The REA Group has revealed August 2022 was the busiest winter for new listings in five years.
The PropTrack Listings Report August 2022, a monthly report analysing new and total listings on realestate.com.au, found a spike in new listing activity picked up in city and regional property markets ahead of the typical spring rush.
On realestate.com.au, new listings nationally were 9.9% higher month-on-month in August. Year-on year, new listings were up 20% but this is compared to a period last year when Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra were in lockdown.
All capital cities enjoyed a greater number of new listings in August than in July, with Sydney (+16.1%), Melbourne (+13%) and Hobart (17.2%) experiencing the biggest month-on-month upticks.
Regional markets have also undergone a 7.9% spike in new listing activity in August compared to July.
Read more: Sydney market shines bright for buyers
PropTrack economist and report author Angus Moore (pictured above), said the lift in new listings nationally continued the busier-than-usual activity experienced this winter.
“It has been the busiest winter for new listings in five years,” Moore said. “Despite the pick-up, selling conditions have tempered from their very strong levels earlier in the year. Measures of buyer demand have moderated – it is taking longer to sell homes and auction clearance rates have fallen.”
Moore said the latest PropTrack report found new listings increased in Brisbane (+7.1%), Adelaide (+8.1%), Perth (+7.1%), Darwin (+8.1%) and Canberra (+6.2%).
“The busier month for new listings helped lift the total stock of properties listed for sale nationally by 3.9% month-on-month and brought total listings up by 13.7% compared to August 2021, the largest year-on-year increase since 2010,” he said.
“The increase in stock has brought the total number of properties listed for sale in Sydney and Canberra 10% above the prior decade average and around 1% above in Melbourne. For the regions, the total stock of properties listed for sale remains low but has improved in recent months with the total number of properties listed for sale in regional areas was up 3.8% month-on-month in August.”
Moore said buyers had more properties to choose from in spring 2022 compared to spring 2021.
“The wave of new supply coming to market over the first half of the year, coupled with longer sales times, has lifted the stock available on market and helped make conditions a bit less competitive for buyers,” he said.
“Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra all have levels of total stock available for sale around or above their prior decade average. Even in Brisbane and Adelaide, where choice has been limited for some time, there are signs that conditions are improving.”
Moore said home prices continued to decline in most cities after growth hit multi-decade highs in 2021.
“The Reserve Bank of Australia has continued to raise interest rates at a brisk pace with a fifth consecutive interest rate rise in September, which has brough the cash rate up more than two percentage points in just five months,” he said.
“The RBA is likely to continue raising rates over the course of 2022, which will reduce borrowing capacities for prospective buyers and place greater downward pressure on prices in the near term.
“While market conditions have changed, the fundamental drivers of demand remained strong with unemployment very low, wages growth expected to pick up over this year and international migration increasing. We’d expect to see activity pick up over the next few months as we head into the typically seasonally busy spring season.”
