f31c945f-df9a-40d7-b5cf-0ebb3c5ebac2

<div class="row" data-reactroot=""><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>The residential property market in Australia continues to be challenged by social distancing measures and weaker economic activity, with preliminary clearance rates falling to 29.3 per cent during the Easter long weekend.</p><p>Corelogic figures recorded a very subdued 636 homes scheduled for auction across the nation’s combined capital cities—a figure which, even in the midst of the coronavirus downturn, isn&#x27;t in itself unusual given that the Easter weekend is traditionally one of the quietest weeks of the year.</p><p>But the preliminary auction clearance rate of 29.3 per cent is the lowest preliminary result recorded since Corelogic commenced auction reporting in 2008, dragged down by a withdrawal rate of 57 per cent as the market continues to feel the impact of coronavirus containment measures banning on-site auctions and viewings.</p><p>And the preliminary clearance rate—collected from 472 results so far—is likely to plunge even lower, and withdrawal rates higher, as more results are collated, according to Corelogic’s analysts.</p><p>“Looking forward, we are expecting the withdrawal rate to ease as fewer auctions are scheduled, with vendors preferring private treaty methods of sales, or preferring to defer their listing until some certainty returns to the market and economy.”</p><p>CoreLogic head of research Eliza Owen said that despite the short-term outlook, there was still cause for optimism.</p><p>“Looking ahead, the next few months will present an unprecedented challenge to the auction market and the housing market more broadly. </p><p>“However, once the virus is contained, property is looking increasingly better-placed for a recovery because of the high levels of monetary and fiscal <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/coronavirus-delays-federal-budget-15bn-loans-to-businesses">stimulus </a>available.”</p><p><strong>Weekly clearance rates, combined capital cities</strong></p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><div><picture><img src="https://tud-prod-tudmedia-oj9w2zshuo0o.s3.amazonaws.com/raw/images/65bcbed4-8ebc-44e0-8759-d77825f810b3.png" width="1838"/></picture><div><span style="align-content:left;opacity:0.8">▲ Combined weekly auction clearance rates for all capital cities in April showing a preliminary rate of 29.3 per cent.</span><span style="float:right;opacity:0.8">Source: CoreLogic </span></div></div></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><br>For now, the monetary, fiscal and social <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/coronavirus-eviction-moratorium">policies </a>rolled out by the federal and state governments may already be helping to <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/new-fiscal-policies-shift-the-outlook-for-rental-housing">soften the blow</a> for the rental market, at least temporarily.</p><p>SQM data shows Australia’s residential rental vacancy rate remained stable at 2.0 per cent in March, with the total number of vacancies Australia-wide now at 67,371 vacant residential properties.</p><p>Most states recorded minor 0.1 per cent declines in vacancy rates, with the exception of Sydney, Melbourne and Darwin, which were stable.</p><p>SQM managing director Louis Christopher said the minor decline in most capital cities’ vacancy rates for March was somewhat surprising given the uncertainty around the economy. </p><p>“With job losses, a freeze in migration and an expected sharp rise in short-term accommodation vacancies,we are likely to record significant increases in rental vacancy rates as 2020 progresses. </p><p>“Let’s keep in mind our methodology requires a property to be advertised for three weeks or longer before we regard it as unoccupied,” Christopher said.</p><p>Capital city asking rents decreased by 3.2 per cent for houses and 2.9 per cent for units for the week ending April 12, with asking rents of $544 per week for houses and $428 per week for units.  </p><p>“I also note the 3.2 per cent drop in asking rents for houses over the month, which may well be as a result of many short-term accommodation dwellings <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/domain-rents-listings-increase">entering </a>into the longer-term leasing market, and overall, a sign of things to come,” Christopher said.</p><p>Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Hobart all recorded decreases in asking rents for both houses and units over the month. </p><p>Perth and Adelaide were the only capital cities to record rent increases for both houses and units, with asking prices in Perth increasing by 1.9 per cent for houses and 0.8 per cent for units. </p><p>Adelaide recorded a 0.3 per cent increase for houses and 1.4 per cent for units.</p><p>Canberra and Darwin recorded increases in house asking rents with Canberra increasing by 2.6 per cent and Darwin 0.1 per cent, however, both cities had declines in unit prices over the month—Canberra  by 0.1 per cent and Darwin by 0.6 per cent. </p><p>While the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the residential property market remains <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/coronavirus-impact-property-unclear-unemployment-rate-10pc">unclear</a>, the Reserve Bank&#x27;s April Financial Stability Review has pointed to Australia&#x27;s &quot;strong starting position&quot; for dealing with what&#x27;s in store.</p></div></div></div></div></div>

Clearance rates fell to a record low of 29.3 per cent during Easter as residential property markets continue to feel the impact of Covid-19 ...

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<div class="row" data-reactroot=""><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><strong>Australia&#x27;s housing market continues to weaken with auction clearance rates falling despite an increase in total auction activity across the nation&#x27;s capital cities. </strong></p><p>The Corelogic quarterly auction report, which focuses on Australia’s auction market performance, found that combined capital city clearance rates dropped to just 43.6 per cent in the three months to December 2018. </p><p>This figure continues to trend downwards from 53.6 per cent over the previous quarter and 62.3 per cent over the same period the previous year. </p><p>All capital cities observed a reduction in the auction clearance rate with the exception of Hobart which continues to defy the broader market downturn. </p><p>The largest fall in clearance rates was seen across Canberra (down -13.4 per cent from the previous quarter), followed by Adelaide (-12.2 per cent), Perth (-11.9 per cent) and Melbourne (-11.2 per cent). </p><p>Related: <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/house-price-decline-largest-since-the-80s-morgan-stanley">House Price Decline Largest Since the ’80s: Morgan Stanley</a></p><p>Capital city auction clearance rate and volumes: </p><ul> <li><p><strong>Sydney</strong> 43.1% (8,828 auctions) </p></li><li><p><strong>Melbourne</strong> 45.4% (12,372 auctions) </p></li><li><p><strong>Brisbane</strong> 31.8% (1,642 auctions) </p></li><li><p><strong>Adelaide</strong> 48.5% (1,423 auctions) </p></li><li><p><strong>Perth</strong> 25.0% (499 auctions) </p></li><li><p><strong>Tasmania</strong> 50.0% (40 auctions) </p></li><li><p><strong>Canberra</strong> 46.9% (1,090 auctions) </p></li><li><p><strong>Combined capitals</strong> 43.6% (25,894 auctions) </p></li></ul><h2><strong>Investor lending picks up in NSW </strong></h2><p>Despite auction clearance rates falling significantly over the December quarter, recent ABS data has found that investor activity remains mixed. </p><p>New South Wales continues to buck the national trend with a monthly increase of 6.6 per cent in the value of loans approved to residential investors in November 2018. </p><p>All other states, with the exception of Tasmania, reported falls in investor lending activity over November with VIC recording the sharpest decline, down by 10.1 per cent. </p><p>Western Australia, Queensland and South Australia were all down at 7.2 per cent, 3.3 per cent and 2.3 per cent respectively. </p><p>“Investor lending has collapsed over the past year instigated by misguided policies by APRA the financial regulator and now predictably exacerbated by the severe impact of falling house prices on home buyer sentiment generally,” My Housing Market chief economist Andrew Wilson said.</p><p>Investor lending in NSW continues to account for the highest proportion of investor finance nationally with almost half of all loans, while Victoria accounts for just under a third.</p></div></div></div>

