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Australia’s biggest property markets are warming ahead of spring, with both Sydney and Melbourne busier than usual for July.
While national property market activity was a little quieter in July, Sydney and Melbourne bucked the trend with more new listings hitting the mid-winter market than has been typical over the past decade.
That meant there was positive year-on-year growth in new listings in both cities for the first time since spring 2022. In most other capitals and regional areas activity remained slower than last year.
Buyers had slightly more choice in July, with the total number of properties available for sale across the country edging up 0.4% compared to June, though the market overall remains a bit tighter than a year ago. For buyers in Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra and Hobart, the total number of properties listed for sale is reasonably high, sitting at, or within 10%, of the average over the prior decade. In other capitals, choice remains tighter. This is particularly true in Perth, where the total number of properties hit a fresh record low in July.
Download the PropTrack Listings Report - July 2023
This monthly report analyses new and total listings on realestate.com.au to provide the most up-to-date view on property market supply trends.
The underlying pace of property market activity started to pick up in Sydney and Melbourne after a slower past year, while other capitals and regional areas continued their quieter 2023.
Nationally, new listings on realestate.com.au declined slightly in July compared to June, down 2.1% month-on-month amid the usually quiet winter period. Nationally, there were fewer new listings this year than last (-4.9%), as was the case throughout late 2022 and the first half of 2023.
In aggregate across the capital cities, new listings remained lower than a year ago (down 1.4% year-on-year). However, that aggregate masks differences across the capitals.
Sydney and Melbourne both recorded more new listings this year than last year, the first time either city has recorded positive year-on-year growth in new listings since spring 2022. New listings in Sydney were 9.2% higher year-on-year; in Melbourne they were 9.1% higher year-on-year. While part of the reason for that growth is that last July was a slower month for both cities, it is not the whole story. There were more new listings in both cities in July than has been typical on average for this time of year over the past decade.
In contrast, most other capitals had fewer new listings this year than last, with Darwin (-17.6% year-on-year), Perth (-16.6% year-on-year) and Brisbane (-14% year-on-year) leading the declines.
Regional areas had fewer new listings in July compared to June, pushing them 10.4% lower year-on-year.
The total number of properties listed for sale across Australia was largely unchanged in July, increasing a modest 0.4% month-on-month. That kept choice for buyers marginally tighter than a year ago, with the total number of properties listed for sale in July down 1.3% year-on-year.
Buyers across the capital cities are facing quite different conditions. In Melbourne, and to a lesser extent Sydney, the total number of properties available for sale is reasonably high, albeit down from a year ago in Sydney. The total number of properties available for sale is above decade-average in Melbourne and Canberra, and only modestly below average in Sydney (down about 4%).
The same is not true for buyers in Brisbane, Adelaide and especially Perth. Buyers in Perth have particularly restricted options, with the total number of properties listed for sale at a fresh record low in July. In both Brisbane and Adelaide, the total number of properties listed for sale is down compared to a year ago, and about 40% below its prior-decade average.
Buyers searching in regional Victoria and regional NSW have seen substantial improvements in choice over the past 18 months after a period of incredibly limited options during the pandemic.
After a quieter first half of 2023, property market activity is showing early signs of picking up in Sydney and Melbourne amid what is typically the quieter winter season. Activity is likely to continue increasing over the next few months heading into the spring selling season for the usual seasonal peak of activity in October and November.
Selling conditions and home prices have picked up compared to the second half of 2022. Home prices nationally posted the seventh consecutive month of growth in July, and have recovered 2.8% since December. That means home prices nationally are now sitting just 1.4% below the March 2022 peak.
The Reserve Bank held the cash rate at 4.1% for the second consecutive month in July, and a stabilisation in interest rates looks to be within sight. Inflation appears to be heading back towards target at a pace consistent with what the RBA was expecting. As a result, markets are factoring in only a modest chance of further increases in interest rates.
Further out, the fundamentals of housing demand remain strong. Unemployment remains extremely low by historic standards and has shown little sign of moving higher. Rental markets are extremely tight across much of the country amid strong demand and limited rental availability. International migration has also resumed, which will further add to housing demand.
Activity in Sydney’s property market picked up modestly in July to record the first year-on-year increase in new listings since August 2022.
Melbourne’s property market showed early signs that activity might be picking up, with the first year-on-year increase in new listings since August last year.
Brisbane’s property market continued its quieter pace of activity in July, with a modest decline in new listings compared to June.
Property market activity declined a little in July for what is typically the quietest month of winter in Adelaide’s property market.
Choice continues to be extremely restricted for buyers in Perth, with the total number of properties listed for sale hitting a fresh record low.
Hobart’s property market had a slightly busier July after a quiet June.
Darwin’s property market had a quiet July, with a notable decline in new listings compared to a year ago.
Activity in Canberra’s property market declined modestly in July.
The ‘PropTrack Listings Report’ details monthly changes in the number of properties listed for sale on realestate.com.au. The listings are split into ‘new’ and ‘total’ listings.
New listings consist of properties that were newly listed for sale on realestate.com.au within the reported month.
Total listings is the total supply of properties for sale in the reported month. It consists of all listings which were for sale during that month (including new listings) irrespective of the date they first appeared on site.
The geographical areas described in this report are based on the Greater Capital City Statistical Area (GCCSA) as defined by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Disclaimer: PropTrack Listings Report is summary information only. realestate.com.au Pty Limited [REA] makes no representation whatsoever about PropTrack Listings Report’s completeness or accuracy. REA is under no obligation to update or correct any of the PropTrack Listings Report data or to continue to make the PropTrack Listings Report available. REA recommends that any users of the PropTrack Listings Report exercise their own skill and care with respect to their use of the PropTrack Listings Report and that users carefully evaluate the accuracy, currency, completeness and relevance of the PropTrack Listings Report for their purposes. REA expressly bears no responsibility, and accepts no liability, whatsoever for any reliance placed by you or others on the PropTrack Listings Report, or from any use of the PropTrack Listings Report by you or others. If you wish to cite or refer to this report (or any findings or data contained in it) in any publication, please refer to the report as the ‘PropTrack Listings Report – July 2023′.