Australia Weekly Property Market Report: Week Ending Sunday, 30 August 2026

Melbourne Finishes Winter Above 60% as Spring Activity Builds – but Rate-Rise Risk Keeps Buyers Disciplined

Australia’s final weekend of winter delivered a modest lift in auction activity and clearance rates, providing the first meaningful signs of the usual seasonal move into spring. Even so, the broader market remains substantially weaker than it was a year ago, while renewed concern about another Reserve Bank rate increase is likely to keep buyers cautious and disciplined.

This Australia Weekly Property Market Report shows that, across the major capital cities, My Housing Market recorded an average auction clearance rate of 47.3%, up from 46.7% the previous week but still well below the 69.9% recorded during the same period in 2025. Sydney and Melbourne both strengthened, Brisbane remained weak, and Adelaide moved sharply backwards. The result provides a useful Australian Property Market Update as winter gives way to spring.

Melbourne recorded 638 scheduled auctions and a 62.5% clearance rate, up from 60.2% one week earlier. The city’s combined reported auction median was $990,500, including a house median of $1.066 million and a unit median of $680,000. Melbourne’s house auction median remained 5.7% below the $1.13 million recorded in the corresponding week last year. These Melbourne Auction Results show an improvement in sales conversion without indicating that Melbourne House Prices have returned to last year’s level.

Sydney also strengthened, with 726 scheduled auctions and a 62.2% clearance rate, its strongest result since early June. Sydney’s reported house auction median rose to just over $2.01 million, while units recorded $930,000. For Sydney, the stronger Sydney Auction Results need to be read alongside the wider year-on-year comparison and the softer Sunday preliminary data.

Brisbane remained considerably weaker, with a clearance rate of just 24.8%, while Adelaide fell to 37.6%. Canberra improved to 49.6%. These results underline how uneven conditions remain across the capitals.

Separate preliminary reporting for the full weekend showed a softer market than these Saturday-based readings. One Sunday dataset placed Melbourne at around 54.9% from 653 scheduled auctions, with 101 sold before auction, 191 under the hammer, five afterward, 139 passed in and 105 withdrawn. Sydney was reported around 56.3%, with withdrawals representing almost one-quarter of scheduled auctions.

The difference again shows why a single headline clearance rate should never be used in isolation. Auction results vary depending on reporting time, geographic coverage, and the treatment of withdrawals and outstanding results.

The economic backdrop also became more challenging. July CPI inflation came in at 3.5% annually, above economists’ expectations of 3.3%, while trimmed mean inflation remained at 3.6%. Following the result, ANZ and NAB shifted to expecting another RBA cash-rate increase as early as September, while Commonwealth Bank moved to expecting a November hike.

For property buyers, renewed rate uncertainty matters. It discourages aggressive bidding and reinforces the importance of repayment buffers. For vendors, it means the early spring lift in buyer activity should not be mistaken for a return to unrestricted price growth.

The clearest conclusion in this Australia Weekly Property Market Report is that Melbourne is entering spring with improved sales conversion, but buyers remain highly selective and price sensitive. Quality homes in desirable locations are still generating competition, while properties carrying unrealistic reserves or significant renovation risk continue to face resistance.

Weekly Market Snapshot

This Australia Weekly Property Market Report records the following headline results:

• Melbourne: 638 scheduled auctions, 62.5% Saturday-based clearance rate; $990,500 combined median; $1.066 million house median; $680,000 unit median.
• Sydney: 726 auctions, 62.2% clearance; $1.625 million combined median; $2.011 million house median.
• Brisbane: 150 auctions, 24.8% clearance.
• Adelaide: 115 auctions, 37.6% clearance.
• Canberra: 84 auctions, 49.6% clearance.
• National major-capital average: 47.3%, compared with 46.7% the previous week and 69.9% a year earlier.

From an Auction Clearance Rates Australia perspective, the national headline is only one part of the picture. The city-by-city results and the timing of reported outcomes remain essential to understanding the week.

Auction Clearance Rates Australia: Understanding the Different Auction Numbers

CoreLogic’s Australian property-data business is now known as Cotality. Its latest official auction preview showed 1,543 homes scheduled across the capital cities for the week ending 30 August, up 11% from the previous week but still 29.5% below the corresponding week in 2025. Melbourne was expected to hold the largest auction book with approximately 630 properties, while Sydney had around 599 scheduled.

Cotality’s final results for the week ending 30 August were not yet publicly available when this report was prepared on Monday morning. The most recent completed Cotality release therefore remains the week ending 23 August.

