Dec 19, 2018
The biggest mistake a real estate consumer can make is to be a
newspaper reader. Investment adviser and author Noel Whittaker says
anyone who seeks success in real estate needs to stop reading
mainstream media - and I agree.
Anyone who conducts research through absorbing media sound bytes
and headlines (few people take the time to read the detail) will be
filling their heading with negativity and misinformation.
The problem is compounded by the reality that most of our major
media emanates from Sydney and far too many writers are
overly-influenced by local events. When Sydney was booming, media
told us we had a national property boom (we didn’t) and now we’re
being told we have a national downturn, with prices falling across
Australia (that’s also a lie).
Our day-to-day research has revealed that there are far more
commentators suggesting a soft landing for Sydney and Melbourne,
than there are those predicting massive price decline.
Most analysts are also noting that the other capital cities, as
well as key regional markets, have more buoyant markets. But these
calm, rationale forecasts are not being reported by print media -
or by the ABC, which has a strong anti-real estate bias.