Homes are still selling despite Brisbane house prices heading south.

The number of properties sold in Brisbane has slumped by 18.6 per cent in the past 12 months – the worst property market decline recorded in Australia.

Sales were down 10,000 compared with the same period last year. Just 40,868 homes changed hands during the year, compared with 50,211 in the 12 months to October 2007.

Timing is important. Sell your home now or wait for the market to rise?
It takes about seven weeks to sell a house in Brisbane, and some experts are urging vendors to wait for a better market.

Homeowners with their homes on the market for more than six weeks usually lost up to 15 per cent on the sale.

Real estate agent Craig Loudon said he had seen prices in Brisbane’s eastern suburbs slide about 5 per cent but properties were still selling.

“A normal home around this area is about $500,000 if it’s presented well and (if the property is) priced at about $470,000 to $480,000 then it’s selling,” Mr Loudon said.

“But buyers know they have time on their hands.”

He said a well-priced entry level home listed last week for $469,000 had already attracted 20 viewers.

However Mr Loudon said he did not believe the home owners grant had increased first-time buyer activity.

“They seem more interested in interest rates,” he said.

Mr Loudon said he had not seen many leave the industry.

“But we have been fairly reluctant to hire new staff.”

At Stafford, on Brisbane’s northside, demand for rental properties is strong but there is a lack of stock.

L.J. Hooker Stafford property manager Lacey Treeby said tenants were asking for longer leases but landlords wanted six-month leases and increased rents at each renewal.

She said a three-bedroom airconditioned house would rent for about $400 a week.

Residex said unit rentals had increased by 6.67 per cent to a median of $320 a week.

The median rent for a house in Brisbane is $360 a week.

While prices have fallen, some analysts claim a dearth of upmarket properties changing hands has skewed statistics.

Residex chief executive officer John Edwards said an increase in lower-value house sales was affecting the median price statistics.

“It can generate a statistical abnormality, which results in lower reported median sales prices and can lead people to believe property values are falling more than they actually are,” he said.

Mr Matusik said increased sales activity at the lower end was a big factor in the sluggishness of aggregate prices.

“Median house prices are likely to continue to fall during much of 2008-09, due mainly to the compositional change of the sales made rather than actual losses made by vendors on resale,” Mr Matusik said.