Capital city auction activity remains subdued, with weighted average clearance rate now 18 percentage points below year-ago levels
Auction volumes across Australia's combined capital cities fell for the second consecutive week in the seven days to 2 August, with 1,257 auctions held — down 11.2% from 1,415 the prior week and below the 1,575 recorded in the same week last year.
The weighted average clearance rate eased to 48.9% from 49.7% the previous week. All capital cities are now tracking below their decade-long averages, and the figure sits 18.2 percentage points beneath the 67.1% recorded in the corresponding week of 2025.
"Capital city clearance rates peaked earlier this year but have since declined, with all capitals now holding below their decade-long averages," said Annabelle Mezieres, economist at Cotality. "As a real-time indicator of demand, clearance rates generally correlate with monthly value growth; this decline indicates a decelerating market."
The softer auction conditions align with broader price data. Cotality's Home Value Index fell 0.7% in July, its steepest monthly decline since December 2022.
Melbourne and Sydney posted diverging outcomes. Melbourne hosted 559 auctions, a 21.3% week-on-week drop, yet its clearance rate climbed to 54.7% from 51.7% — its strongest reading in 12 weeks. Sydney recorded 406 auctions, down 4.7% from 426, while its clearance rate fell sharply to 45.6% from 53.3%.
Adelaide's clearance rate eased to 45.7% from 49% on 92 auctions, an 8% weekly decline in volume. Brisbane bucked the national trend, lifting both volumes (up 3% to 136) and its clearance rate to 37.5% from 29.5%, the highest in seven weeks.
Canberra recorded the largest volume increase of any capital — up 43.2% to 53 auctions — but its clearance rate fell to 43.4% from 51.4%, suggesting demand did not keep pace with additional supply.
Perth held 10 auctions, unchanged from the prior week. Tasmania held one auction, which sold.
"Weaker clearance rates and lower auction volumes tend to go hand in hand with softer results, which fits the recent Cotality Home Value Index falls," Mezieres said. "With vendors listing less and buyers bidding more cautiously, the earlier Home Value Index falls make sense."
Weekly clearance rate, combined capital cities
Source: Cotality
A total of 1,404 properties are scheduled for auction across the combined capital cities in the week ending 9 August, an 11.7% increase on the prior week. The figure nonetheless remains 11.5% below the 1,587 auctions held during the same week last year.
The seasonal winter slowdown is apparent in the data. The 1,257 auctions held in the week to 2 August represent a significant retreat from the autumn peak of 3,983 in the week ending 29 March 2026.
Melbourne accounts for the largest share of scheduled activity with 629 auctions, up 12.5% week-on-week but 15.2% below the same week last year. Sydney follows with 462 scheduled auctions, a 13.8% weekly rise but 16.9% below year-ago levels.
Brisbane stands out among the smaller capitals with 162 scheduled auctions — up 19.1% from last week and 30.6% above the same period last year, making it the only capital city with higher volumes both week-on-week and year-on-year.
Adelaide has 95 scheduled auctions, up 3.3% from last week. Canberra has 48, down 9.4% from 53. Perth has eight properties scheduled for auction, and Tasmania has none.
"Auction volumes are expected to decline in the coming weeks, with approximately 1,290 scheduled for the week ending 16 August and about 1,270 for the week ending 23 August," Mezieres said. "This week is likely to be the peak before volumes decrease."
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