The nation's housing market continues to self-correct with auction clearance rates dropping despite an increase in total auction activity.

57a0b89d-061a-4236-a9f8-abd1d1431bb3

<div class="row" data-reactroot=""><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>Australia&#x27;s housing market has shown some signs of resilience with improved demand driving a lift in home auction results across Australia.</p><p>Activity and confidence has continued to pick up since the <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/what-the-australian-property-industry-can-learn-from-scomos-miracle">May federal election</a>, with <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/reserve-bank-cuts-interest-rate-to-1pc-in-july-meeting">lower interest rates</a>, tax cuts and a relaxation of APRA&#x27;s mortgage <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/apra-scraps-loan-buffer">serviceability requirements</a> reigniting the housing market. </p><p>Following the <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/house-prices-will-fall-only-3pc-from-current-levels">downturn</a> of the past two years, where Sydney prices  fell nearly 15 per cent from the peak of the market in 2017, and Melbourne fell over 10 per cent, there are continuing signs that conditions are easing.</p><p>The low number of homes going to auction has caused heightened competition from buyers who have been encouraged by interest rate cuts, a tax-cut package valued at $15 billion and, until recently, falling property prices.</p><p>Buyer confidence has returned to the market, with early property auction data from the weekend suggesting higher clearance rates lifting the national preliminary figure to 71.2 per cent.</p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><strong>Weekly clearance rate, combined capital cities</strong></p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><div><picture><img src="https://tud-prod-tudmedia-oj9w2zshuo0o.s3.amazonaws.com/raw/images/96a23132-9cfa-499d-9083-3159fc61bda8.png" width="791"/></picture><div></div></div></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>While clearance rates are trending higher, auction volumes remain lower year-on-year. Over the same week one year ago 1,536 were taken to auction.</p><p>Corelogic said 1,115 homes taken to auction across the combined capital cities this week, up from the 896 homes auctioned last week. Over the same week one year ago 1,536 were taken to auction.</p><p>The two largest auction markets, Melbourne and Sydney, saw their preliminary clearance rates rise this week; both coming in at the mid-high 70 per cent mark, with both cities also seeing an increase in volumes over the week.</p><p>Over the past week, clearance rates were strongest in Sydney, recording a 78.5 per cent preliminary clearance rate, up from last week’s 72.8 per cent final clearance rate. </p><p>There were 391 Sydney homes taken to auction in the week to Saturday, increasing on the week prior when 303 homes were auctioned. </p><p>The number of homes listed was still shy on the 469 auctions in Sydney during the same week last year.</p><p>In Victoria – the country&#x27;s largest auction market – Melbourne returned a 74 per cent preliminary auction clearance rate across 546 auctions, after last week’s 67.5 per cent final clearance.</p><p>Across the smaller auction markets, Adelaide was the best performing with a preliminary clearance rate of 56.7 per cent, while only 14.3 per cent of Perth homes sold at auction.</p><p>Average values were mixed across the main capital cities during the week, with prices edging up 0.1 per cent in Sydney and Melbourne, adding 0.2 per cent in Brisbane, unchanged in Adelaide and falling 0.2 per cent in Perth.</p><p>The uptick comes at a welcome time as the market heads into a testing spring selling season.</p><p>Earlier this month the Reserve Bank <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/reserve-bank-cuts-interest-rate-to-1pc-in-july-meeting?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=030719%20WORLD&amp;utm_content=030719%20WORLD+Preview+CID_04e678dda3e3988cbbf527dc3d4da5db&amp;utm_source=email">cut official interest rates to 1 per cent</a> in an effort to kickstart the economy and drive up wages and employment. A third interest rate cut is expected by Christmas.</p></div></div></div></div></div>

Australia's housing market has shown some signs of resilience with improved auction demand driving a lift in home auction results across Australia.

