwinana. While Perth suburbs were affected by the mining boom and the subsequent contraction, mining is only the fifth largest employer in WA.
Perth has all of the factors for a great lifestyle and future capital growth. Health care, retail and construction are part of a growing infrastructure and all of these segments are providing numerous job opportunities. There are numerous projects in the Perth market such as a new stadium, hospitals, a new museum and countless rail and road upgrades.
Why Property Investors Love Rockingham, Baldivis and Kwinana
Anyone who has paid attention to property investment knows that the Rockingham area has been a standout performer the last few years. Rockingham combines the seachange lifestyle with easy transport by rail or car to the Perth CBD. Baldivis was THE “hot suburb” for single family homes a few years ago and is still growing at a healthy pace. Kwinana is a smaller suburb but is a wonderful place to raise a family.
Our prices are lower than the median Perth price. This provides room for capital growth in the coming years, as the Perth population continues to expand and middle to outer ring suburbs begin to command more of a premium.
Talk to Our Mortgage Brokers at Smartline Rockingham Today
The RBA cash interest rate is at an all time low. Home prices are tipped to rise. You will never have a better chance than right now to purchase an investment property or your first home. At Smartline Rockingham, we can pre-approve you for a home loan. Call our Rockingham office today: (08) 9527 1800.
