Spring is generally considered the ideal season to sell a home.
So, what can buyers and sellers in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie expect in spring 2024?
"The Newcastle and Lake Macquarie region has seen some strong seasonality over the past few years," CoreLogic research director Eliza Owen said.
Looking at the number of homes that hit the market when spring arrived, there had been an average uplift of 18.6 per cent in new listings over the past decade, according to CoreLogic.
Meanwhile, there was an average uplift in sales numbers of 9.9 per cent between winter and spring over the past decade.
"Last year was a bit of a different story - listings were slower to rise as sellers may have been wary of the soft market, but demand came back strongly to the market with a 14.5 per cent uplift in sales," she said.
"Overall, spring 2023 saw a pretty even balance of around 1800 new listings added to the market, compared to a slightly stronger 1900 sales taking place."
Salt Property listing agent Lyndall Allan anticipates another slow start to the spring selling season this year.
"Statistically we always have a 20 per cent influx of listings in spring in Newcastle," Ms Allan said.
"Generally, we feel that influx in around September/October, however, in 2023 spring sprung very late and the busiest listing month was November.
"Early indications are that 2024 could potentially be similar."
Supply and demand
Ms Owen said one way to assess buyer and seller conditions is to consider the number of homes sold, against the number of properties newly advertised for sale in the same period.
According to CoreLogic, 1794 homes were listed in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie in the three months to November last year.
A total of 1920 sales were recorded during the spring quarter.
This year's spring season could see a turn again, according to Ms Owen.
Figures supplied by CoreLogic show the growth trend across the region has slightly softened in the past three months, with listing numbers up 0.7 per cent compared to a 2.6 per cent rise in the three months to April.
"In terms of total stock levels, there were about 3300 properties on the market for sale across the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie region in July, which is 14 per cent below the previous five-year average," she said.
"From this perspective, supply levels remain tight relative to historic averages."
Ms Owen said that while it was likely the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie region would experience a seasonal uplift in supply added to the market, there was no guarantee buyers would be out in force.
"It is possible we could see demand come under pressure from a continuation of high interest rates, slowing economic conditions and low consumer sentiment," she said.
"Some buyers may be put off by rising cost of living pressures."
'Buyer confidence has started coming back'
Belle Property listing agent Jackson Morgan is anticipating a busy spring selling season.
"To give you an idea, one of the agents in our team listed close to 20 properties in one month that are all coming to market around that spring period," Mr Morgan said.
Mr Morgan said that although an increase in listings in the lead-up to spring could be attributed to ideal selling conditions as the weather warms up, buyer confidence is another factor to consider.
"With the hold on the interest rate, buyer confidence has started coming back," he said.
"After all the turmoil and volatility of the market over the last four years, we are back to a steady market, so I think the vendors are feeling that too, hence why we have quite a few listings coming through.
"If anyone is looking to buy, they should get themselves into a position to because quite a bit of stock will be coming on."
