Auction Market Cools

The auction market is continuing to cool as Australia heads into its winter months.

Last week across the combined capital cities, the preliminary auction clearance rate rose slightly from the previous week to 58.2% but remains well below results from earlier in the year.

Cotality data shows national clearance rates have been below 60% for the past six weeks.

Melbourne is just above that at 60.2%, Sydney is 56.9%, Canberra is 54.3% and Brisbane had its lowest clearance rate since April 2023 at 45.7%.

Adelaide continues to record the highest clearance rate in Australia at 72%, although it has far fewer properties going under the hammer than the eastern capital cities.

There are more than 2,750 properties currently scheduled nationally for auction for the last weekend in May.

Cotality head of research Tim Lawless says the current softening of the market is being driven by a combination of rising borrowing costs and waning consumer confidence.