Melbourne Property News Monthly Wrap – January 2015

2014 – the strongest year on record. What are the trends looking forward?

December 2014 saw in excess of 3170 auctions reported to the Real Estate Institute of Victoria (REIV), with more than 2165 sales recorded. Approximately 1005 properties were passed in, 467 of those on a vendor bid.

At 66%, the December clearance rate was down on Spring’s average of close to 70%. However it’s worth noting activity in late December eases, as attention turns to Christmas and holiday activities.

2014 was our strongest year on record for the residential auction market recording more than 40,300 auctions and 28,500 sales, which was 17% higher than 2013. There were 15 weekends with more than 1000 auctions. Overall we had record breaking auction numbers and record breaking prices.

Interest rate stability also contributed to buyer confidence which should carry momentum forward for 2015. The cash rate has held at 2.5% (a record low) since August 2013, adding further impetus. Leading economists do not expect the RBA to lift rates until late 2015 and some opinion even predicts a possible cut in rates.

Other trends that emerged clearly was the overseas buyer factor, which delivered higher than expected sale prices for some. A classic example of this was reflected on December’s final weekend with a modest Glen Waverley home selling for $2,055,000. This result could also be indicative of how top performing schools can play their part in significantly increasing local property prices.

On the other hand these higher than expected sale results also created unrealistic expectations for some vendors at the top end.

Turning our attention to 2015, the Melbourne property market will spring to life with significant numbers of homes going to auction on the final 2 weekends of February.

Craig Knudsen
Principal Advisor
Vendor Marketing

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