Rental or Buying in Canberra

[Guest Cathy D]

Moving to Canberra in Jan 09 , have been looking at buying property , house prices seem quite high after what has happened in the UK . Are they over inflated? We are moving to Canberra , rental also seems expensive there. In order to buy property do you need proof of earnings ? I do have a job but wont be starting until end Jan 09. Also we have a dog who will be joining us, I see many rentals dont want animals . Is it east to get a moragage?

[Quoll]

I dont know about over inflated but yes, they are high, basically because there is a high demand. Prices have gone down a bit over the past 12 months and some sorts of housing iin some suburbs have taken more of a hit than others. There hasnt been much movement in the market though, and a lot of auctions are passed in apparently. It's hard to know whether people sell for the advertised price or whether they take much less - I know in other parts of Aus you can make hugely cheeky offers and they will be accepted however Canberra is a bit different because accommodation is at a premium. However if the government decides on some draconian cuts to its departments then you can expect to see prices go down as people leave in order to find new jobs elsewhere.

 

Renting with animals is always going to be difficult - if you do an advanced search on the allhomes site you can select those homes which have indicated that they are pet friendly. Apart from people not wanting untrained pets in their houses, Canberra isnt great on secure back yards although it is getting better I suppose. Rents are going to stay high I reckon because of the demand - we are seriously undersupplied.

 

If you can show them that you are government employee - take along your letter of offer with stated salary plus any references you can get (from current landlord if you have one, otherwise a statement about mortgages being paid on time etc).

 

AFAIK mortgages are still relatively easy to come by, I havent heard that people with good incomes are having any difficulties and they are still advertising like crazy.

 

Edited to say that Queanbeyan is cheaper but that makes you a NSW resident with some restrictions on accessing some ACT services - like you wont necessarily get your first choice of ACT school because you would be an interstate out of area resident. However, lots of folk do live in Qbn and work in ACT - it's a country town with a country town look and mentality.