Auction volumes edge up slightly amid prolonged Sydney lockdown

Melbourne continues to dominate as Sydney remains in lockdown, with 1,085 homes set to go under the hammer this week – up from last week’s 1,097 and over double the 506 auctions held at the same time last year.

Sydney, on the other hand, is set to see a much lower 797 auctions following the state government’s decision to extend the lockdown by another week. This figure is, however, slightly higher than last week’s 756 and last year’s 566.

But despite lower volumes, CoreLogic’s research analyst, Jade Harling, said Sydney remains a strong auction market.

“The city is still seeing a considerable number of auctions take place, with 12 per cent of auctions last week rescheduled to a later date.”

The smaller capital cities continue to anticipate significantly fewer auctions, with Brisbane at 170, Adelaide at 112, Canberra at 85, Perth at 16 and Tasmania at six.

Of the capital cities, only Adelaide saw a decline in scheduled auctions week-on-week, while Perth remained stable.

Last week’s results

The final auction clearance rate across the combined capital cities declined in the week ending 4 July, as several cities found themselves in the midst of a lockdown.

CoreLogic revealed a final auction clearance rate of 72.1 per cent out of 2,168 homes taken to auction – decreasing from the previous week’s 75.4 per cent out of a higher 2,960 auctions.

Canberra was most successful, with the highest final clearance rate of 87.9 per cent resulting from 66 auctions.

Adelaide followed with 78 per cent out of 128 auctions, then Melbourne with 73.1 out of 1,073 auctions, Sydney with 70.5 per cent out of 756 auctions, Brisbane with 63.3 per cent out of 128 auctions, and Perth with 33.3 per cent out of 15 auctions.