What Happened Last Week
If the spring selling season was supposed to bring heat, last week turned down the dial. Property researcher Cotality tallied 1,428 homes taken to auction across the capital cities, a sharp pullback in activity from the prior week and from a year ago. Tim Lawless, Cotality's Research Director, said the weighted average clearance rate landed at 50.3%, marking a 10-week low. The long weekend in Melbourne cooled momentum, and the possibility of higher mortgage rates didn't help sentiment either.
City Snapshots
Melbourne's schedule was the biggest swing factor. With the AFL Grand Final long weekend, auction volumes there were almost 70% lower than the previous week, dragging on the national picture and helping push the city's preliminary clearance rate to 48.8%. Sydney carried the busiest slate, sending 790 homes under the hammer.
That was 39% more than the week before but still 32% below last year. Its clearance rate came in at 53.6% - the lowest in eight weeks, though a shade above the city's winter average of 52.9%.
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What It Means For Your Portfolio
After a long hot streak, Australia's housing market is easing, and you can see it in fewer auctions and a lower share of successful sales. Two factors are behind the pullback: higher borrowing costs and the government's decision to scrap tax breaks for residential property investors. The Reserve Bank of Australia is expected to lift its key rate to 4.6% on Tuesday, which suggests affordability could stay tight. For everyday buyers and sellers, that can translate into more measured price expectations and longer selling timelines, varying by city and week.
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