Australia’s housing market experiences its busiest spring for listings since 2015, says PropTrack

Homeowners are flooding the housing market with new listings at the fastest rate for the peak spring selling season in almost a decade.

The housing market has had the busiest September for new listings since 2015. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

Australia’s property market is in the middle of its busiest spring selling season in almost a decade and listings are set to peak over the coming weeks.

It’s a win for buyers who have been starved for choice in recent years.

Data from PropTrack shows national new listing volumes in September were the strongest they have been in any month since February 2024, up 2.8 per cent, and it was the strongest September for new listings since 2015.

Nationally new listing volumes were up 10.1 per cent year on year and 13.7 per cent year on year in the capital cities. The period from September through until the end of November is regarded as the busiest period of the year for listings with both buyers and sellers looking to finalise transactions before Christmas.

PropTrack economic research director Cameron Kusher told The Australian that a combination of a delay in interest rates, a turning rental market which was making it easier to find temporary accommodation in between buying and selling, along with many looking to deploy equity were the driving forces behind the increase in new property listings.

“Many had expected that we would have interest rates by the end of the year which is now unlikely. It is possibly that many homeowners have overcapitalised and are at the point where selling seems like the best answer,” he said.

“We are also seeing people who have gained a substantial amount of equity in the past few years and are now looking to deploy that to upgrade or find a new home that meets their current needs.”

New listings in Sydney and Melbourne were the highest for a September since 2015, in Brisbane it was the highest for the month of September since 2018 and in Canberra it was the highest for any September since 2004.

“Nationally it is very balanced between buyers and sellers. Melbourne is the strongest buyer’s market and Sydney is leaning towards that now,” Mr Kusher said.

“While the other cities still favour sellers, that needle has moved away from where it has been in the last few years.”

The rebound in listings comes after a poor period of activity between 2022 and 2023 when the Reserve Bank undertook a series of rapid-fire rate rises which lifted the cash rate from 0.1 per cent in May 2022 to 4.35 per cent in November.

PropTrack economic research director Cameron Kusher.

The sharp uplift in new property listings has helped to slow down growth in property values and the auction clearance rate, which recorded its lowest level of 55 per cent since December 2022. Mr Kusher said buyers no longer felt a sense of urgency given the increase in supply which was helping to reduce the fear of missing out (FOMO) factor.

“Buyers can be more selective and when bidding at auction many now feel that if they don’t get that property or it goes above their price point then there is the luxury of other ones up for sale, or that will come to market that are more aligned to their budget,” he said.

“October is likely to top September for listings growth, but it will then begin to taper off a little bit into November. While November still has strong listing volumes it does slow down as we head towards December.”

Mr Kusher said it was unclear what impact a rate cut would have on the housing market, adding that it was likely to bring more buyers out of the woodwork given many would have increased budgets or the ability to reduce mortgage repayments which in turn could tempt more sellers than current levels.

PropTrack this month reported that national home prices lifted 0.04 per cent to a new peak in September, taking total gains in the past year to 5.67 per cent driven by Perth, Adelaide and Brisbane.

Sydney had flat growth for the month with the median dwelling value at $1.1m, while Brisbane further extended its run as the second most expensive capital at $855,000, while Perth took the total annual gain past 22 per cent to $754,000.