The auction market is showing signs of a slowdown, but there continues to be a big difference across the major capital cities.
According to Ray White, the national auction clearance rate is tracking at 66.2 per cent, down from 71.4 per cent at the same time last year.
Ray White Group Chief Economist Nerida Conisbee said that while national auction numbers have increased, there’s been a decline in both active bidders and clearance rates.
“In August, Ray White conducted 3,534 auctions nationally, an increase of 15 per cent compared to the same time last year,” Ms Conisbee said.
“However, we’ve seen a fall in the number of active bidders. In August, there were 2.7 people on average actively bidding.
“This is a decline from 2.9 people from the same time last year.”
Ms Conisbee said that this trend has impacted price growth across the country.
“In August last year, prices increased by 1.1 per cent,” she said.
“This August, they increased by 0.5 per cent.”
Despite the weakness, she said there are currently significant differences between capital cities.
“Both Perth and Brisbane have seen an increase in the number of people actively bidding and an increase in clearance rates,” she said.
“Notably, Brisbane saw a big increase in auction numbers, up 51 per cent, and average active bidding numbers are now the highest in the country.”
In contrast, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Canberra have experienced softer conditions.
Ms Conisbee predicted these current trends would likely continue.
“Perth and Brisbane look set to continue to dominate price growth, while Sydney and Melbourne slow,” she said.
“Perth is a very small auction market and hence this data needs to be used cautiously.
“From this data, it is likely that the divergence of market conditions we have been seeing over the past few months will continue.”
