Revenue from property falls-NSW goverment

An article appearing in the Australian today discussed the fact that the new Premier is facing a budget blowout.  Stamp duty on Sydney real estate has fallen significantly.  "A major factor behind the revenue shortfall appeared to be the fact that sales of property in the state - which includes the most expensive real estate in the country -- have slowed, hence eating in to revenues from stamp duty on property sales".

The interesting thing about this is that stamp duty flows from properties that are sold irrespective of the price they sell for.  Stamp duty has fallen due to the lack of properties being sold not from the price they are being sold for. 

There is still fear in the market but not a lot of forced sales.  The fear is keeping both sellers and buyers away and creating some buying opportunities for those willing to do their research.  If homeowners had to sell, we would have more property on the market, like in the US, and the Stamp duty to the NSW government would continute to flow.