August 2026 · Issue #4
A year ago the market caught up to an ambitious price. It won’t now.
Let me start with the part that isn’t alarming, because it’s the larger truth. This is not a market that has fallen over. Well-presented, sensibly priced homes in Cleveland, Thornlands, Victoria Point and around the bay are still finding their buyer, and the pace of new listings has eased rather than flooded.
What has changed is that “sensibly priced” now does real work. It used to be a nice-to-have. It’s now the whole campaign.
The mechanic behind it
A year ago, a slightly ambitious price was survivable. Stock was scarce, buyers were competing, and if you sat a fortnight the market often caught up to you. That safety net has gone. Buyers now have alternatives, and an overpriced home doesn’t get bid up — it gets used as the expensive comparison that makes the house next door look good.
Three things that decide it
Presentation. When a buyer has six options instead of two, the one that photographs best gets the inspection. Decluttering, styling and a proper photography brief are no longer polish; they’re how you get on the shortlist at all.
The price guide. Not what you’d love. What the last three comparable sales actually achieved, adjusted honestly for what’s changed since. I’d rather have an uncomfortable conversation with you in week zero than a demoralising one in week six.
The campaign. More competition means the passive buyer — the one who wasn’t looking for your home specifically — matters more than ever. That’s reach: portals, social, and the database work that happens before a property is even live.
The flip side
Get all three right and the extra stock stops being your problem and becomes your competitors’. Buyers walking through six homes remember the one that was ready. In a scarce market that’s worth a little. In a full one it’s worth a great deal.
And if you’re buying rather than selling, read every line above in reverse. The homes that aren’t ready, and the vendors who priced on hope, are where the opportunity sits this spring.
Thinking about spring? Let’s talk about where your home actually sits against what’s already listed.
Get my free appraisal
Greg Leigh — local Redlands specialist, Queensland Sotheby’s International Realty. 300+ homes sold across Brisbane in 9 years.
Sources: Cotality Home Value Index, August 2026; local campaign data from Greg Leigh listings.