Sydney auction market has worst start to spring since 2012

Sydney’s auction market has had its worst start to the spring selling season since 2012 with the local market clearly running out of puff over the last month.

Sydney reported a clearance rate of 67.1 per cent on Saturday which was down again on the 67.9 per cent recorded the previous weekend and well below the strong 80 per cent reported over the same weekend last year.

Saturday’s result was the third consecutive decline in weekend rates and the lowest first weekend of spring auction clearance rate recorded since the 63.9 per cent for September 1, 2012 – five years ago.

Auction numbers were also lower at the weekend with 649 listed compared to the previous weekend’s 674 but higher than the 537 auctioned over the same weekend last year. Auction numbers will be higher next weekend with around 675 homes set to go under the hammer.

Sydney recorded a median auction price of $1,271,000 on Saturday which was higher than the $1,200,000 reported the previous weekend and just above the $1,270,000 recorded over the same weekend last year.

A total of $347.3 million worth of property was reported sold at auction in Sydney at the weekend.

Low and falling interest rates have been a key catalyst that has driven the Sydney home auction market over the past five years. Official rates however have now remained at current levels for over a year with the Reserve Bank unlikely to change its recent stance of steady rates over September when it meets next week.

Despite recently declining auction clearance rates, Sydney remains an undersupplied housing market and is likely to continue as such into the foreseeable future.

• Related: Click here for Saturday’s auction results
• Related: Click here for the Market Snapshot
• Related: North Sydney cottage sells for $2.6m

Latest ABS building approval data for July reveals that the number of houses approved for building over the first seven months of this year remains lower than recorded over the same period last year with the number of unit approvals down sharply by 13.2 per cent or 3059 fewer on the same this year to date comparisons.

Inner-suburban, higher priced regions continue to generally produce the best suburban results in Sydney, but clearance rates in those areas are now consistently lower than recorded over autumn and the early winter market.

After recent mixed results, Canterbury Bankstown was a surprise regional leader with a robust clearance rate of 75.8 per cent followed by the city and east 74.6 per cent, the south 74.4 per cent, the northern beaches 73.5 per cent, the upper north shore 68.7 per cent, the inner west 67.7 per cent.

The lower north was sharply down this weekend with just 63.3 per cent followed by the west at 60 per cent, the central coast 58.3 per cent, the north west 53.6 per cent and the south west with a clearance rate of 45.5 per cent.

Notable sales reported at the weekend included:

• A four-bedroom home at 7 Strickland Avenue, Lindfield sold for $3,742,000 by McConnell Bourn Lindfield;
• Another four-bedroom home at 7 The Scarp, Castlecrag sold for $3.4 million by PhillipsPantzer Donnelley;
• A four-bedroom home at 31 Newton Road, Strathfield sold for $3,390,000 by Belle Property Strathfield;
• A five-bedroom home at 11 Dobroyd Road, Balgowlah Heights sold for $3,250,000 by Stone Real Estate Seaforth;
• And a three-bedroom unit at 2/115 Brook Street, Coogee sold for $3 million by BresicWhitney.

The most expensive house reported sold at auction was a four-bedroom home at 73 Newton Road, Strathfield sold for $5.5 million by Devine Real Estate. The most affordable property reported sold at the weekend was a three-bedroom home at 41 Highview Avenue, San Remo sold for $472,500 by Sorensen Real Estate.