For clarity, this Australia Weekly Property Market Report distinguishes between:

• Saturday-based My Housing Market results;
• Sunday preliminary auction datasets;
• realestate.com.au transaction reporting;
• Cotality’s latest published auction-volume guidance; and
• broader PropTrack price and demand trends.

The figures should not be expected to match exactly.

For example, one Sunday preliminary dataset reported 653 Melbourne auctions with 541 results available, including 297 sales before, at or after auction, 139 pass-ins and 105 withdrawals. That produced a clearance rate of approximately 54.9%.

The lower Sunday result relative to Saturday’s 62.5% is typical of a softer market: as late unsuccessful outcomes are collected, preliminary clearance rates generally fall.

For consumers, this matters. A headline “62% clearance rate” may look significantly stronger than the actual experience of a vendor whose property passed in or was withdrawn.

Melbourne Property Market and Victoria

The Melbourne Property Market ended winter on its strongest footing in several weeks.

The city recorded a 62.5% clearance rate from 638 scheduled auctions in the My Housing Market dataset, compared with 60.2% the week before. Auction volume also rose from 570.

However, the year-on-year comparison remains sobering. Melbourne held 1,022 auctions during the corresponding week in 2025 and recorded a 75.3% clearance rate.

In other words, the Melbourne Auction Results are improving from recent weakness, but the market remains considerably less competitive than last year.

Cotality had forecast around 630 Melbourne auctions, approximately 42% fewer than the equivalent week one year earlier.

That lower stock level is helping the properties that do reach auction. With fewer homes competing for attention, correctly positioned campaigns have a better chance of attracting multiple qualified purchasers. For anyone considering Melbourne Property Investment, the current environment reinforces the importance of property-level selection rather than relying on broad metropolitan averages.

Melbourne Regional Performance

Melbourne’s South East recorded the strongest regional result at 76.9%, followed by the Outer East at 71.9% and North East at 66.1%. The Inner City recorded the weakest result at 50%.

The pattern reflects the broader affordability shift evident throughout 2026.

Family homes in middle and outer areas generally attract a larger borrowing-qualified buyer pool. Buyers in the premium inner market are more exposed to reduced borrowing capacity and may have greater discretion to wait.

The Inner East improved to 58.9%, while the Inner South recorded 57.6%. Melbourne’s West achieved 62.4%, with a reported median around $913,500.

Melbourne Median Auction Prices

The city’s combined auction median rose to $990,500 this week.

Houses recorded a $1.066 million median, substantially higher than $967,500 the previous week but still 5.7% below the $1.13 million recorded one year earlier. Units recorded a $680,000 median.

Weekly median movements need to be interpreted cautiously because the mix of properties changes from one weekend to another. The more useful signal is the annual comparison.

Even with Melbourne’s clearance rate improving, Melbourne House Prices at auction remain below last year’s levels. That suggests the stronger conversion rate is being driven at least partly by more realistic vendor expectations rather than an acceleration in underlying home values.

This distinction is critical for sellers considering a spring campaign: more homes selling does not necessarily mean prices are rising.

Melbourne Unit Market: Houses Regain a Slight Edge Over Units

Melbourne houses recorded a 62% clearance rate this week, while units achieved 60.9%.

This reverses the recent trend of units frequently outperforming houses. However, the difference is small enough that affordability remains a major theme in the Melbourne Unit Market.

Townhouses, villas and well-positioned apartments continue to attract buyers whose borrowing limits have been reduced by higher mortgage rates. At the same time, established family houses with good land content and limited renovation requirements remain highly competitive.

The increasingly important dividing line is therefore not simply house versus unit. It is becoming: turnkey versus renovation-heavy, scarce versus replaceable, and accurately priced versus aspirationally priced.

Melbourne Passed-In Properties and Withdrawals

Sunday preliminary data recorded approximately 139 Melbourne pass-ins and 105 withdrawals among 541 available outcomes.

Together, those unsuccessful outcomes represented nearly half of the reported campaigns in that dataset. This provides a much more balanced picture than the Saturday clearance headline and adds important context to the Melbourne Auction Results.

Passed-in properties remain a major source of opportunity for buyers.

A pass-in usually means the vendor and strongest bidder were unable to agree on price during public bidding. Once the auction concludes, the highest bidder commonly receives the first opportunity to negotiate.

For vendors, that post-auction period should be treated as an extension of the campaign rather than a failure.

