The 2023 auction market is slowly ramping up with 706 capital city homes taken to auction this week

AUCTiON activity is slowly ramping up, with 706 homes taken to auction across the combined capital cities this week, 180.2% higher than the previous week (252), although -39.5% lower than the same week last year when auction activity picked up earlier than usual (1,166). There have been 453 results collected so far, returning a preliminary auction clearance rate of 67.9%, although the final clearance rate will likely revise lower once the remaining results are collected.

There were 259 homes taken to auction across Melbourne this week, up substantially from the previous week (71), although lower than this time last year (394). Of the 186 results collected so far, 68.3% reported a successful result.

Over the same week last year, 67.5% of auctions were successful.

In Sydney, 202 homes were taken to auction this week, up from just 56 last week. Of the 134 results collected so far, 71.6% were successful. This time last year, 331 auctions were held across the city, with 66.3% of reported auctions returning a successful result.

Across the smaller capital cities, Adelaide recorded the highest preliminary auction clearance rate (76.8%), followed by Brisbane (59.6%) and Canberra (52.2%).

Adelaide was the busiest auction market (105), followed by Brisbane (98) and

Canberra (36), while Perth and Tasmania were host to just three auctions each this week.

Clearance rates were trending lower through December, with the average clearance rate coming in at 54.7%. While the preliminary clearance rate has come in relatively strong this week, we will likely see it revise lower as the remaining results are collected. The number of homes taken to auction will continue to rise over the coming weeks, with over 1,300 auctions expected to be held next week across the combined capitals, which will provide clarity on whether buyer confidence has increased.

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