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<div class="row" data-reactroot=""><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><strong>Australian auction clearance rates showed signs of improvement last week, up to 54.1 per cent from the initial estimate of 47.8 per cent a week earlier.</strong></p><p>The lift in auction clearance rates, coincides with the <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/rba-moves-to-neutral-stance">Reserve Bank of Australia shifting to a neutral stance on interest rates.</a></p><p>According to Corelogic, 929 auctions look place across all capital cities, up from 536 in the prior week of which 42.8 per cent were sold.</p><p>Of those, CoreLogic received results from 627, representing a reporting rate of just 67.5 per cent.</p><p>Once all results are collected, CoreLogic expected final figures to revise lower as the remaining results are collected to remain around the mid-to-low 40 per cent range.</p><p>Although clearance rates and activity remain low, the early flow of auction data this year shows a “subtle bounce back in the clearance rate” relative to the lows recorded through December last year.</p><p>Related: <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/auction-clearance-rates-continue-to-fall-despite-increased-activity-and-investor-pickup">Auction Clearance Rates Fell 20% Over the Past Year</a></p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><strong>Weekly clearance rate, combined capital cities</strong></p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><div><picture><img src="https://tud-prod-tudmedia-oj9w2zshuo0o.s3.amazonaws.com/raw/images/77ef8214-d0b8-4ac5-afc2-5a25d1f03540.jpg" width="943"/></picture><div></div></div></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>While the <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/rba-moves-to-neutral-stance">talk of lower interest rates</a> may be encouraging renewed buyer demand, CoreLogic pointed to a seasonal trend similar to what has been seen over previous years. </p><p>“Comparing results to one year ago, volumes and clearance rates are significantly lower than what were seen over the corresponding week last year, when 1,470 capital city homes went to auction and 63.7 per cent sold,” CoreLogic said.</p><p>Related: <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/three-quarters-of-properties-sell-for-less-than-purchase-price-corelogic">Three Quarters of Properties Sell for Less than Listed Price: Corelogic</a></p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><strong>Capital city auction statistics (preliminary)</strong></p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><div><picture><img src="https://tud-prod-tudmedia-oj9w2zshuo0o.s3.amazonaws.com/raw/images/902dbb32-3b9a-4f57-aea2-2e7d3a8f6147.png" width="1073"/></picture><div></div></div></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>Across individual capital city markets, Sydney led the national improvement last week, recording a preliminary clearance rate of 59.2 per cent.</p><p>“Sydney was the best performing capital city auction market according to final results last week, while this week’s preliminary clearance rate is also the highest amongst the cities,” CoreLogic said.</p><p>Melbourne was the busiest market, with 352 auctions listed with preliminary figures suggesting 53.7 per cent sold.</p><p>In Brisbane, a clearance rate of 42.6 per cent from 91 listings meant the weakest returns of all the capitals. </p><p>In Adelaide, 52.5 per cent of 76 homes listed have changed hands on preliminary numbers, and in Perth 42.9 per cent were sold from 36 listings.</p><p>Even-though buyers remain cautious and edgy within the current market, a number of high-profile properties sold over the weekend to help push rates higher.</p><p>In Sydney, a three-bedroom property in Balmain East was sold for $3.95 million while a four-bedroom house in Brisbane&#x27;s Hawthorne sold for $2.15 million.</p></div></div></div></div></div>

Australian auction clearance rates showed signs of improvement last week, up to 54.1 per cent.

Mass Auction Withdrawals Reveal First Cracks in Housing Market

<div class="row" data-reactroot=""><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>Coronavirus social distancing measures could start harm residential property prices with 45 per cent of auctions withdrawn from the market.</p><p>On what would have been one of the busiest weekends of the year, with 3,092 capital city homes scheduled for auction, the weekend&#x27;s results were weighed down again by withdrawn auctions.</p><p>Sydney and Melbourne auction clearance rates remained low at the weekend in signs the coronavirus may be hitting housing demand, with 45 per cent of the auctions that were set to take place withdrawn and 84 per cent of auctions sold prior to the event.</p><p>According to property researcher Corelogic, withdrawn auctions typically comprise less than 6 per cent of all auctions from week-to-week.</p><p>The drop off in auctions follows the federal government&#x27;s <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/shopping-malls-stay-open-auctions-banned-">ban</a> on large public gatherings, with bidders opting to head online instead with 84 per cent of auctions sold prior to the event.</p><p>Agents have quickly on-boarded new means to undertake digital auctions through a variety of online platforms.</p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><div><picture><img src="https://tud-prod-tudmedia-oj9w2zshuo0o.s3.amazonaws.com/raw/images/f827e557-0d3e-4dd0-8a43-a73b19491b6a.jpg" width="800"/></picture><div><span style="align-content:center;opacity:0.8">▲ Analysts are worried new listings and sales could continue to contract before bouncing back once the pandemic eases.</span></div></div></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><br>Of 3,092 homes that were set to go under the hammer nationwide, an auction clearance rate of 48 per cent was recorded by Corelogic.</p><p>There were 1,437 auctions scheduled in Sydney this week, returning a clearance rate of 46.9 per cent while the online-only clearance rate for Sydney, was 41.2 per cent, from 453 that went ahead. </p><p>Melbourne, which had almost 1,248 auctions scheduled returned a clearance rate of 54.7 per cent while in Brisbane 27.9 per cent of auctions cleared from 86 results.</p><p>The result comes comes off the back of the previous week’s final figure of 37.3 per cent, which coincided with the global financial crisis (GFC), and was lowest final clearance rate recorded since Corelogic commenced reporting in 2008.</p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><div><picture><img src="https://tud-prod-tudmedia-oj9w2zshuo0o.s3.amazonaws.com/raw/images/b50e78fb-37c1-46a3-83ba-16b29200ff23.jpg" width="800"/></picture><div><span style="align-content:center;opacity:0.8">▲ The federal government&#x27;s restrictions on gatherings are likely to see auction attendee figures dwindle.</span></div></div></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><br>Corelogic said that over the coming weeks it will be highly likely scheduled volumes will lower as vendors either convert their listings to private treaty method or hold off on selling their property until conditions and confidence improve.</p><p>Corelogic&#x27;s price index remained positive through March, up 0.7 per cent, but with more auctions likely to withdraw and transactions likely to dry up amid a nationwide lockdown, the housing market is preparing for its biggest test in over a decade.</p><p>Analysts are now expecting a sudden plunge in volume, due to stifled uncertainty due to the wave of layoffs sweeping the country, could cause property prices to tumble.</p><p>Ratings agency Moody’s expects a significant increase in mortgage defaults as a result of the rolling shutdowns with industries including hospitality, retail and entertainment experiencing mass worker layoff.</p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><h2><strong>How house prices have fared in times of crisis</strong></h2></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>While sellers have taken a more cautious approach over recent weeks, homebuyers hoping the knock on effects from the coronavirus could see a drop in property prices could be disappointed.</p><p>According to CBRE&#x27;s Residential Market Update, Australia&#x27;s property market has traditionally fared relatively well during global economic shocks.</p><p>Australian property prices were eventually boosted by the 1987 Black Monday sharemarket crash that shaved 23 per cent off the sharemarket&#x27;s value.</p><p>Before the GFC, interest rates were rising in a bid to control strong inflation and as mortgages got more expensive, housing prices were falling.</p><p>During the GFC house and unit sales dropped from record highs reached in 2007 into a trough in 2008, with house sales volumes dropping by 26 per cent and units by 24 per cent.</p><p>Prices and volumes rebounded strongly in 2009 with house sales volumes lifting by 19 per cent and units by 29 per cent.</p><p>In the March 2009 quarter, the national median reversed its falls to edge up by 0.1 per cent, before jumping 3.5 per cent in the June quarter, another 3.9 per cent in September and a strong 4.6 per cent in the three months to December 2009.</p><p>CBRE said that overseas travel restrictions would now have a direct effect on population growth and in turn would ameliorate some of the immediate impacts on the already low supply pipeline.</p><p>“Net overseas migration presently accounts for a little over 60 per cent of Australia&#x27;s population growth at 232,000 over the year to September 2019,” CBRE said in a statement.</p><p>“This generates a significant demand for housing, particularly in major capital cities.</p><p>“Even with a 50 per cent drop in net overseas migration in 2020 and a 25 per cent drop in 2021, we will still see undersupply topping 30,000 by the end of 2021, ramping up quickly when the migration intake rises again.”</p></div></div></div></div></div>

