If Buyers Have the Upper Hand, Why Are Some Still Overpaying?
More properties to choose from. Longer selling times. Less competition.
Sounds like buyers should be celebrating, doesn’t it?
Then you fall in love with a kitchen, hear that someone else is interested and suddenly your carefully considered budget becomes… flexible.
Welcome to property buying, where a cooler market doesn’t automatically create cooler heads.
A market that gives buyers more negotiating power can still produce a poor purchase. Especially when buyers confuse winning the property with buying it well.
The numbers suggest buyers have more breathing room
In commentary published on 29 September 2026, REIV reported that Melbourne private-sale properties took a median 48 days to sell in August, compared with 34 days a year earlier.[1]
That’s an extra two weeks on the market.
The same commentary cited SQM Research figures showing 48,475 properties listed for sale in Melbourne in August, 22% more than a year earlier.[1]
Nationally, ABC News reported on 1 October that Cotality’s Home Value Index fell 1.1% in September, with Melbourne recording a 0.7% monthly decline.[2]
These figures describe broader market conditions. They don’t prove that every vendor is desperate, every suburb behaves identically or every home should sell at a discount.
But they do give buyers a reason to pause before treating every opportunity as “now or never”.
So how can buyers still pay too much?
1. The discount becomes the story
Imagine a home advertised at $900,000. After negotiations, the vendor accepts $850,000.
You’ve saved $50,000. Cue the celebratory dinner.
But suppose relevant comparable sales support a value closer to $810,000–$825,000.
That hypothetical purchase suddenly looks rather different.
The asking price tells you what the seller wants. It doesn’t establish what the property is worth.
A discount from an ambitious starting point can still leave you paying above a defensible market range.
The useful question is: “What evidence supports the price I’m about to pay?”
2. Another buyer appears and the budget disappears
“We’ve had other interest.”
Four words. Suddenly you’re picturing someone else hanging curtains in your future lounge room.
Other interest may be real. A well-priced property can attract competing buyers even when the wider market is softer.
But competition doesn’t tell you how much the property is worth to you, or what you can comfortably afford.
Set your limit while you’re looking at the evidence. Revisit it if meaningful new information emerges, not simply because the conversation becomes urgent.
Your budget deserves a better defence than “we really wanted it”.
3. The styling gets a vote
The sofa is perfect. The lamps are glowing. There’s a cookbook open to a recipe nobody has ever cooked.
You’re buying the feeling.
Enjoy it. Then look beyond it.
Consider the floor plan, natural light, storage, parking, location and condition. Arrange appropriate inspections and legal review. Understand owners corporation obligations where relevant.
The cushions leave. The awkward floor plan stays.
And the cost of addressing defects or deferred maintenance belongs in your purchase assessment, alongside the price.
4. “We can afford it” becomes “it must be worth it”
Your lending limit and the property’s value answer different questions.
One helps establish what you may be able to borrow. The other requires an assessment of the property and relevant sales evidence.
A home doesn’t become better value because your lender will fund it.
Nor does buying below your maximum budget automatically make it a smart purchase.
5. Buyers assume every comparable sale is comparable
Same suburb. Same bedroom count. Similar facade.
Job done?
Hardly.
Land size, internal accommodation, condition, street position, title arrangements and the timing of the sale can materially affect a comparison.
A nearby renovated home on a larger block may be useful context. It needs careful adjustment before becoming justification for your offer.
Screenshots are a starting point. The reasoning behind them matters.
The upper hand only helps if you use it
A softer market can give buyers something valuable: time to compare, investigate and negotiate.
Use that time to establish a supported price range, understand the property’s risks and decide what it is worth to you before pressure takes over.
Paying more for a home that particularly suits your needs can be a deliberate choice. The key is recognising that premium and understanding its consequences.
At The Property Effect, we help buyers assess comparable sales, coordinate due diligence and negotiate with a clear strategy, alongside their lending and legal advisers.
Because getting the keys is exciting. Feeling confident about the decision afterwards matters too.
Before celebrating how much you negotiated off the price, ask how you established the price was right.
Would you feel more confident about a $50,000 discount or strong evidence that you were paying fair value?
The Property Effect | Buy Smarter. Live Better.
General information only; not personal financial or legal advice. Examples are hypothetical. Market information checked on 6 October 2026.
References
REIV — The slowdown in the Victorian housing market remains evident although there was a surprise price increase, Cameron Kusher, 29 September 2026. Source for August Melbourne private-sale selling times and the SQM Research listing figures cited by REIV.
ABC News — Australian house prices drop for sixth straight month and more falls expected, Nassim Khadem, 1 October 2026. Source for Cotality’s September national and Melbourne Home Value Index movements. Value indices, sale-price medians and individual property valuations measure different things.
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