Melbourne Auction Results – 7th December 2015

Has the heat gone out of Melbourne’s property market? Quality suburbs are experiencing some ugly results with agents reporting low clearance rates, some at 50%. One agent describing the market at the moment as a “feast or famine” situation. Peter Sarmas reports on current buying and selling conditions.

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Buyers Have Swapped House Shopping For Christmas Shopping

Another 1650 auctions were reportedly to go under the hammer the past weekend, a bumper for this time of the year. It’s beginning to place enormous pressure on vendors to significantly lower their expectations and get a deal across the line before Christmas and the New Year, traditionally a very quiet period.

The REIV announced a 67% clearance rate from 1236 reported auctions which means 25% of the initial numbers have not been included.

From my experience and talking with real estate agents, it was a tough weekend as the momentum shifted firmly in favour of the buyer rather than seller. Before all the doomsayers jump in and say “I told you so”, the market is still holding up and properties are still selling post auction with the results not being euphoric.

It seems the heat has certainly gone out of the market. Apartments and established units are on the nose and the top end is now beginning to suffer. Quality suburbs are experiencing some ugly results with agents reporting low clearance rates, some at 50%. One agent describing the market at the moment as a “feast or famine” situation. “The properties are either well inspected and 2-3 bidders are fighting out for it on the day or it’s a complete disaster and a no show. Having said that, post auction we are still clearing properties, there are very few properties at the moment not selling or being withdrawn from sale”.

For me it feels like there are two lots of buyers hunting property at the moment. The very serious buyers who need to buy before Christmas and the rest who would “like” to buy but don’t have any pressing need. The latter half appeared to have switched off come December and have focused on buying Christmas gifts or just shopping. If my experience over the weekend is any measure of how retailers are going then we are in for a bumper season.
On a different note the Reserve Bank made the decision last Tuesday to leave the cash rate on hold at 2% and in an attempt to hold their market share, banks have begun offering substantially reduced fixed rate deals.

All in all I feel we are in a steady market with some great buying opportunities at the moment. There is really only one more weekend (12th of this month) before things begin to slowdown to some normality. Cheers!

Top 5 Houses

1. 5 Torresdale Road, Toorak $3,725,000
2. 1227-1229 Malvern Road, Malvern $3,510,000
3. 66 Black Street, Brighton $3,500,000
4. 1 Connor Street, Brighton East $3,200,000
5. 27 Swallow Street, Port Melbourne $2,900,000

Top 5 Bargain Houses

1. 19 Branton Road, Hoppers Crossing $310,000
2. 32 Tatura Crescent, Broadmeadows $322,500
3. 12 Folger Road, Craigieburn $330,000
4. 103 Sunset Boulevard, Jacana $336,000
5. 11 Hesse Court, Westmeadows $355,000

Top 5 Apartments

1. 10A Banksia Avenue, Beaumaris $1,650,000
2. 52A Bayview Street, Williamstown $1,425,000
3. 55A Lahona Avenue, Bentleigh East $1,410,000
4. 2/14 Yerrin Street, Balwyn $1,356,000
5. 1/58 Union Road, Surrey Hills $1,310,000

Top 5 Bargain Apartments

1. 7/13 Ormond Road, West Footscray $188,000
2. 22/15 Mcewan Road, Heidelberg Heights $272,500
3. 18/278 Barkly Street, Elwood $285,000
4. 7/139 Napier Street, Essendon $287,000
5. 5/8 Walker Street, Brunswick West $295,000

Source: REIV