The economic impact of coronavirus could start to negatively impact residential property prices with clearance rates weighed down again.

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<div class="row" data-reactroot=""><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>Auction volumes across the country last week recorded their strongest numbers in 12 months.</p><p>Data firm <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/tags/CoreLogic">Corelogic</a> recorded a national clearance rate of 66.4 per cent from close to 1,500 auctions in the past week.</p><p>The healthy result comes three weeks after after the Coalition election win, dismissing Labor&#x27;s negative gearing and capital gains tax changes. That week the market recorded a 58 per cent final figure – the strongest result in 12 months.</p><p>The market has also been buoyed by the Reserve Bank of Australia&#x27;s earlier than expected move towards <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/rba-cuts-to-record-lows-so-how-will-the-cash-rate-cut-impact-the-property-market">rate cuts</a>, lowering from 1.5 per cent to 1.25 per cent.</p><p>The rate cut would positively stimulate the housing market as borrowers&#x27; loan capacity is increased and the amount of interest expense for existing borrowers falls.</p><p>The prudential regulator&#x27;s likely <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/apra-scraps-loan-buffer">removal</a> of a 7 per cent interest serviceability test on home loans as well as the pending stimulus of a first home buyer deposit scheme has experts tipping the house prices falls to stop within the second half of this year.</p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><div><picture><img src="https://tud-prod-tudmedia-oj9w2zshuo0o.s3.amazonaws.com/raw/images/c1fb5f73-b983-4c43-82ad-68f3fbe4227f.jpg" width="800"/></picture><div><span style="align-content:center;opacity:0.8">▲ This time last year, 2,002 homes were taken to auction but the clearance rate was only 52.4 per cent.</span></div></div></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><br>Over the previous week, the final clearance rate dipped to 48.3 per cent across 805 auctions, with the lower volume of auctions attributed to the Queen’s birthday long weekend across most of the capitals.</p><p>Despite the low volume of stock for auction, buyers re-emerged in greater numbers, stirred into action by the run of promising news for the property market.</p><p>In Sydney, 74.7 per cent of homes under the hammer in the city sold from 522 auctions. One year ago, Sydney reached a clearance rate of just 49.4 per cent across 708 auctions.</p><p>Corelogic recorded a 67.9 per cent clearance rate in Melbourne based on the confirmed results of 574 auctions while another 151 were not included in the figures. Melbourne’s clearance rate has held above 60 per cent for three of the last four weeks. </p><p>In Brisbane, a 37 per cent clearance rate based on the confirmed results of 46 auctions out of a total of 92 held across the city.</p><p>Across the other auction markets, Adelaide and Canberra saw an increase in the number of homes taken to auction in the past week, with a 54.5 per cent and 47.1 per cent clearance rate respectively. </p><p>Brisbane auction numbers declined, with the weekend&#x27;s total of 92 down from 117 in the same week last year and 151 at the same time two years ago. The city recorded a clearance rate of 37 per cent for the week.</p><p>Corelogic noted that the top end of the housing market continued to lead the way with the first signs of recovery emerging.</p><p>“While values are broadly continuing to fall, the rate of these falls on a monthly basis has been slowing,” Corelogic economist Cameron Kusher said.</p><p>“After having seen much larger corrections than the other two segments, the most expensive segment of the market is seeing its rate of decline slow.”  </p><p>“This is a trend that has played out before whereby premium housing values fall the fastest initially but also sees the falls cease earlier than other market segments.”  </p><p>“It is still early days but with the housing market expected to trough in late 2019, the premium housing sector may find a floor first and start to show some level of recovery before the other segments.” </p></div></div></div></div></div>

Auction volumes across the country last week resulted in a subtle rebound in market confidence, achieving their strongest numbers in 12 months.

