Capital city auction activity was quieter this week even as the preliminary clearance rate rose to a three-week high
Capital city auction activity experienced a quieter week, as the number of auctions decreased to 1,790, reflecting an 8% decline compared to the previous week's 1,945 auctions, according to new data from CoreLogic.
Additionally, it marked a substantial drop of 24.3% compared to the 2,364 auctions held during the same period last year.
This week's auction volume was only slightly higher, with 29 more auctions, than the average weekly amount since February 2023, which stood at 1,761, CoreLogic reported.
Out of the 1,285 results collected so far, 73.8% returned successful outcomes. This marks the eighth consecutive week in which the preliminary auction clearance rate has remained above the 70% threshold, CoreLogic reported.
In fact, this week's preliminary clearance rate of 73.8% is the highest in the past three weeks, showcasing a 1.3-percentage-point increase compared to the previous week's outcome of 72.5%, which ultimately revised to 69.2% at final figures. For context, during the same period last year, only 56.8% of auctions yielded successful results.
Larger capitals
Sydney emerged as the busiest auction market this week, with 733 homes going under the hammer across the city, CoreLogic reported. Although lower by 4.1% than the previous week's 764 auctions, it represented a more substantial decrease of 17.6% when compared to the 890 auctions held during the corresponding week last year.
The preliminary clearance rate for Sydney stood at 78.7% based on the 507 results collected thus far, a 4.2-percentage-point increase compared to the previous week's result of 74.5%, which ultimately revised to 70.8% at final figures. By contrast, only 52.9% of homes auctioned in Sydney during the same period last year were successfully sold.
Meanwhile, auction numbers in Melbourne declined by 15.5% this week, from 864 auctions to 730 auctions. Melbourne's preliminary clearance rate stood at 70.1%, marking its lowest level in 11 weeks. This represented a 2.8-percentage-point decrease from the previous week's preliminary rate of 72.9%, which ultimately revised to 69.5% at the final numbers. During the corresponding week last year, Melbourne saw 1,000 homes being auctioned, with a final clearance rate of 59.0% reported.
Smaller capitals
Among the smaller capitals, Brisbane hosted the busiest auction week with 135 homes being auctioned, a decrease of four homes compared to the previous week's 139 auctions, according to CoreLogic. Adelaide followed with 103 auctions, down by five compared to the previous week, while Canberra posted a significant increase of 26 auctions, reaching a total of 78.
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Adelaide recorded the highest preliminary clearance rate at 79.7% based on the 59 results collected to date, CoreLogic reported. Canberra's preliminary clearance rate rose by 1.7 percentage points to 72.0% compared to the previous week, while Brisbane's preliminary clearance rate increased by 1.5 percentage points to 67.5%. In Perth, out of the seven results collected, three were successful, while the lone auction scheduled in Tasmania for this week was withdrawn.
Looking ahead, capital city auction activity is expected to decrease further next week by approximately 10.5%. This decline aligns with the typical seasonal trend of lower weekly auction numbers during winter, as many vendors await the arrival of spring to bring their homes to the market.
Approximately 1,600 auctions are currently scheduled for the upcoming week.
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