Andrew Wilson: Canberra home auction market eases

The Canberra home auction market eased over May with clearance rates, auction volumes and prices all falling over the month.

Canberra reported a May clearance rate of 60.5 per cent which was down on the 62.1 per cent recorded over April and also below the 64.1 per cent recorded over May last year.

Auction volumes also fell slightly over May down from the 53 averaged per weekend over April to 52. Weekend auction volumes however were higher than the 48 averaged per weekend over May last year.

Canberra recorded a median auction price of $675,000 over May which was down on the $691,000 result for April but 0.7 per cent higher than the $670,000 auction median reported over May 2015.

Woden Valley reported the highest clearance rate of all the Canberra regions over May with 72.7 per cent, followed by Canberra Central with 70.2 per cent, Weston Creek 69.2 per cent, Belconnen 63 per cent and the highest listings at 54, Gungahlin 56.4 per cent and Tuggeranong with a clearance rate of just 34.3 per cent.

Although overall Canberra auction activity waned over May, signs emerged of a solid revival over the latter part of the month. The Canberra market recorded a weekend clearance rate of 70 per cent on Saturday, May 21, with 56 listings and a median of $636,500. This was followed last weekend by a clearance rate of 69 per cent from a busy Saturday with 74 auctions and a median sale price of $634,750.

Possible early buyer distractions from the current federal election campaign may be subsiding particularly with lower mortgage rates likely to stimulate the market. Although rates are likely to remain on hold over June after last month’s cut, the Canberra auction market enters winter with solid momentum over the past fortnight.

Andrew Wilson is Domain Group chief economist. Twitter: @DocAndrewWilson – My Property, 2UE, Fridays, 2pm-3pm, Saturdays, 12.30pm-1pm.