Australia’s two largest housing markets registered a pick-up in auction clearance rates over the weekend.
In New South Wales, a provisional auction clearance rate of 63% was recorded from 430 auctions reported to the REINSW. This compares to a provisional clearance rate of 62% recorded last weekend on 421 auctions. The number of homes auctioned was also well above the same weekend of last year when 369 homes went under the hammer.
In Victoria, an auction clearance rate of 66% was recorded on 497 auctions reported to the REIV. The result was a big improvement on the 51% clearance rate recorded in the same weekend of last year, although the number of homes auctioned was lower (559 last year).
The below REIV tables and charts provide some perspective on how the Victorian auction market is tracking.
First, year-to-date clearance rates are tracking in-line with 2011, although auction volumes are well down:
However, auction clearance rates have picked-up in recent months, which is providing some encouragement for the industry:
The pick-up in clearance rates has occured on relatively thin volumes, however, suggesting that it might not be broad-based:
Finally, transaction volumes and clearance rates are unlikely to pick-up significantly as long as consumer confidence remains subdued:
Twitter: Leith van Onselen. Leith is the Chief Economist of Macro Investor, Australia’s independent investment newsletter covering trades, stocks, property and yield. Click for a free 21 day trial.
