Capital cities across Australia saw 1,918 properties taken to auction the week ending 15 August – up from 1,606 over the previous week but lower than the anticipated 2,139, according to the latest report from CoreLogic.
The research firm said clearance rates were dragged down by lockdowns in Australia’s biggest auction markets, as a larger number of auctions were postponed to a later date.
Of the 1,523 results collected so far, 72.3% were successful, down from the previous week’s preliminary clearance rate of 76.4%. Its final figure converted to 74%.
The same period last year saw 1,046 auctions, 58.4% of which were successful.
Melbourne’s extended lockdown brought 1,131 scheduled auctions this week down to 954, with 16% postponed to a later date. However, this was still sizeable compared to last week’s 662.
Of the 727 results collected so far, 63% were successful while 31.6% withdrew from the auction. In addition, 52.6% of the 458 bought properties were sold prior to auction—the highest “sold prior” rate since the start of June.
Ultimately, Melbourne’s final rates haven’t gone below 60% since October 2020.
Meanwhile, Sydney reported 562 properties taken to auction, similar to the previous week’s 564 but lower than last year’s 668. Of the 496 results collected so far, 82.9% was successful.
Across smaller markets, Adelaide was the best performing capital city with a preliminary clearance rate of 84.8%. Canberra followed at 81.9%, Brisbane at 74.6%, and Perth at 70% with low noting volumes.
The table below shows the preliminary performance of each auction market.
