Demographia International property survey thoroughly debunked~!

The paucity of responsible property journalism in Australia has again been revealed by the uncritical acceptance of the 2013 Annual Demographia  International Housing Affordability Survey

This survey covers 6 countries only, concluding that in comparison all major markets in Australia continue to be severely unaffordable, reflecting vastly over-priced housing relative to incomes. The least affordable smaller markets were Port Macquarie, Coff's Harbour & the Sunshine Coast.

There were no affordable or moderately unaffordable markets in Australia according to the survey.
 Three of Australia`s most experienced property analysts have debunked this conclusion,

How come? - the survey does not allow for:
* Relative size & quality of property - a 250sm house on 800sm block is not the same as a 2 bed 62sm Hong Kong apartment.

* No capital gains tax on your home in Aussie, so it is a big tax incentive & wise investment strategy to build wealth by improving your home.

* No allowance for equity, which in Aussie averages 60% for all owners, including investors

*Income levels are not consistently compared across the survey cities

* Regional areas like the Sunshine Coast support a high proportion of semi/fully retired households that earn less than those fully employed but own expensive properties.

These 3 experts
Michael Matusik
Louis Christopher - SQM Research
Terry Ryder,

All say we do not have overpriced stock EXCEPT for affordability versus status.
Just because a certain percentage of the population cannot afford to buy where they prefer, eg, inner city Sydney rather than the Western Suburbs, beachside, etc, does not mean housing in general is overpriced.

Impact on housing prices?

Put simply, we do not have a price bubble about to burst & plunge prices down further.

Now is an excellent time to buy, but sellers do need an experienced agent to market property features to obtain a win-win price & not fall prey to bargain hunters attracted by price advertising adopted by many agents which requires minimal marketing skills.

Full analyst reports on my website at
http://www.geoffgrover.com.au
under the Newsroom tab