There's no doubt the market forces are heavily in favour of the buyer at the moment: lower demand while stock levels have increased by up to 30% compared to the previous boom year. The runaway price tags where properties sold for hundreds of thousands above the vendor's reserve under heated emotional competition from a swarm of buyers have also disappeared.

As a result of the successive interest rate rises some buyers to sit on the fence, at the same time forcing many vendors to sell up due to cash flow concerns. This resulted in prices flattening out by at least 10% cent this year in most Australian capital cities.

Frank Valentic of Advantage Property Consulting shows you how to maximise your negotiation power in the current market in the September issue of Your Investment Property.