Photo by Adam Nowakowski on Unsplash
New research shows Australians would prefer to invest in the sharemarket than property at the moment.
The second iteration of Switzer Financial Group's "Switzer Fear, Greed & Hope survey" shows over half of Australians (62.8%) surveyed would prefer to invest in stocks over property, term deposits and other investments.
The same number (62.8%) of stock investors believe now is a good time to invest in the sharemarket.
Switzer Financial Group Director Peter Switzer said the results fly in the face of Australia's obsession with property.
"Even though Aussies are often portrayed as addicted to property, the coronavirus crash has seen 63% of those investors surveyed prefer stocks, while only 10% think bricks and mortar looks attractive," Mr Switzer said.
"And those so worried that they only want to invest in government-guaranteed bank term deposits numbered 10%, which suggests 90% aren’t spooked by the coronavirus economic threats."
The survey found that 54% of the 3,000 respondents think property prices will fall in the coming 12 months, compared to 66% who think share prices are on the way up.
Buying a home or looking to refinance? The table below features home loans with some of the lowest variable interest rates on the market for owner occupiers.
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Variable | More details | ||||||||||||
FEATUREDUNLIMITED REDRAWS | Smart Booster Home Loan Discounted Variable - 2yr (LVR < 80%)
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Smart Booster Home Loan Discounted Variable - 2yr (LVR < 80%)
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Variable | More details | ||||||||||||
FEATURED100% FULL OFFSET ACCOUNTNO APPLICATION FEE OR ONGOING FEES | Low Rate Home Loan - Prime (Principal and Interest) (Owner Occupied) (LVR < 60%)
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Low Rate Home Loan - Prime (Principal and Interest) (Owner Occupied) (LVR < 60%)
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Variable | More details | ||||||||||||
FEATUREDREFINANCE ONLY | Variable Rate Home Loan – Refinance Only
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Variable Rate Home Loan – Refinance Only
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Variable | More details | ||||||||||||
FEATUREDAN EASY DIGITAL APPLICATION | Neat Variable Home Loan (Principal and Interest) (LVR < 60%)
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Neat Variable Home Loan (Principal and Interest) (LVR < 60%)
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Variable | More details | ||||||||||||
FEATURED | Green Home Loan (Principal and Interest)
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Green Home Loan (Principal and Interest)
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- Fast turnaround times, can meet 30-day settlement
- For purchase and refinance, min 20% deposit
- No ongoing or monthly fees, add offset for 0.10%
Base criteria of: a $400,000 loan amount, variable, fixed, principal and interest (P&I) home loans with an LVR (loan-to-value) ratio of at least 80%. However, the ‘Compare Home Loans’ table allows for calculations to be made on variables as selected and input by the user. All products will list the LVR with the product and rate which are clearly published on the Product Provider’s web site. Monthly repayments, once the base criteria are altered by the user, will be based on the selected products’ advertised rates and determined by the loan amount, repayment type, loan term and LVR as input by the user/you. *The Comparison rate is based on a $150,000 loan over 25 years. Warning: this comparison rate is true only for this example and may not include all fees and charges. Different terms, fees or other loan amounts might result in a different comparison rate. Rates correct as of August 7, 2022. View disclaimer.
According to the survey, 37.4% of investors believed the stock market would crash in 2021 when surveyed in February.
Now, 40.7% believe the stock market will crash in 2025 or later.
When asked what stocks they would invest in, Australians said they think CSL and Macquarie Group are the stocks that will perform best over the next 12 months.
“This shouldn’t really be surprising as both these companies are world class and serious export-income earners," Mr Switzer said.
"But it indicates that so-called ‘mums and dads’ (or retail) investors are becoming more sophisticated analysts of the share market.
"I suspect the combination of online trading and the escalation of financial education, especially around stock market trading, have created a smarter group of retail investors who might have ‘eaten the lunch’ of the smarties who run funds."
The survey found that 39.8% of respondents said they haven't changed their investing strategy due to COVID-19, while 38.7% have become more conservative and 21.5% have become more aggressive as a result.
Bank stocks have surged this week, with shares in NAB up +4.7%, followed by ANZ (+4.5%), Westpac (+4.4%) and Commonwealth Bank (+2.2%).
Similar gains were seen in smaller banks, with shares in Bendigo and Adelaide Bank up +4.1%, Bank of Queensland (+2%), Macquarie (+1.6%) and AMP (+2.7%).
“This great move up for stocks out of the bear market is a welcome trend that tells us that there’s an expectation that our economic future is looking miles better today than it did one, two and six weeks ago,” Mr Switzer said.
The survey featured more than 3,000 respondents made up of middle and mature aged investors who are either full-time workers or retirees.
It should be noted that the majority of this database prefer to invest in stocks.
Disclaimers
The entire market was not considered in selecting the above products. Rather, a cut-down portion of the market has been considered. Some providers' products may not be available in all states. To be considered, the product and rate must be clearly published on the product provider's web site. Savings.com.au, yourmortgage.com.au, yourinvestmentpropertymag.com.au, and Performance Drive are part of the Savings Media group. In the interests of full disclosure, the Savings Media Group are associated with the Firstmac Group. To read about how Savings Media Group manages potential conflicts of interest, along with how we get paid, please visit the web site links at the bottom of this page.
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