Red hot Sydney market smashes auction records

The Sydney home auction market has commenced the year with a stunning performance by smashing monthly records for both clearance rates and the number of auctions listed.

Sydney recorded a remarkable clearance rate of 81.0 per cent over February which was the highest rate ever reported by the city for that month.

The clearance rate record was achieved despite Sydney hosting its highest ever number of February auctions with 2748 listed and well ahead of the previous peak of 2594 set in 2015.

Although the Sydney auction market reported new monthly records for clearance rates and volumes, the median auction sale price over February increased by just 2.5 per cent to $1,230,000 compared to February last year.

Sydney sellers have surged into the auction market this year keen to take advantage of the continuing strong buyer competition for property. Auction numbers are up by 645 for an increase of 30.7 per cent over the first two months of the year compared to the same period last year.

The top Sydney regions for auction clearance rates over February were the lower north with 92.3 per cent and the inner west with 86.5 per cent. The lowest regional results were recorded by the west and the south west each with 61.5 per cent, and the Blue Mountains at 60.0 per cent.

The top performing Sydney suburbs for auction activity for houses over February were Baulkham Hills, Epping, Hornsby and Marrickville that each recorded 100 per cent clearance rates from 9 listings.

The top performing suburbs for units over February were Darlinghurst, Lane Cove and Mosman that each recorded 100 per cent clearance rates from 11 listings.

Dr Andrew Wilson is Domain Group Chief Economist Twitter@DocAndrewWilson join on LinkedIn and Facebook at My Housing Market