Virtual house auction Australia Mcgrath

<div class="row" data-reactroot=""><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>Melbourne’s auction market has defied the city-wide Covid-19 lockdown, returning an increased clearance rate of 73 per cent, albeit to a lower volume of listings.</p><p>Much of the national focus was on Melbourne which has been placed under strict stage-four lockdown restrictions as the state battles a surging second wave of coronavirus cases.</p><p>There were 298 auctions scheduled in Melbourne this week, down from 357 over the previous week and 500 over the same week last year, CoreLogic said.</p><p>Preliminary results showed a total of 178 homes were sold, out of the 244 collected results.</p><p>Under the strict new rules aimed at curbing the spread of coronavirus, one-on-one inspections of properties have been banned across Melbourne, with property viewings shifted online. </p><p>Prior to the weekend, 18 per cent of Melbourne auctions were withdrawn from the market by nervous sellers, compared with a peak of 65 per cent seen in the second week of April.</p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><strong>Capital city auction statistics </strong></p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><table><thead><tr><th>City</th><th>Clearance rate</th><th>Total auctions</th><th>Corelogic auction results</th><th>Cleared auctions</th><th>Uncleared auctions</th><th>Clearance rate (last year)</th><th>Total auctions (last year)</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><th>Sydney</th><th>65.8%</th><th>642</th><th>483</th><th>318</th><th>165</th><th>76.2%</th><th>367</th></tr><tr><th>Melbourne</th><th>73%</th><th>298</th><th>244</th><th>178</th><th>66</th><th>72.3%</th><th>500</th></tr><tr><th>Brisbane</th><th>46.8%</th><th>105</th><th>77</th><th>36</th><th>41</th><th>35.3%</th><th>89</th></tr><tr><th>Adelaide</th><th>71.4%</th><th>45</th><th>28</th><th>20</th><th>8</th><th>56%</th><th>56</th></tr><tr><th>Perth</th><th>22.2%</th><th>17</th><th>9</th><th>2</th><th>7</th><th>27.6%</th><th>39</th></tr><tr><th>Canberra</th><th>73.2%</th><th>53</th><th>41</th><th>30</th><th>11</th><th>62.7%</th><th>56</th></tr><tr><th>Hobart</th><th>0%</th><th>0</th><th>0</th><th>0</th><th>0</th><th>0</th><th>4</th></tr><tr><th>Weighted Average</th><th>65.9%</th><th>1,160</th><th>882</th><th>584</th><th>298</th><th>67.8%</th><th>1,111</th></tr></tbody></table></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><sup><sub>^ Source: Corelogic</sub></sup></p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>But not too much should be read into these results, AMP Capital chief economist Shane Oliver said.</p><p>“These sales are coming off a lower level of volumes,” Oliver said. </p><p>“I tend to think they were transactions likely reflect inspections prior to stage four lockdowns, and moving forward things are likely [going] to slow to a crawl.”</p><p>Melbourne’s auction clearance rate for <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/auctions-new-home-sales-up-despite-lockdown">July</a> was 47.3 per cent—up 17.9 percentage points from April’s historical low, but 5.6 percentage points lower than June.</p><p>Sydney sellers also showed signs of nervousness as they increasingly settled sales prior to auction rather than risked disappointing buyer bids.</p><p>Sydney was host to 642 auctions this week, up from 566 over the previous week and 367 this time last year. </p><p>Early results found that of the 483 auction results collected so far, 65.8 per cent have returned a successful result. </p><p>Last week, a final clearance rate of 60.7 per cent was recorded, while one year ago, a success rate of 76.2 per cent was achieved across Sydney.</p><p>Across the smaller cities, Canberra came in with the highest preliminary clearance rate over the week  at 73.2 per cent followed by Adelaide hitting 71.4 per cent.</p><p>The national clearance rate of 65.9 per cent was up slightly from last week’s final clearance rate of 65.3 cent, and lower than this time last year at 67.8 percent, according to Corelogic data.</p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><h2><strong>Auction activity to drop despite virtual alternative</strong></h2></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>In its recently released forecasts, the Reserve Bank of Australia has warned the economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic remains “uncertain”, with its latest figures being worse than those predicted three months earlier and house price declines expected.</p><p>“The reinstatement of restrictions in Melbourne in early July, including restrictions on in-person auctions and open houses, weighed on new listings and resulted in auction clearance rates declining to 45 per cent in July, to be a bit above the level seen in April,” RBA governor Philip Lowe said.</p><p>“The introduction of further restrictions in Melbourne in early August will further reduce activity in the housing market over coming weeks.” </p><p>Since the start of the year, Melbourne house prices have lost 1.1 per cent in value, erasing the gains the city recorded before the pandemic hit. </p><p>By contrast, Sydney managed to hold on to a slim 2.2 per cent gain.</p><p>“Following a strong bounce-back, auction clearance rates in Sydney have remained relatively stable in the recent period, at a bit above 60 per cent,” Lowe said.</p><p>Nationally, house prices fell by a lower 0.6 per cent during the month, offset by the smaller declines and even a slight rise in values in some capitals.</p></div></div></div></div></div>

Melbourne’s auction market defied the citywide Covid-19 lockdown returning an increased clearance rate of 73 per cent.

4f56faca-2967-40c1-8305-6e4773e6199a

<div class="row" data-reactroot=""><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>Sydney auctions returned the strongest results in about two years over the weekend, recording a preliminary clearance rate of 81.5 per cent — a marked improvement from 55.2 per cent a year earlier.</p><p>While final clearance figures will likely be revised lower and volumes remain soft, the trend toward higher clearance rates has continued this week, with 901 homes taken to auction across the nation reaching a 70.6 per cent preliminary clearance rate. </p><p>Buyer appetite in Melbourne also picked up, reaching its highest point in almost two years to return a preliminary clearance rate above 70 per cent. </p><p>The strong results support a growing consensus that the big east coast property markets are reaching <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/australias-residential-market-approaching-bottom-bis-">bottom</a> and showing signs of <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/suburbs-with-the-strongest-auction-results-for-the-quarter">stabilising</a> after two years of sharp declines. </p><p>Brisbane posted a preliminary clearance rate of 45.7 per cent from 80 auctions, while Adelaide recorded 20 cleared results from 55 auctions. Volumes remained low in Perth, with just 2 auction results from 12 scheduled auctions. </p><p>Related: <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/regulators-positive-about-housing-market-recovery-">Regulators Positive About Housing Market Recovery</a></p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><h2><strong>Capital city auction results </strong></h2></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><table><thead><tr><th></th><th>Clearance rate</th><th>Total auctions</th><th>Results</th><th>Cleared</th><th>Uncleared</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><th>Sydney</th><th>81.5%</th><th>303</th><th>216</th><th>176</th><th>40</th></tr><tr><th>Melbourne</th><th>70%</th><th>416</th><th>327</th><th>229</th><th>98</th></tr><tr><th>Brisbane</th><th>45.7%</th><th>80</th><th>46</th><th>21</th><th>25</th></tr><tr><th>Adelaide</th><th>58.8%</th><th>55</th><th>34</th><th>20</th><th>14</th></tr><tr><th>Perth</th><th>50%</th><th>12</th><th>2</th><th>1</th><th>1</th></tr><tr><th>Tasmania</th><th>N/A</th><th>5</th><th>2</th><th>2</th><th>0</th></tr><tr><th>Canberra</th><th>60%</th><th>30</th><th>25</th><th>15</th><th>10</th></tr></tbody></table></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><sup><sub>^ Preliminary results. Source: Corelogic.</sub></sup></p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>While APRA’s <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/apra-relaxes-home-lending-rules">loosening</a> of serviceability requirements and rate cuts has improved access to credit, a tighter regulatory regime will keep prices constrained. </p><p>“While the outlook definitely looks more positive, ANZ research does not expect a v-shaped recovery for prices,” ANZ economist Felicity Emmett said.</p><p>“[Our] view for some time has been that tightening in credit has been the major driver of weakness and changes to the use of household expenditure measure (HEM) and the introduction of comprehensive credit reporting will offset some of the impact.”</p><p>Emmett said that the change in sentiment has shifted from pervasive negativity to cautious optimism.</p><p>“Falling interest rates and easing credit requirements have helped to shift sentiment.</p><p>“In June, prices rose in Melbourne for the first time in 16 months while prices in Sydney were flat after nearly two years of declines.” </p><p>Economic forecaster BIS Oxford Economics now <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/australias-residential-market-approaching-bottom-bis-">expects</a> Sydney house prices to grow by 6 per cent over the next three years and 7 per cent in Melbourne. </p></div></div></div></div></div>

