20 markets where sellers are doing it tough

Composed of 13 house markets and seven units markets, the ranking was determined by analysing the highest surge in the days on market in the latest three-month period while still experiencing steady buyer demand.

Notably, all suburbs in the list had a three-month increase in average days on market ranging from 15 days as the lowest and 19 days as the highest. 

Among the states, Queensland took the biggest share in the list with 10 suburbs. The unit markets of the suburbs Dicky Beach, Sunnybank, Woorim and Little Mountain entered the top 10 bracket in second, fifth, sixth, and ninth place, respectively. 

Meanwhile, the Sunshine State’s house markets of New Beith (11th), Currumbin (12th), Belgian Gardens (14th), Beechmont (15th), Cooroibah (17th), and Barney Point (19th) also entered the rankings. 

Tasmania followed with four placements, namely the house markets of Beaumaris (3rd), Beaconsfield (10th), Bicheno (13th)  and Bridport (20th). 

While Victoria only secured three spots, the state managed to bag the number one rank across analysed suburbs.

Ballarat Central’s unit market topped the list with a staggering 20-day three-month increase in average days on market, with the average apartment in the suburb now selling for a median of 51 days. 

Other Victorian suburbs to enter the list were the house markets of Eagle Point and Invermay Park at 8th and 18th place, respectively. 

Two NSW suburbs clocked in the list, namely Liberty Grove’s unit market at 7th place and Gulmarrad’s house market at 16th place. 

South Australia’s only entry was Barmera’s house market, coming in at fourth place.  

Openn managing director Peter Gibbons said the data — which is sourced from property research consultancy Suburbtrends and the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) — could help sellers better understand their current market conditions and level their expectations. 

“Pricing a property is incredibly difficult when market conditions shift rapidly. Agents and sellers must carefully consider their pricing and sales strategy as the longer a property is on the market, the less buyers expect to pay,” he stated. 

While the prospects on the selling front look grim, Mr Gibbons offered that there are now a plethora of non-traditional sales methods available to vendors, which can speed up property sales and help achieve the best sales result possible.

Upon analysing five years’ worth of Openn’s data, which included properties sold in a variety of areas and market conditions, Mr Gibbons revealed that vendors experience an average of 22 days on the market when using a digital sales method — a figure that consistently outperformed national trends. 

“By allowing more buyers to participate and providing a more transparent experience, digital sales processes offer vendors a better opportunity to extract the best possible price from the market.

“Buyers want certainty [that] the property is in demand before putting their best offers forward, and social proof is the fastest way to achieve that,” he explained. 

He also unpacked how real-time feedback can help sellers be proactive with their selling process and allow for more confident property decisions. 

“For sellers, they can see offers and bids as they come in and understand how the market is pricing their property from day one, giving them certainty [that] the best result has been achieved,” he said. 

Mr Gibbons also explained how having such information can be advantageous for agents. “While for agents, it creates a defined time frame and speeds up the sale significantly as buyers know their competition is real and they must get involved quickly, or risk missing out,” he said.