Australia’s auction market hit extraordinary levels at the end of 2021, with over 40,000 properties going under the hammer in the last quarter of the year.
CoreLogic says 42,918 properties went to auction across the combined capital cities in the December 2021 Quarter – an 85% increase on the previous quarter and more than twice as high as the December 2020 Quarter.
CoreLogic head of research Tim Lawless says the December Quarter was particularly active in the auction market as many capital cities came out of extended lockdowns.
“The large number of auctions held through that quarter also reflects the strong selling conditions that were present, which motivated vendors to capitalise on strong buyer demand and the significant rise in values seen through the pandemic,” he says.
Lawless says in the current market buyers are very competitive so auction is proving to be a successful sales method.
Melbourne and Sydney are Australia’s biggest auction markets, with Melbourne recording 19,788 auctions in the December Quarter with a clearance rate of 70% and Sydney 14,906 auctions also with a clearance rate of 70%.
Brisbane had 3,027 auctions with a clearance rate of 75%, Adelaide 2,902 auctions with a clearance rate of 80% and Canberra 1949 auctions with a clearance rate of 82%.