There is no way around it, the Auction Clearance Rate was abysmal on Saturday, but I am sure you have already heard about it, read about it and cried about it by now. The nightmare the media created has continued to sell ‘clicks’ and bring ears and eyes to news streams, and what a success it is.
Somebody said to me last week, ‘how can the market have changed so much, nothing has happened, interest rates are still down, property is still on the market and people still have jobs, why the sudden change?’ – what a perfect summary of anything I could write with regard to the market.
The thing is, the only tightening of the market has been slightly on investors, who among us are the smartest purchasers and typically have the best strategy, and have certainly not left the market.
Our agency at the weekend had close to 100% success at Auction and I know of at least 1 other agency that had the same with some agencies certainly struggling to sell 1 property in the last fortnight.
The amazing thing after the weekends poor performance in clearing property was the high median sale price: $1,225,000 which is outstanding especially in this ‘bad’ market.
The Auction clearance rate: 59% as per most reports.
However, with over 1,000 properties scheduled for Auction, it is no surprise. There were 652 Auctions that were reported to have taken place and 452 reported to have sold.
What I have seen a lot of lately is, properties that aren’t selling at or before Auction are selling very quickly after. This could be because buyers are sick of Auctions or think that they will have a better chance buying a property that has ‘passed in’, both may be true, but believe me, it’s a big risk to take.
Thomas Merriman.
Thomas Merriman 