Final Clearance Rates – week ending 16 August 2026

Final Clearance Rates – week ending 16 August 2026

Clearance rate eases back into the 40s after reaching a 12-week high of 51.4% the previous week

A total of 1,276 auctions were held across the combined capital cities last week, 7.7% fewer than the 1,382 held the previous week and 33.6% fewer than the 1,921 held in the same week a year earlier.

The weighted average final clearance rate was 48.9%, down 2.5 percentage points from the previous week’s 12-week high of 51.4%. This was 20.9 percentage points below the 69.8% recorded a year ago and points to a subdued market, with fewer than half of reported auctions resulting in a sale.

Melbourne hosted 588 auctions last week, down 10.8% from 659 the previous week, while its clearance rate eased by 3.9 percentage points, from 56.8% to 52.9%. Sydney’s auction volume changed only slightly, from 410 to 412, but its clearance rate fell more sharply, declining 4.4 percentage points from 51.5% to 47.1%. Both cities remain well below their year-ago levels: in the equivalent week last year, Melbourne held 932 auctions with a clearance rate of 69.1%, while Sydney held 705 auctions with its clearance rate finalising at roughly 71.7%.

Among the smaller capitals, clearance rates varied amid broadly lower volumes. Canberra had the highest clearance rate of any capital last week, at 53.5%, up 6.7 percentage points, albeit from only 43 auctions. Adelaide’s clearance rate improved by 4.4 percentage points to 51.2% across 84 auctions.

Brisbane’s clearance rate was relatively stable at 35.9%, up only 0.5 percentage points, but remained the weakest among the larger markets, with 142 auctions held. Perth’s clearance rate rose from 22.2% to 33.3%, although the result was based on only nine auctions, limiting its significance. Tasmania held no auctions in either week of 2026, compared with one auction in the equivalent week last year.

Compared with the same week last year, auction results were considerably weaker on both measures. The weighted average clearance rate was 20.9 percentage points lower, at 48.9% compared with 69.8%, while volumes fell by around a third, from 1,921 to 1,276. The annual weakness was concentrated in Melbourne and Sydney, where both auction volumes and clearance rates declined sharply. These results align with the broader softening in housing conditions through 2026. The cash rate has been held at 4.35%, borrowing capacity remains constrained, national dwelling values have fallen in recent months, affordability remains stretched and buyer demand is subdued.

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Auction Market Preview – week ending 23 August 2026

Scheduled auction volumes rise week-on-week while remaining well below year-ago levels

Across the combined capital cities, 1,416 homes are scheduled to go under the hammer this week. The scheduled total is 11.0% higher than the 1,276 auctions held over the previous week, but 31.5% below the 2,066 auctions held in the equivalent week a year ago.

Of the 1,416 capital city auctions scheduled this week, roughly 1,125 are scheduled for Saturday, close to four in five. The remaining 291 are spread across weekdays and Sunday.

Melbourne accounts for the largest share of the coming week’s activity, with 565 auctions scheduled. This is 3.9% fewer than the 588 auctions held last week and 42.6% below the year-ago total of 985. Sydney has 526 auctions scheduled, representing the largest weekly increase among the capitals: up 116 auctions, or 28.3%, from the previous week. However, Sydney remains 27.8% below the 729 auctions held in the same week last year.

Canberra’s increase from 43 to 67 scheduled auctions is the largest proportional weekly rise of any capital. Nevertheless, scheduled volumes remain 10.7% below the 75 recorded in the same week last year. Brisbane, with 153 auctions scheduled, and Adelaide, with 92, are up modestly on last week by 7.7% and 9.5%, respectively, but both remain slightly below their 2025 totals. Perth and Tasmania have 12 and one auction scheduled, respectively.

Although most capitals have recorded weekly increases in auction volumes, the year-on-year shortfall is concentrated in two cities. Melbourne has 420 fewer auctions than a year ago and Sydney has 203 fewer; together, they account for most of the decline from 2,066 auctions last year to 1,416 this week.

Cotality expects auction volumes to rise to approximately 1,550 over the coming week before declining to around 1,300 in the week ending 6th September.

Please see the PDF attached which includes a summary of last week’s clearance rates by sub-region.