Auction Clearance Falls for 5th Week as Market Cools

Capital city clearance rates lifted to 45% last week but remained below 50% for a fifth straight week, with Sydney and Melbourne the hardest hit.

Australia's auction market ticked higher last week but failed to break out of a persistent slump, with combined capital city clearance rates lifting 2.7 percentage points to 45% — still marking the fifth straight week that vendors across the major cities could not crack the 50% mark, according to Cotality's latest auction figures.

Of the 1,748 homes that went to auction across the combined capitals, 662 were passed in and 299 were withdrawn. That means roughly 55% of vendors who took their properties to auction last week did not walk away with a sale. The result sits against a backdrop of tightening conditions that accelerated through the back half of June.

Sydney and Melbourne Continue to Lead the Declines

The two largest auction markets remain under the most pressure relative to where they were a year ago.

In Sydney, the clearance rate edged up to 43.1% from 41.7% the previous week — but that figure sits 24.1 percentage points below the 67.2% recorded in the same week last year. Auction volumes were broadly steady at 631, a modest fall from 642 the previous week, though still 18.2% lower than the 771 logged a year earlier. Sydney also recorded the most withdrawals of any capital, with 162 properties pulled before the hammer fell.

Melbourne remains the country's busiest auction market, hosting 807 auctions — 46% of the national total — though that figure was down 12.6% week on week and 16.1% year on year. Its clearance rate improved to 46.6% from 43.6%, but it remains 21.6 percentage points below last year's reading of 68.2%. Melbourne recorded the highest number of pass-ins nationally, at 327.

MPA Australia reports that Cotality economist Annabelle Mezieres read the sustained weakness as more than just seasonal noise. "The consistent downward trend in the weighted average clearance rates across an eight-week period, from 52.4% to 45%, highlights a genuine trend rather than short-term fluctuations," [Mezieres said](https://www.mpamag.com/au/news/general/auction-clearance-rates-edge-higher-but-remain-below-50-for-a-fifth-week/581061).

She connected the auction results directly to the broader pricing data: "The weekly results are consistent with the June Home Value Index (HVI) release, which reported the largest monthly drop since December 2022." Sydney and Melbourne led those monthly price falls, declining 1.2% and 1.0% respectively.

Mezieres described June conditions as particularly difficult for sellers. "June was challenging for sellers, as more than half of auctioned properties did not sell, withdrawal rates were elevated, and clearance rates declined in most capitals. The market ended June with the softest conditions of the reporting period occurring in the second half of the month."

A Mixed Picture Across the Other Capitals

Not every market is struggling equally. Adelaide was the clear standout last week — the only capital to record volume growth both week on week and year on year. Adelaide hosted 116 auctions, up 24.7% from the prior week and 28.9% above year-ago levels. Its clearance rate also rose to 53.4% from 48.4%, making it the only capital to clear the 50% threshold last week.

Brisbane, by contrast, recorded the weakest clearance rate among the capitals at 36.8%, up slightly from 35.4% the week before but well short of the 67.4% posted a year ago. Auction volumes there eased to 136, a 5.6% weekly decline.

Canberra's clearance rate was unchanged at 41.3%, while volumes fell sharply to 46 auctions, down 27.0% week on week and 31.3% below the same week last year. Perth recorded only 12 auctions — three fewer than the prior week — and Tasmania had no auctions for a second consecutive week.

What Softening Auction Results Mean for Buyers and Borrowers

For buyers, a market where vendors are consistently struggling to achieve sales at auction typically creates more room to negotiate. Properties that pass in — and there were 662 of them last week — often proceed to private treaty at or below the quoted range. That kind of flexibility rarely exists in a hot seller's market.

Cotality projects around 1,490 auctions nationally this week, a further 14.6% fall from last week's 1,748, as seasonal winter factors continue to weigh on volumes. A further decline of approximately 13% is forecast for the following week, with Cotality expecting around 1,300 homes to go under the hammer.

For buyers who have been sitting on the sidelines, the combination of higher volumes of unsold stock and motivated vendors can meaningfully improve purchasing outcomes — even if official interest rates haven't moved. Use our [repayment calculator](/calculators/repayment) to understand what your monthly commitments look like at current rates, or explore [what today's cheapest home loans](/home-loans/cheapest) are offering.

First home buyers in particular may find the current conditions more accessible than anything seen in recent years. Auction competition has eased considerably in Sydney and Melbourne since this time last year, and motivated vendors are more open to negotiation. Check out what's available in our [first home buyer hub](/home-loans/first-home-buyer) to get a sense of the schemes, grants, and loan products that may apply to your situation, or use the [LMI calculator](/calculators/lmi) to see how deposit size affects your upfront costs in the current market.