Land sales across Ballarat have surged 151 per cent during the June quarter, marking a halt in the downward trend in previous sales numbers.
Melbourne research firm RPM’s ‘Greenfield Market Report‘ found 108 lots sold in Ballarat, which is up significantly from the long time low of 43 sales last quarter.
Ballarat’s performance far outpaced sales across the Melbourne and Geelong growth corridors, which were up 13 per cent, with 2146 lots sold in the June quarter.
Bendigo recorded 29 lot sales in the June quarter, a 41 per cent decrease from the previous quarter and a 74 per cent drop compared with 2022.
RPM national managing director project marketing Luke Kelly said the June quarter saw some much-needed energy injected into the Ballarat market.
“This quarter was a very positive one for the Ballarat region after four consecutive quarters of reduced sales activity,” Mr Kelly said.
“The strong result for new supply indicates developers are gaining confidence in managing and advancing stock sold through the HomeBuilder program and are now able to bring a greater pipeline of new lots to the market.”
The median lot price in Ballarat shrank 4.3 per cent to $302,500 with the median lot size stable at 448 square metres.
Overall sales remained 51 per cent lower than the prior corresponding quarter in 2022, although in a positive sign, 120 new lots were released to the market – the highest quarterly result since 2022s third quarter.
“The reduction in the median lot price was in line with our expectations, particularly when considering the number of incentives and rebates being offered by developers to successfully boost buyer engagement,” Mr Kelly said.
“The median price of stock remaining at the end of the quarter sits at $310,000, which is $7500 above the average price of sold stock, showing buyers remain price sensitive.”
Mr Kelly said the positive data in Ballarat may be tempered with the current interest rate environment, which is impacting buyers’ borrowing capacity and is expected to continue through until mid-2024.
“On the other hand, we can see strong employment rates and higher wages are empowering serious buyers with the means to gather a deposit and placing them potentially in a favourable position to negotiate good deals with developers,” he said.