Spring auctions defy lockdown gloom

Australia’s housing market continues to defy its sceptics, with another bullish week of sales.

Auctioneer Paul Wright with agent Luis Garza, during a virtual auction at the Ray White office in Oatlands. Picture: Tim Hunter.

The housing market continued to defy sceptics at the weekend, with another bullish week of spring auction clearance rates despite rising Covid-19 case numbers and lockdown restrictions.

Preliminary results released by CoreLogic showed 72.3 per cent of homes sent to auction at the weekend cleared, with 1207 out of 1591 properties selling across the nation’s capital cities.

Despite Sydney’s stay-at-home restrictions entering their 12th week, the city continued to lead the way, notching up its seventh consecutive week of preliminary clearance rates above 80 per cent, with 84 per cent of 593 auctions resulting in a sale.

My Housing Market chief economist Andrew Wilson said Sydneysiders had adapted to the uncertainty of lockdown restrictions, with few signs the market was cooling off. “In Melbourne … clearances remain hostage to restrictions but in Sydney it’s a different story and buyers and sellers have been quick to adjust.”

Stone Real Estate principal director Marize Bellomo – who sold three one-bedroom apartments on Sydney’s lower north shore at the weekend for close to $1m each – said “everyone knows the market is distorted by heightened ­prices, it’s just a question of making the most of it before demand eases”.

In Melbourne, more than 500 auctions were held throughout the week, up 16 per cent on last week’s figures and more than double this time last year. Of 320 results collected to Sunday afternoon, 54.4 per cent were successfully cleared.

At auction, Adelaide came out on top as the “busiest of the small capital cities”, with a preliminary clearance rate of 88 per cent, while Brisbane was solid, with more than 191 auctions held in the week.

In Canberra, auctions achieved a clearance rate of 69.4 per cent.