Abnormal Sales Listing Activity In September

Photo: The Homepage

The number of Australian residential property sale listings decreased during September, signalling rapid stock level absorption, particularly in Sydney.

Nationally, the number of unsold properties on the market has been recorded at 339,344 for September 2014 – a -2.4 per cent decrease month-on-month and -1.1 per cent decrease year-on-year.

Sydney is leading the charge with substantial decreases on a monthly and yearly basis, which coincides with our prediction that the capital city would be the frontrunner in 2014 housing recovery, and continue to be into 2015.

Almost All Capital Cities Recorded Monthly Stock Decreases

We can see that contrary to the seasonal trend, which commonly sees an influx of listings hit the market at the beginning of spring, all capital cities recorded monthly decreases in stock, except Darwin, which recorded a slight increase at 0.2 per cent.

“The falls recorded in September are abnormal as listings normally rise at the start of spring.”

Darwin has also recorded a staggering increase in stock on market on a yearly basis. The number of unsold properties on the market has increased by 26.4 per cent since September 2013.

We recently stated in our Housing Boom and Bust Report that we believe Darwin to be undergoing a correction. The growing excess in stock levels can be attributed to this.

Asking Prices Rise Across Nation

Alongside this, the nation’s asking prices have perked up over the past month, with asking prices for houses rising by 0.7 per cent and asking prices for units rising by 0.5 per cent during September.

The falls recorded in September are abnormal as listings normally rise at the start of spring.

This implies the market remains strong, particularly on the East Coast of Australia, as buyers swoop in on stock, often before properties are formally listed for sale.