Listings are beginning to pick up across the country, ahead of the typically busy spring season.
The PropTrack Listings Report August 2022, found listings across the country jumped 9.9 per cent in August, capping off the busiest winter for new listings in five years.
The surge in properties hitting the market, saw new listings up 20 per cent compared to the same time last year when Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra were in lockdown.
PropTrack Economist and report author, Angus Moore said activity ramped up in August ahead of the spring selling season.
“New listings nationally on realestate.com.au were 9.9 per cent higher month-on-month in August, continuing the busier-than-usual activity the property market has experienced this winter,” Mr Moore said.
“Despite the pick-up, selling conditions have tempered from their very strong levels earlier in the year.
“Measures of buyer demand have moderated, it is taking longer to sell homes, and auction clearance rates have fallen.”
All capital cities saw more new listings in August than in July, with Sydney (16.1 per cent), Melbourne (13 per cent) and Hobart (17.2 per cent) seeing the biggest month-on-month upticks.
While Brisbane (7.1 per cent), Adelaide (8.1 per cent), Perth (7.1 per cent), Darwin (8.1 per cent) and Canberra (6.2 per cent) all experienced more modest monthly increases in new listings.
Regional markets also began to bloom ahead of spring, with new listings picking up 7.9 per cent in August compared to July.
The busier month for new listings helped lift the total stock of properties listed for sale nationally by 3.9 per cent month-on-month.
This brought total listings up by 13.7 per cent compared to August 2021, the largest year-on year increase since 2010.
Mr Moore said a notable change heading into this spring compared to last year is that buyers have more properties to choose from.
“The wave of new supply coming to market over the first half of the year, coupled with longer sales times, has lifted the stock available on market and helped make conditions a bit less competitive for buyers,” he said.
“Sydney, Melbourne, and Canberra all have levels of total stock available for sale around or above their prior decade average.
“And even in Brisbane and Adelaide, where choice has been limited for some time, there are signs that conditions are improving.”
According to Mr Moore, the wave of new listings and tighter monetary policy is putting downward pressure on home prices.
“Home prices have continued to decline in most cities after growth hit multi-decade highs in 2021,” he said.
“The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has continued to raise interest rates at a brisk pace, with a fifth consecutive interest rate rise in September, which has brought the cash rate up more than two percentage points in just five months.”
“The RBA is likely to continue raising rates over the course of 2022, which will reduce borrowing capacities for prospective buyers and place greater downward pressure on prices in the near term.”
Mr Moore said that the property market remains fundamentally strong, despite the recent weakness in prices.
“While market conditions have changed, the fundamental drivers of demand remain strong, with unemployment very low, wages growth expected to pick up over this year, and international migration increasing,” he said.
“With that in mind, we’d expect to see activity pick up over the next few months as we head into the typically seasonally busy spring season.”