Buyer interest is usually strongest in the hours immediately after auction. Delaying negotiations while maintaining a reserve unsupported by market feedback can weaken the eventual result.

Notable Melbourne Sales

The Melbourne Property Market continued to produce strong individual outcomes.

The highest reported auction sale was 65 Fernhill Road, Sandringham, which sold for $2.9 million.

Other strong results included:

• 13 Tara Avenue, Kew — $2.875 million
• 35 Salisbury Street, Moonee Ponds — $2.831 million
• 24 Somersett Avenue, Oakleigh South — $2.73 million
• 31 Rowen Street, Glen Iris — $2.54 million
• 105 Raglan Street, South Melbourne — $2.36 million.

Realestate.com.au independently recorded the Kew and Moonee Ponds sales on 29 August, supporting the reported prices.

At the affordable end, a two-bedroom Craigieburn house at 1 Bird Close sold for $435,000.

The spread between $435,000 and $2.9 million demonstrates just how fragmented Melbourne’s market is. A metropolitan clearance rate should therefore never be treated as a substitute for suburb- and property-specific advice. The same applies to Melbourne Property Investment decisions, where local demand, property condition and price positioning remain central.

Sydney Housing Market

Sydney also finished winter on a stronger footing.

The city recorded a 62.2% clearance rate from 726 scheduled auctions, up from 58.1% the previous week and the strongest result since early June.

However, it remained significantly below the 78.1% recorded during the same period last year.

Sydney’s reported house auction median climbed to $2.011 million, 12% higher than the same week last year, while the unit median was $930,000.

This strong median reflects the mix of properties auctioned rather than evidence that the wider Sydney Housing Market downturn has reversed.

The Lower North recorded the strongest clearance rate at 82.9%, followed by City and East at 71.9% and the Inner West at 64.9%.

The Sunday preliminary picture was again more cautious. Sydney was reported at approximately 56.3%, with 127 withdrawals—almost one-quarter of scheduled auctions—and 54 known pass-ins.

These Sydney Auction Results continue a trend seen throughout winter: a large number of Sydney vendors are opting to withdraw rather than proceed with under-supported auctions.

Sydney Notable Sales

The top reported Sydney auction sale was 33 Woolwich Road, Hunters Hill, which sold for $6.62 million.

Other major sales included Brighton-Le-Sands at $5.575 million, Paddington at $4.5 million and Rozelle at $4.3 million.

Realestate.com.au also recorded the Hunters Hill transaction at $6.62 million on 29 August.

The Sydney Housing Market continues to show the same two-speed pattern as Melbourne: trophy and scarce family properties can sell extremely well, while more ordinary or overpriced stock faces much greater buyer resistance. The Sydney Auction Results reinforce that divide.

Brisbane Property Market

The Brisbane Property Market remained weak at auction despite a small weekly improvement.

The city recorded 150 auctions and a 24.8% clearance rate, compared with 20.8% the previous week and 53.5% a year earlier.

Another preliminary dataset placed Brisbane around 31.5%, with 49 properties passing in from 92 reported results.

Even allowing for differences in methodology, the message is clear: auction remains a difficult sales channel in Brisbane.

This does not necessarily imply equivalent weakness in the wider Brisbane Property Market because private treaty remains the dominant method of sale. Nevertheless, vendors considering auction need evidence of genuine bidder depth before committing.

The highest reported Brisbane sale was 6 Willis Street, Gordon Park, at $3.05 million, followed by Camp Hill at $2.32 million.

For that reason, Brisbane should not be judged on auction conversion alone.

Adelaide Property Market

The Adelaide Property Market recorded the weakest weekly movement among the major capitals.

Its clearance rate fell from 50.7% to 37.6% from 115 auctions. This was less than half the 79.9% recorded during the equivalent weekend last year.

The result is notable because Adelaide has been one of Australia’s strongest housing markets through much of the recent cycle.

The downturn in auction conversion suggests buyers are becoming more selective as higher rates and reduced affordability begin to influence previously resilient markets.

The highest reported Adelaide sale was 81 Anglesey Avenue, St Georges, at $1.891 million, followed by Woodville at $1.815 million and Henley Beach South at $1.68 million.

The Adelaide Property Market retains relatively supportive longer-term housing fundamentals, but the weekend’s result confirms that limited supply alone cannot completely offset mortgage affordability pressure. In Adelaide, buyer selectivity is now becoming more visible in auction conversion.

