PROPERTY agents say there will be no rest for the market after Logan’s most recent flood disaster.
Some agents, it is believed, were still holding open homes during the rain, albeit not in flood-affected areas.
With stock in limited supply, some agents are focusing heavily on boosting their rental pool.
People displaced by flooding to their homes will require somewhere to live, some of them for months.
But rental availability, as reported in MyCity Logan last week, were already at around the 1% mark in most suburbs, with demand far outstripping supply.
Neil Giles, principal of Browns Plains Real Estate, said new developments were causing a shift in flood patterns – dry creeks and man-made drainage causing waterflow patterns to change.
Some people in the market to buy were out looking at flood levels, to see whether their land was future-proof.
“I’ve had three inquiries on a particular house over the past few days, and the first question from each of them was: ‘Did it flood?’,” Mr Giles said.
“It’s awful to see the loss over such a widespread area,” he said.
But the equation from a property perspective was simple: The price of those which flooded will drop. The price of those that didn’t flood will rise.
In a hot market however, nothing will dampen the spirits of people who’d set their minds to buying property.
Mr Giles said people were used to natural disasters. They knew the risks and are savvy about areas which are prone to flooding.
“They will get back into it,” he said.
All agents agreed there would be no time to waste.
“People forget quickly. Some will wait for their insurance and stay in their home,” Real Property Vibe principal Laurell Veivers said.
“There are areas of Brisbane notorious for flooding and they’re still seeing top money. At the end of the day, people will live where they love to live. So this won’t impact prices as much as people might think.”
Commercial agent Mark Osmond said there were deeper economic issues impacting prices.
“Anyone who is local will have a pretty good idea of the areas likely to flood, so they’ve already scoped that out and are savvy, particularly if they’re looking to buy or lease,” he said.
“The market will be economically driven, and people are looking to do business as usual – despite the floods.”
The REIQ was last week asking all stakeholders involved in tenancies to work together, and to treat one another respectfully with patience and understanding.
The REIQ is keenly aware of the added pressure to housing, the distress being experienced by displaced tenants and by property owners with flood-impacted properties, and the scale of what property managers are currently facing as the conduit between the tenants and owners.
“The timing of this major flood event couldn’t be worse – It will displace tenants and owner-occupiers and diminish levels of rental stock at a time when we are experiencing incredibly tight vacancy rates across all corners of the state,” Ms Mercorella said.
“We also know that tradespeople and building supplies are rare as hen’s teeth in the current market, with a pre-existing backlog of enquiries for various standard renovations, repairs and building works – meaning flood affected property job enquiries could be joining the back of an already long waitlist.
“These wait times could mean it’s some time before we see properties repaired or ready to re-join the rental pool.
“This will only exacerbate the rental crisis which means an enormous amount of stress on tenants and on property managers who were already under strain over the past two years due to COVID-19 impacts and undersupply issues.”
Ms Mercorella said there was no quick fix, and it was important to consider the scale of enquiry your property manager may be processing.
“Unfortunately, in a widespread natural disaster such as this, there is no standard communication protocol or response time from property managers given each agency is in a unique position in terms of staff resourcing, size of their rent roll, the number of affected properties they’re managing, and in some cases whether their offices or personal residences have been impacted too,” she said.
“It is also quite difficult to assess the extent of the damage while the situation is still unfolding for many, so what we ask for is patience and understanding from all parties in a tenancy.”
Ms Mercorella encouraged tenants to familiarise themselves with resources outlining their legislative rights, and what to do if the floods have damaged or made their rental property unliveable.
