The Canberra suburbs where the majority of houses sell via auction

If you bought a free-standing house in Hackett or Campbell recently, it’s highly likely you purchased the property at auction.  

Domain data shows in the 12 months to July 2018 the proportion of houses sold at auction in Hackett was 57.8 per cent, and for Campbell 56.4 per cent.

Domain Research House conducted a nationwide analysis of the most popular suburbs for auction in both the housing and unit market. 

Campbell and Hackett were the only two suburbs outside of the NSW and Victoria to place in the top 20 for the proportion of houses sold under the hammer in suburbs with more than 10 sales. 

Domain senior research analyst Dr Nicola Powell said the Inner North suburbs’ position in the list was reflective of the level of demand.

“The property types that tend to be selling at auction are the ones that offer an opportunity to renovate or knockdown,” she said.

“Both Campbell and Hackett have had a high number of knockdown rebuilds, particularly Hackett, which offers buyers an opportunity to purchase in an established suburb with no heritage restrictions.”

She said “Hackett has all the earmarks of gentrification”.

“In five years’ time, Hackett will be a very different property landscape, and will experience a wave of change with the introduction of light rail,” Dr Powell said.

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In 2017, Hackett was one of the most popular suburbs for dual occupancy development applications.

Campbell is one of the territory’s most expensive suburbs, and its median house price currently sits at $1.179 million. Dr Powell said its position drives a lot of competition.

“The demand in Campbell is being driven by families looking to buy a home on a sizeable block,” she said.

“The active buyer segments in Canberra are the upsizing market – anybody looking for their second or third home and Campbell ticks a lot of boxes in terms of what it offers.” 

Last week, Domain data revealed 32.4 per cent of houses in Canberra sold under the hammer over the past year. The Inner North had the greatest proportion of houses sold at auction at 49 per cent.