Auction activity ramped up last week ahead of March long weekend

It was a solid week of auction activity, with 3,479 homes going under the hammer last week, the largest volume of auctions since the week ending March 24th last year when 3,519 homes went to auction.

The preliminary auction clearance rate held reasonably firm in the face of higher supply, rising nine basis points relative to the previous weeks early result, to 68.9%.

Melbourne hosted the most auctions last week, with 1,838 events held, the highest number of auctions since the week ending 19 December 2021 (2,161). The preliminary clearance rate strengthened to 70.4%, up from 68.1% the week prior. This week will be a lot quieter across the Melbourne auction market due to the long weekend, with around 550 homes scheduled for auction.

1,182 auctions were held across Sydney last week, the highest volume since the last week of November in 2025. The preliminary clearance rate slipped to 65.5%, down from 67.1% two weeks ago and a recent high of 79.6% over the week ending February 8th. This was Sydney’s lowest preliminary clearance rate so far this year.

Brisbane was the busiest auction market among the smaller capitals, with 175 homes taken to auction, the second highest volume so far this year. The early clearance rate came in at 74.8%, a solid result and the highest since the first week of February earlier this year.

137 homes went to auction in Adelaide, with 75.9% reporting a positive result so far.