Buyer appetite is picking up, with another week of strong auction results supporting a growing consensus that the big east coast property markets...  

Housing Clearance Rates

<div class="row" data-reactroot=""><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>For the third successive week, Sydney auctions have again stood up to <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/how-does-the-housing-downturn-compare-to-previous-cycles-">weak market</a> conditions, recording a preliminary clearance rate of 84.7 per cent — the strongest result in more than two years and marked improvement from 53 per cent a year earlier.</p><p>Only 58 properties of the 500 auctions in Sydney last week are still on the market, after huge crowds turned up to auctions across the city recording a result last reached in February 2017, according to Corelogic data.</p><p>While final clearance figures will likely be revised lower and volumes remain soft, the weekends results makes it three successive weeks where better than three-quarters of properties on the block sold with the strength of the market recovery set to be tested when stock volumes rise again in spring.</p><p>Low stock numbers — well below what they were in 2017, when clearance rates were last this high — are now driving buyers back into the market.</p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><div><picture><img src="https://tud-prod-tudmedia-oj9w2zshuo0o.s3.amazonaws.com/raw/images/e041269c-a4a0-4d71-8d44-67c042d18e66.jpg" width="800"/></picture><div><span style="align-content:center;opacity:0.8">▲ According to new figures from Ray White average attendances have increased to more than 50 per auction, with an average of eight bidders. Image: Daniel Munoz</span></div></div></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p></p><p>Houses in Melbourne reached $875,000, significantly lower than Sydney, coming in at $1.3 million, leading to a stronger push for units from Sydney buyers.</p><p>The median price for units in Melbourne reached $668,750, while in Sydney it reached $825,000.</p><p>In Melbourne, with clearance rates just below 80 per cent this week, volumes were down 16 per cent from this time last year. Across 665 auctions, Melbourne had a clearance of 79.7 per cent.</p><p>Clearance rates across Brisbane’s 94 auctions jumped from just above 40 per cent in the same week last year, to 67.7 per cent in the last week.</p><p>Brisbane saw lower auction volumes week-on-week while Adelaide, Canberra and Perth saw an increase in the number of homes taken to auction over the week. </p><p>Conditions have been increasingly optimistic for buyers, with two interest rate cuts as well as a sense that banks are now <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/apra-relaxes-home-lending-rules">loosening serviceability</a> measures instilled by regulator APRA.</p><p>Corelogic auction market commentator Kevin Brogan said that any pricing increases over the foreseeable future will be gradual despite the uptick in foot traffic on auction days.</p><p>“If we do see a surge of listings — when the expected listings for spring comes along  — will that be sufficient to exert a downward influence on clearance rates? Is that going to exert a downward pressure on the clearance rates? That&#x27;s the question,” Brogan told <em>The Urban Developer</em>.</p><p>“If there is latent demand, it is difficult to tell how many buyers are out there who are getting their finances in order in anticipation of having more choice in spring.</p><p>“Despite the softening of house prices, especially in Sydney over  a fifteen month period, there are still affordability constraints at play in the market.”</p><p>Related: <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/regulators-positive-about-housing-market-recovery-">Related: Regulators Positive About Housing Market Recovery</a></p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><h2><strong>Capital city auction results</strong></h2></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><table><thead><tr><th></th><th>Clearance rate</th><th>Total auctions</th><th>Results</th><th>Cleared</th><th>Uncleared</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><th>Sydney</th><th>84.7%</th><th>500</th><th>379</th><th>321</th><th>58</th></tr><tr><th>Melbourne</th><th>79.7%</th><th>665</th><th>538</th><th>429</th><th>109</th></tr><tr><th>Brisbane</th><th>67.7%</th><th>94</th><th>62</th><th>42</th><th>20</th></tr><tr><th>Adelaide</th><th>72.4%</th><th>56</th><th>29</th><th>21</th><th>8</th></tr><tr><th>Perth</th><th>62.5%</th><th>20</th><th>8</th><th>5</th><th>3</th></tr><tr><th>Tasmania</th><th>n.a.</th><th>2</th><th>2</th><th>2</th><th>0</th></tr><tr><th>Canberra</th><th>68.9%</th><th>75</th><th>61</th><th>42</th><th>19</th></tr></tbody></table></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><sup><sub>^ Preliminary results. Source: Corelogic.</sub></sup></p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>Westpac, in its <a href="https://westpaciq.westpac.com.au/wibiqauthoring/_uploads/file/Australia/2019/August/WestpacHousingPulseAugust2019.pdf">August Housing Pulse monitor</a>, points out there are still evidence to the argument there&#x27;s a sustainable lift in demand.</p><p>“The lift in buyer sentiment looks to be partly based on the expectation of a further improvement in affordability that may not materialise if prices start rising again or if the RBA disappoints on expected rate cuts,” Westpac noted. </p><p>“Conditions continue to vary markedly by state. New South Wales and Victoria are showing a clear turnaround, Queensland&#x27;s still looks out of sorts, South Australia is drifting and Western Australia is struggling to establish a base despite renewed optimism.” </p><p>This week&#x27;s results are likely to be revised down when final figures come in, but it&#x27;s still a considerable jump on figures gathered from the same time last year.</p><p>Separate figures from Domain put the national preliminary clearance rate at 78.4 per cent, up from 69 per cent a week earlier, with Sydney at 78.2 per cent and Melbourne at 81.2 per cent.</p></div></div></div></div></div>

Sydney auctions have again stood up to the weak market conditions, recording a preliminary clearance rate of 84 per cent. 

