Melbourne Property News Monthly Wrap – September 2015

September holds strong. Clearance rates ease.

In September’s four weekends there were in excess of 3703 auctions reported to the Real Estate Institute of Victoria (REIV). More than 2780 sales were recorded. Approximately 923 properties passed in, 381 of those on a vendor bid. The clearance rate for September was 74.5%.

September produced high auction numbers with the last three weekends each having just under one thousand homes under the hammer. The averaged clearance rate dipped a bit from recent monthly highs, which can be seen as moderating rather than a significant drop. Closer analysis shows the inner city unit market clearance rate of just 55% dragged down Melbourne metro’s overall performance. The large volume of homes presented for sale is also a factor in softened clearance rates, with buyers having more choice and sellers having more competition. The recently introduced investor lending regulations have also had an effect.

Looking further afield, Sydney’s market produced the highest ever number of auctions held on September’s last Saturday (984) but delivered its lowest clearance rate in 3 years, at 69.4%.

A notable auction this month (September 19) saw a family home in Glen Waverley sell for 6 million, based on its very large 1538 sqm block size – about twice as big as its neighbours. The owner, a developer, bought the block in April this year for 4.71 million and turned it around with a 1.29 million profit. However rumour has it the sale has since fallen through.

Although the average new home block size in Melbourne today is around 400 sqm, back in 1900 the average new home block in the East was around 1200 sqm. If you have one of these and you’re still alive, you’ve hit the jackpot!

The Spring auction market will take a break next weekend with Saturday’s AFL Grand Final. Just 50 auctions are listed at this point. The weekend after that kicks back into gear with almost 1200 auctions.

Craig Knudsen
Principal Advisor
Vendor Marketing

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