Property market 'very strong'

After a tumultuous two years, Camberwell remains one of Melbourne’s most stable and desirable places to live and invest.

According to the most recent data from the Real Estate Institute of Victoria (REIV), the suburb’s house prices are the highest they’ve been in five years. In the final quarter of 2021, Camberwell’s median house sale price was $2.56 million – nearly an 8 per cent increase on the median price at the start of last year.

REIV data shows house clearance rates sitting at a healthy 80 per cent, with an average 39 days on market. “In terms of the current market, so far we’ve achieved good results,” said Janssen Xiang, director and auctioneer at First National Real Estate Camberwell. “That part of Camberwell towards Hawthorn East and the junction is very, very strong. Despite having less international competitors (for residential properties), domestic buyers have been very strong.”

Units have also performed well, with the median price increasing 5.2 per cent to $930,000 in the fourth quarter of last year. Greg Bowring, head of sales at Woodards Camberwell, said it’s the busiest fourth quarter he’s seen since before the pandemic. “The second half of 2021 gave Camberwell the most active real estate market it had seen in many years. In December, my office conducted 25 auctions across 21 days and experienced a clearance rate of near 90 per cent,” he said. “These figures are higher than usual. In our local market, the spring rush usually starts around late August–September, but last year that rush didn’t arrive until November–December, which saw us busier than ever up until late Christmas Eve.”

Mr Xiang said Camberwell’s multi-million dollar residential property price tag has helped the suburb, situated just 9km east of the CBD, to avoid the volatility seen in other markets. “The past year and a half has been very unpredictable because everything has come out of something abnormal that we can’t predict,” he said. “Instead of a four-year cycle, there’s no cycle to follow anymore. Prices could drop or increase by 20 per cent. The areas where we saw those big drops were at that $1 million price. “The investors coming into Camberwell are more financially secure and are unlikely to be affected by an interest rate increase. “In the long term, Camberwell and the surrounding areas continue to be very stable.”

Looking ahead to the rest of 2022, all four major banks are predicting price growth for the Melbourne real estate market. “At the top end of the scale, Westpac is predicting an increase in values of 8 per cent. NAB is predicting a slightly softer 4.9 per cent. The upgraded forecasts are a marked change from the pessimistic predictions issued by banks at the start of the pandemic and reflect the resilience of real estate markets throughout the country in the past two years,” Mr Bowring said. “Beyond 2022, banks are predicting a correction for all Australian markets. How these predictions will affect our local 3124 postcode remain to be seen. “I am always the optimist in regard to the performance of our local market given the variety of architecture in our homes, the quality of education available and the iconic draw cards, such as the local Sunday Market and our terrific Camberwell Junction, to name a few.”

Mr Xiang agreed, with an equally positive outlook for Camberwell’s residential property market. “In Camberwell, the worst case is we stay pretty stable with a slight increase in prices,” he said. “Financial advisors have predicted that next year there could be a drop of up to 13 per cent in Melbourne but areas like Camberwell and Hawthorn East will be very stable.”

Greg Bowring, head of sales at Woodards Camberwell

Janssen Xiang, director at First National Real Estate Camberwell