After four years of flat sales and stagnant values, the last thing the property market in Brisbane needed was a devastating flood. But the heavens opened on Queensland's capital city in January, dumping the most rain in living memory.
Around the world, images of houses literally floating away, and of anguished families left homeless, made headlines. Overnight, confidence drained from the city's fragile property market.
Brisbane-based buyer's agent Andrew Allen recalls the day the phone stopped ringing. 'It was like someone pulled the plug,' says Allen, an investment property specialist whose clients include buyers in Hong Kong. 'Those who did call were panicked owners checking to see if their property had survived.'
The devastation was horrendous but, thankfully, not widespread. In fact, only 2 per cent of Brisbane suburbs were flood affected. The impact on confidence was more widespread.
There were bargains to be had, as hapless vendors who needed to sell drastically reduced their asking price. But no one was buying. For some agents, it was the last straw. 'They left the industry,' Allen says.
March brought with it 'some level of catch-up'.