Combined capitals clearance rate rises to 58.5%, its strongest in 19 weeks

The preliminary combined capitals clearance rate increased by 5.8 percentage points last week, reaching 58.5%, which represented the strongest result in 19 weeks. This improvement followed a period of relatively low rates. Throughout the same 19-week period, the preliminary rate remained below 60% and was significantly lower than the rate recorded a year earlier, when 69.0% of homes sold at auction.

The increase in clearance rate occurred alongside higher auction volumes, with 1,594 capital city homes taken to auction. Auction numbers rose by 11.4% compared to the previous week but remained 33.6% lower than the same period last year, marking the fifth consecutive week with a decline in excess of 30% on the previous year. This decline is attributed to fewer new listings and a greater proportion of vendors choosing to sell by private treaty rather than at auction while clearance rates remain subdued.

Melbourne held 45% of all auctions, with 713 homes going under the hammer. That was an 8.7% rise on two weeks ago but 42.5% down on a year ago, the largest drop of any capital against the same week in 2025. At 63.3%, Melbourne's preliminary clearance rate was a 24 week high and the strongest across the capitals.

Sydney's preliminary clearance rate rose 1.9 percentage points to 59.6%, its highest result in 19 weeks. The city held 557 auctions, an increase of 11.2% on two weeks ago, though still 32.8% below the level of a year earlier.

Brisbane held more auctions than a year ago, with 168 in total, up 15.9% over the year and 28.2 % on the previous week. The preliminary clearance rate increased sharply to 41.6%, the highest early result in four weeks and 16.8 percentage points above lasts week’s 24.8%. That said, it remained around 28 percentage points below the 69.7% recorded a year ago, and Brisbane still finished below every other capital.

In Adelaide, 78 homes were taken to auction, representing a rough 17% decrease from the previous week and a 20.4% decline compared to the same period last year. At 55.6%, the preliminary clearance rate was 21 percentage points above the 34.5% recorded two weeks earlier. There were 57 auctions held in the ACT, up from 35 two weeks ago but down almost 28% on the volume a year ago. The preliminary clearance rate came in at 46.9%, up 10.2 percentage points.

Auction volumes are expected to rise as the spring season advances, although they are likely to remain lower than the levels recorded last year. Approximately 1,930 homes are scheduled for auction this week, with the number projected to decrease to around 1,510 next week due to the AFL Grand Final long weekend in Victoria.