It's the first time since April preliminary auction clearance rates have fallen so low, CoreLogic reports
Last week, the auction activity in Australia's capital cities experienced a slight decline, with a total of 2,286 homes being taken to auction across the combined capitals, according to data from CoreLogic.
This represents a decrease of 6.5% compared to the previous week, which saw a significant surge in auction numbers. To put it into perspective, this time last year, only 1,741 auctions were held.
Out of the 1,767 results collected so far, the combined capitals recorded the lowest preliminary clearance rate in almost six months, with 69.9% of auctions reporting a successful result. This marks a slight drop from the previous week, when the preliminary clearance rate stood at 71% (revising to 66.1% at final numbers). However, it is important to note that the capital's preliminary clearance rate had consistently remained above the 70% mark for 23 consecutive weeks, or since April. In comparison, this time last year, only 59.8% of auctions were successful, CoreLogic reported.
Specifically, Melbourne's auction activity experienced a decline of 12.2% last week, following a busy week prior. With 1,012 homes auctioned across the city, it marked the sixth time in eight weeks that Melbourne's auction numbers exceeded 1,000. The preliminary clearance rate for Melbourne also saw a decrease of 4.2 percentage points, with 68.5% of the 818 results collected reporting a successful outcome, according to CoreLogic. In the previous week, the preliminary clearance rate stood at 72.7% (revising down to 66.9% at final numbers). This time last year, Melbourne had 690 auctions, with a final clearance rate of 60.1%.
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In Sydney, 918 homes went under the hammer last week, slightly lower than the previous week's 921 auctions but 38.3% higher than the same period last year, when there were 664 auctions. Of the 718 results collected so far, 72.3% returned a successful result, CoreLogic reported. This indicates a positive increase of 2.6 percentage points from the previous week. However, Sydney's withdrawal rate increased to 15.3% last week, up from 14% the week prior. On the other hand, the portion of properties passed in at auction decreased to 12.4%, the lowest since late October 2020 (11.5%). The previous week saw Sydney record its lowest preliminary clearance rate in nine weeks at 69.7% (revised down to 65.9%). This time last year, 61.2% of auctions in Sydney were successful.
Smaller capitals
Brisbane and Adelaide both hosted 121 auctions last week, experiencing respective drops of 10.4% and 3.2% in weekly auction activity, CoreLogic reported. Canberra's auction activity remained steady with 98 homes going under the hammer, while Perth was the only capital to record a rise in auction numbers, increasing from 12 to 15.
Adelaide's preliminary clearance rate, despite falling 8.5 percentage points, was the highest among the smaller capitals at 72.3%. Canberra followed closely with a preliminary clearance rate of 67.2%, reflecting an increase of 10.7 percentage points. Brisbane experienced a decline in its preliminary clearance rate, which stood at 63.3%, down nine percentage points. In Perth, six out of the eight results collected so far returned a successful outcome. Additionally, the sole home scheduled for auction in Tasmania was sold prior to the auction.
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