EOFY. It's a funny sounding acronym, right?
Most of us hear EOFY and immediately think sales. EOFY Sale! Everything must go! Which I suppose is a fun way to remember it's also tax time. You know, the time of year your accountant is asking you to find every receipt from the past 12 months.
It's also a good time to take stock of where everything sits financially. Superannuation, investments, property, all those things we tend not to think about until someone asks us.
The last few years have also become the time the government likes to introduce a little extra paperwork for us real estate agents.
Do you remember this time last year when I was talking about Seller Disclosure Statements and how everything was changing? Well, this year it's AML and CTF compliance. There's another fun word everyone loves. Compliance.
Quick glossary. AML is Anti-Money Laundering. CTF is Counter-Terrorism Financing. I nearly feel like I'm in a spy movie.
Known as tranche 2, which sounds less like government legislation and more like the villain from a James Bond movie, AUSTRAC is bringing real estate agents, accountants, lawyers and precious metal dealers into the AML system.
Side note. Precious metal dealer. Is that a TAFE course? How does someone get into that line of work?
From 1 July, real estate agents get promoted to international spies. Well, maybe not quite.
These days it feels like every second website wants my passport, driver's licence, Medicare card and probably my Year 7 report card. Well now, when you're buying or selling property, there are going to be a few extra checks to make sure you're not a James Bond villain.
The good news is there are already some really good systems being developed to make the process as simple as possible.
From my understanding, 99.9% of property transactions will simply involve a few extra questions and a little more paperwork. Most buyers and sellers probably won't notice much difference once it becomes part of the normal process.
But the 0.01% deals? Well, I'll be sitting in the corner with a martini. Shaken, not stirred.
It's a bit like Seller Disclosure last year. It sounded scary. Everyone worried about it. Then smart people built systems, everyone figured it out, and now it's just another step in the process.
Before we move on though, if you're actually a precious metal dealer and happen to be reading this, please hit reply. I have questions.
Anyway, speaking of things changing. The Reserve Bank left interest rates unchanged this month at 4.35%, which probably wasn't a huge surprise.
If anything, I think it increases the chances of another rise over the next month or two. The RBA still seems pretty focused on inflation, and while everyone would love cheaper mortgages, I don't think they're quite ready to wave the victory flag yet.
What has been interesting though is what we're seeing on the ground. Buyer enquiry is still good. Open home numbers are still healthy. Properties that are well presented and priced correctly are still attracting strong interest. But it does feel like buyers have become a little more selective than they were six months ago. Not dramatically. Just enough to notice.
We're seeing a few more requests for second inspections. Buyers are taking a little longer to make decisions. Subject to sale offers seem to be appearing a bit more often. And buyers generally feel like they have a few more options available than they did over the last couple of years.
Maybe it's EOFY. Maybe people are waiting to see what the new financial year brings. Maybe everyone is busy digging through receipts and trying to remember what they bought twelve months ago.
Whatever the reason, it'll be interesting to see what the next few months bring. If next month's newsletter is late, assume I've been sent to Quantico for advanced AML training.
So, as we head into a new financial year, we've got new compliance rules, the same interest rates, slightly more selective buyers, and apparently a whole new career path as international spies.
As always, Donna or I are here to help with anything property related. Feel free to reach out.
P.S. Don't think the 0.01% deals don't happen. I had a very interesting international buyer call the other day. If you're interested, I'm happy to share the story.