Last week saw the number of capital city auctions fall by just over a third (-34%) compared with the week prior, driven by a 72% drop in Melbourne activity as the city paused for the Melbourne Cup Carnival.

 

The preliminary auction clearance rate also nudged lower, easing back to 70.0% across the combined capitals last week, which was the lowest early auction outcome in 21 weeks.

 

A softer result in Melbourne's early success rate was the primary drag on the lower preliminary clearance rate, which fell to 66.0% last week, down from 71.8% the week prior. 

 

507 vendors took their property to auction in Melbourne, up slightly on the year prior when 474 homes were auctioned over the Melbourne Cup Carnival weekend.  The number of Melbourne auctions is set to rise to around 1,370 this week and more than 1,400 are scheduled for next week.

 

1,106 homes went under the hammer in Sydney last week, the highest weekly volume of auctions since the last week of September and the fourth highest weekly volume so far this year.  Auction numbers are set to rise further, with more than 1,300 homes scheduled for auction this week and next week. 

 

The preliminary auction clearance rate for Sydney rose to 70.6% last week, up from a softer 68.2% early clearance rate the week prior.

Brisbane hosted 218 auctions last week, the highest weekly volume since the week ending November 24 last year (235). 

 

The preliminary clearance rate responded positively, rising to 77.9%, the highest since the first week of July 2024.

 

In Adelaide there were 143 auctions last week, roughly in line with the previous week (144) and the preliminary clearance rate rose to 77.1%, up from 70.8% the week prior.

 

133 homes went under the hammer in Canberra last week, the highest weekly volume since mid-December 2023.  The preliminary clearance rate rose to 62.0%, a step up from the previous week's 59.4%, but the fourth week in a row where the early success rate has held below the 70% mark.

 

There were 21 homes auctioned across Perth last week, the highest volume since mid-December 2024. Only half (50%) have recorded a positive outcome based on results collected so far.

 

There was just one home scheduled to go under the hammer in Tasmania last week and it was sold prior to auction.

 

Auction activity is set to ramp up over the coming weeks. Around 3,180 capital city homes are currently scheduled for auction this week, rising to approximately 3,270 next week.