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<div class="row" data-reactroot=""><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>Clearance rates across the major markets of Sydney and Melbourne have picked up momentum amid a surge in auction listings as the traditional spring selling season gains pace.</p><p>Nationally the clearance rate was 77 per cent, on preliminary figures from data provider Corelogic after last week’s final clearance rate dropped to 67.6 per cent, due in part to the NRL grand final and long weekend.</p><p>There were 2,017 homes taken to auction across the combined capital cities this week, up from 1,324 over the previous week.</p><p>Sydney was at 82.3 per cent and Melbourne at 76.6 per cent with volumes more than doubling to 729 over the week to Saturday from 317 the week prior when the final clearance rate was 79.8 per cent and 73.8 per cent respectively. </p><p>Brisbane only had a preliminary figure of 59 per cent while Perth saw 42 per cent. Canberra&#x27;s preliminary rate improved to 78.4 per cent.</p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><h2><strong>Corelogic Auction Results</strong></h2></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><table><thead><tr><th>City</th><th>Clearance Rate</th><th>Total Auctions</th><th>Auction Results</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><th>Adelaide</th><th>78.43%</th><th>86</th><th>51</th></tr><tr><th>Brisbane</th><th>59.42%</th><th>112</th><th>69</th></tr><tr><th>Canberra</th><th>78.46%</th><th>74</th><th>49</th></tr><tr><th>Melbourne</th><th>76.69 %</th><th>977</th><th>755</th></tr><tr><th>Perth</th><th>42.11%</th><th>22</th><th>19</th></tr><tr><th>Sydney</th><th>82.31%</th><th>729</th><th>503</th></tr><tr><th>Tasmania</th><th>50%</th><th>7</th><th>4</th></tr><tr><th>Weighted Average</th><th>77.35%</th><th>2,017</th><th>1,466</th></tr></tbody></table></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><br>During the downturn that lasted almost two years, property prices fell about 15 per cent in Sydney and 11 per cent in Melbourne.</p><p>Since then, access to cheap money combined with house hunters competing over limited stock have helped drive prices higher, by about 3.2 per cent in Sydney and 3.4 per cent in Melbourne in the past four months, Corelogic&#x27;s monthly price index is expected to show on Tuesday.</p><p>The market has also been buoyed by the Reserve Bank of Australia&#x27;s interest rate cuts, lowering to 0.75 per cent.</p><p>The rate cut has attempted to stimulate the housing market as borrowers&#x27; loan capacity is increased and the amount of interest expense for existing borrowers falls.</p><p>Recent ABS figures has revealed both <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/investors-first-home-buyers-drive-12pc-rebound-in-lending">investor</a> and first-home buyers stepping back into the mortgage market over August, pushing new lending, including refinancing, up 4.5 per cent in August to $27.9 billion.</p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><div><picture><img src="https://tud-prod-tudmedia-oj9w2zshuo0o.s3.amazonaws.com/raw/images/501c238f-3515-4ba5-a0bc-99700738547d.jpg" width="800"/></picture><div><span style="align-content:center;opacity:0.8">▲ More than 2000 homes were offered at auctions in Australia last week and 77 per cent of them sold at auction.</span></div></div></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><br>The number of new listings added to the combined capital housing markets has seen a 44 per cent rise from the depths of the winter slowdown in early July through to the first week of October, however that hasn’t been enough to push fresh listing numbers in line with previous years.</p><p>While volumes have been steadily ticking up over the past month they are still down on the previous year.</p><p>The number of new capital city listings over the past twenty eight days is tracking at the lowest level for this time of the year since Corelogic started tracking real estate listings in 2007.</p><p>Corelogic&#x27;s Tim Lawless also expects demand to keep growing, albeit relatively slowly.</p><p>“With market activity rising, active buyers are becoming more competitive across a shallow pool of listings which is adding some urgency to the market,” he said.</p><p>“With increased competition, vendors are regaining some of the leverage they lost through the housing downturn and buyers could be feeling the first pangs of FOMO as they see properties selling faster and prices rising.” </p><p>Over the three months to September 2019, the clearance rate across the combined capital cities came in at 69.9 per cent across 16,730 auctions, the strongest quarterly clearance rate seen since the June 2017 quarter to 71.7 per cent.</p><p>Over the September 2018 quarter, 20,653 homes were taken to auction, although the clearance rate was much lower at 53.6 per cent.</p><p>“The September quarter has seen a remarkable lift in auction clearance rates, driven by consistently high results across the largest auction markets, Sydney and Melbourne,” Lawless said.</p><p>“There is a strong likelihood that advertised stock levels and the number of scheduled auctions will progressively rise as spring progresses and vendor confidence lifts on healthier housing market conditions.”</p></div></div></div></div></div>

Clearances rates across the major markets of Sydney and Melbourne have picked up momentum amid a surge in auction listings.

Investor options in Covid-19 economy Australia as property prices fall in suburban areas and auction rates drop.

