Canberra auction market bounces back as house prices rise

The Canberra weekend home auction market bounced back at the weekend recording a strong mi-winter result for sellers following a fortnight of weaker results.

Canberra recorded a clearance rate of 72.4 percent on Saturday which was sharply higher than the 62.5 per cent reported over the previous weekend but lower than the 75.9 per cent recorded over the same weekend last year.

36 homes were listed to go under the hammer at the weekend which was the same as auctioned last weekend but higher again than the 29 listed over the same weekend last year. Next weekend auction numbers will be similar to this weekend’s listings with 37 auctions again scheduled.

Tuggeranong and Woden Valley reported the highest clearance rates at the weekend with 100 per cent results.  Next highest were Belconnen, Canberra Central and Gungahlin each with 66.7 per cent auction clearance rates followed by Weston Creek where the one reported auction failed to sell under the hammer.

Notable sales reported at the weekend included a  5  bedroom home at 15 Quinane  Avenue Forde sold by McGrath Estate Agents for  $2,035,000, a  4  bedroom home at 47 Frome  Street Griffith sold for  $1,600,000 by LJ Hooker Canberra City, a  3  bedroom home at 22 Norman  Street Deakin sold by Belle Property Kingston for  $1,408,000, a  4  bedroom home at 27 Flanagan  Street Garran sold for  $1,355,000 by Peter Blackshaw Real and another  4  bedroom home at 92 Jervois  Street Deakin sold for  $1,351,000 by Luton Properties – Manuka.

The most expensive property reported sold at auction was a  4  bedroom home at 5 Moresby  Street Forrest sold for  $4,220,000 by Peter Blackshaw Real Estate. The most affordable property reported sold at the weekend was a  2  bedroom home at 7/49 Postle  Circuit Holt sold for  $300,000 by LJ Hooker Belconnen.

For a list of Canberra auction results click here Canberra auction results July 22

Canberra recorded a median auction price of $807,500 on Saturday which slightly lower than the $810,000 reported over the previous weekend but 7.7 per cent higher than the $750,000 recorded over the same weekend last year. A total of $22.1m was reported sold at auction in Canberra at the weekend.

The Canberra housing market continues to strengthen and has now clearly emerged as a top performing capital city

Latest Domain data reveals that the local market produced a strong result over the June quarter with the median house price increasing by 3.9 per cent to a new record peak of $723,299. Canberra house prices have now risen by $59,166 over the past year – an increase of 8.9 per cent.The Canberra June quarter growth rate was the highest recorded by a mainland capital, and well ahead of Sydney which reported an increase of 1.6 per cent.

Although Canberra house prices are rising strongly, unit prices continue to fall reflecting recent high levels of new apartment supply. The June quarter median price fell by 2.9 percent to $403,128 – the sharpest quarterly decline in prices since the September quarter 2004. Canberra unit prices have now fallen by 3.7 percent over the past year and are the lowest since the December quarter 2009 – nearly 8 years ago.

Canberra house prices will likely continue their recent upward trajectory over the reminder of the year fuelled by heady buyer and seller confidence, a solid local economy and rising migration.  The rate of growth however may decline without the fuel of lower interest rates.

Low and falling interest rates have been a key ingredient for rising house prices in Canberra over the past year. The outlook for the national economy has improved recently so the prospect for further rate cuts in the near-term has diminished.

The ABS national jobless rate remained steady at an equal four year low of 5.6 per cent over June and signs continue of a resurgence in fulltime employment. Although optimism is rising, the economy remains fragile and likewise growing speculation of official interest rate increases in the foreseeable future remains fanciful.

Dr Andrew Wilson is Domain Group Chief Economist Twitter@DocAndrewWilson join on LinkedIn and Facebook at MyHousingMarket.