<div class="row" data-reactroot=""><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>Investors are looking at their options with homes pulled off the market, leases extended and auction clearance rates dropping in-line with Covid-19 economic uncertainty.</p><p>Forty per cent of auctions were pulled from the market and clearance rates dropped to 51.4 per cent on the weekend according to Corelogic.</p><p>Buyers and sellers were <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/caution-urged-as-house-prices-start-to-fall">urged to be cautious </a>by the industry with vendors postponing sales, tightened bank lending, rising unemployment and a fear of “knee-jerk” transactions.</p><p>Announcements from the government further clouded the real estate market with landlords expected to give rent relief.</p><p>However wage subsidies and loan deferrals could ease their economic burden and the Australian share market rallied 7 per cent at the close of business Monday.</p><p>Domain senior research analyst Nicola Powell said sellers and landlords were weighing their options and what to do next in a downward market.</p><p>“We have seen new [for sale] listings start to trend lower, indicating vendors are taking a cautious approach as the economic outlook is uncertain,” Powell said.</p><p>“We are also seeing a lift in rental listings.</p><p>“Investors that had their properties as short term leases are now opting for longer leases because we’ve seen a dive in tourist numbers.</p><p>“A lot of overseas travellers have also decided to go home and left their accommodations.”</p><p>Powell said there was a massive sweeping change that affected the real estate market last week.</p><p>“From the announcement that happened mid last week a lot of auctions shifted to private treaty,” Powell said.</p><p>“Of those going on auction on 28 March [listed on Domain] we saw a 54.7 per cent change. Only 10.3 per cent  went to virtual auctions.</p><p>“Three per cent of auctions were brought forward to before those [social distancing restriction] changes came into place.”</p><p>The government <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/shopping-malls-stay-open-auctions-banned-">imposed restrictions</a> which banned real estate auctions and open-for-inspections starting March 28.</p><p>It was set to be the busiest week of the year but the disruption saw only 2,599 actions go ahead from the originally scheduled 3,203 across combined capital cities according to Corelogic.</p><p>Related: <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/prime-minister-hotel-quarantine-arrivals-coronavirus">Prime Minister Orders Hotel Quarantine for Arrivals</a></p></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><hr/></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><h2><strong>Auction clearance rates</strong></h2></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><table><thead><tr><th>City</th><th>Clearance Rate</th><th>Auctions</th><th>Clearance rate last year</th><th>Auctions last year</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><th>Sydney</th><th>47.3%</th><th>1,273</th><th>54.3%</th><th>801</th></tr><tr><th>Melbourne</th><th>58.6%</th><th>1,517</th><th>52.1%</th><th>978</th></tr><tr><th>Brisbane</th><th>32.5%</th><th>184</th><th>33.5%</th><th>195</th></tr><tr><th>Adelaide</th><th>28.1%</th><th>111</th><th>40.9%</th><th>24</th></tr><tr><th>Perth</th><th>30%</th><th>30</th><th>40.9%</th><th>24</th></tr><tr><th>Canberra</th><th>64.7%</th><th>90</th><th>39.6%</th><th>57</th></tr><tr><th>Tasmania</th><th>NA</th><th>8</th><th>NA</th><th>3</th></tr><tr><th>Combined</th><th>51.4%</th><th>3,203</th><th>50.9%</th><th>2,164</th></tr></tbody></table></div></div></div><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p><sup>Source: Corelogic Market Activity 29 March 2020</sup></p><p>The Corelogic analysts said the surge in withdrawn auctions was anticipated, considering the rising level of uncertainty and the shift towards remote auctions. </p><p>“Considering the rapid transition to <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/make-use-of-technology-auctions-open-homes-in-coronavirus-shut-down">on-line auction formats</a>, some agents reported technical challenges and connectivity issues; no doubt many of these challenges will be resolved with the benefit of more time to prepare,” they said.</p><p>“We also saw a surge in the proportion of properties sold prior to auction, lifting from 22 per cent of the preliminary collection last week to 36 per cent this week.” </p><p>Overall they expected a substantial drop in new property listings, regardless of the selling method, as buyers and sellers retreat to the sidelines and wait for some certainty to return to their decision making.</p></div></div></div></div></div>

Investors are looking at their options, homes pulled off the market and auction clearance rates dropping in-line with COVID-19 economic uncertainty

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<div class="row" data-reactroot=""><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="row ci"><div class="cell cs12 cx12"><div class="ci cl"><p>While much has been made of Australia’s $7 trillion housing market <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/australias-property-price-growth-in-2020-domain">bottoming out</a> in 2019, strong auction results, improving access to finance and interest rate cuts has prompted forecasts that the trough may be brought forward. </p><p>Despite the winter real estate listing blues, the trend of strong auction results is a positive sign that buyer confidence has returned to the market. </p><p>Corelogic’s first auction clearance rate results since the Reserve Bank slashed <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/reserve-bank-cuts-interest-rate-to-1pc-in-july-meeting">interest rates</a> to record lows were published over the weekend, with Sydney surging to 78.2 per cent — up from 50.1 per cent the same time last year.</p><p>While low volumes remain a point of concern, clearance rates maintained upward momentum: 945 capital city auctions returned a 68.9 per cent clearance rate, the fourth consecutive week above 60 per cent. Melbourne recorded a 70.3 per cent clearance rate across 388 auctions this week.</p><p>The pick up in clearance rates, along with cash rate cuts and the loosening of home lending <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/apra-relaxes-home-lending-rules">rules</a> should help support house prices, Domain economist Trent Wiltshire said.</p><p>Wiltshire predicts house prices will bottom out in spring. </p><p>“Over the six months to December 2019, house and unit prices are forecast to grow by 1 per cent,” Wiltshire said.</p><p>“In 2020, we predict house prices to grow by 2 to 4 per cent and unit prices to grow by about 1 to 3 per cent.”</p><p>Ratings agency Moody’s has also improved its residential market <a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/brace-for-impact-we-are-nearing-the-bottom">outlook</a>, with economist Katrina Ell predicting a third quarter market trough.</p><p>“Expectations of further lending reductions flowing on from RBA cash rate reductions will also breathe life into the property market and add weight to our view that the national housing market will reach a trough in the third quarter of 2019 and gradually improve thereafter,” Ell said.</p><p>The relaxing of the key lending rule, confirmed by APRA<a href="https://theurbandeveloper.com/articles/apra-relaxes-home-lending-rules"> last week</a>, will boost borrowers capacity by up to 14 per cent by some estimations. </p><p>Lenders will now have the freedom to set their own serviceability buffers, so long as they apply a 2.5 per cent minimum. </p><p>While the actions of APRA and cash rate cuts will go someway to offsetting the house price crunch, AMP economist Shane Oliver <a href="https://twitter.com/ShaneOliverAMP/status/1147441209121493000?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet">points out</a> it is unlikely to set off another housing market boom.</p><p>“The cut should also help the housing market find its bottom, however it’s unlikely to set off another [boom] due to household debt being substantially higher than in the past, tighter bank lending standards and the chance of rising unemployment.” </p></div></div></div></div></div>

While much has been made of Australia’s $7 trillion housing market bottoming out in 2019, strong auction results improving access to finance and tax..

AUCTION CLEARANCE RESULTS