Canberra Property Market

The Canberra Property Market improved to a 49.6% clearance rate from 84 auctions, compared with 43.7% one week earlier.

However, the result remained below the 62.7% recorded at the same time last year.

The strongest reported transaction was a property in O’Malley at $1.43 million, followed by Hughes at $1.085 million and Downer at $1 million.

The Canberra Property Market has a relatively small auction pool, which makes weekly numbers volatile. Stable government employment continues to support underlying demand, but higher borrowing costs remain the principal constraint.

For Canberra, this makes week-to-week clearance changes useful context rather than a complete measure of market conditions.

Perth Property Market and Tasmania

The Perth Property Market and Tasmania remain overwhelmingly private treaty markets.

Cotality’s preview reinforces this limitation. The previous week recorded only 11 Perth auctions and one Tasmanian auction, making weekly clearance rates statistically unreliable as measures of broader market strength.

For Perth, listing levels, days on market and price movements remain substantially more useful.

The city is transitioning away from its period of extreme housing scarcity as more properties become available, although strong population growth continues to provide structural demand.

Regional Victoria Property Market

The Regional Victoria Property Market continues to offer relatively resilient conditions compared with metropolitan Melbourne, although transaction outcomes remain highly localised.

Across regional Victoria and the Riverina, the highest reported sale for the week was a four-bedroom home in Kyneton.

The strength of individual regional centres is being supported by affordability, employment diversity and lifestyle demand, but buyers are increasingly sensitive to renovation and holding costs.

This Australia Weekly Property Market Report therefore treats regional Victoria as a collection of distinct local markets rather than a single uniform trend.

Geelong Property Market

Public regional reporting for the week ending 29 August did not provide a sufficiently complete Geelong-specific transaction set to responsibly publish a citywide auction clearance rate.

That limitation itself is important.

The Geelong Property Market remains primarily a private treaty market, meaning weekly auction percentages can be distorted by very small sample sizes.

The broader trend remains one of segmentation. Turnkey family homes in established areas continue to attract strong interest, while properties requiring substantial renovation are facing more negotiation.

Geelong’s fundamental appeal remains intact: relative affordability compared with Melbourne, rail access, healthcare and education employment, and proximity to the Bellarine Peninsula.

For buyers in Geelong, the strongest opportunities are likely to emerge where vendors price against current comparable evidence rather than peak expectations.

Ballarat Property Market

Weekly reporting in the Ballarat Property Market identified a four-bedroom Daylesford property as the highest-priced transaction in the wider Ballarat region for the week ending 29 August.

Ballarat remains predominantly a private treaty market.

Ballarat continues to appeal to first-home buyers, families and investors through its relative affordability, while the regional economy benefits from healthcare, education, government employment and rail connectivity.

However, higher borrowing costs mean buyers are becoming increasingly selective.

Properties requiring extensive renovation, poor energy performance or significant maintenance are more likely to face price resistance. Move-in-ready homes close to established amenities remain better positioned.

Bendigo Property Market

The Bendigo Property Market produced a notable upper-end transaction this week.

A property at 13 Langley Street sold privately for $2.1 million, while PropTrack-linked reporting identified around 25 local transactions in the reporting period.

The sale illustrates that Bendigo continues to support substantial transactions despite its lower average price base.

Bendigo benefits from a diversified employment market spanning healthcare, education, finance, government and professional services.

However, the same caution applies as elsewhere. Regional growth should not be interpreted to mean every property will appreciate evenly. Investors should assess tenant demand, location, condition and future housing supply at the property level.

PropTrack and the Broader Housing Market Price Direction

PropTrack’s latest fully published monthly figures continue to show the Australian Housing Market in a correction rather than renewed growth.

While final August Home Price Index figures were not yet available on Monday morning, recent reporting confirms that Sydney and Melbourne have led the downturn, while Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth have lost momentum after previously stronger growth.

Several major forecasters have also downgraded their outlooks. Domain expects Sydney and Melbourne house prices to remain under pressure through the year to June 2027, while Westpac IQ expects national dwelling prices to be broadly flat across calendar 2026.

These are forecasts rather than certainties, but they reinforce the importance of looking beyond auction clearance rates. The current Australian Housing Market may become more active without necessarily becoming materially more expensive.

For readers following the 2026 property market outlook, the distinction between activity and price growth is especially important. This Australian Property Market Update does not treat higher auction activity on its own as evidence of renewed price acceleration.

RBA Interest Rates Australia: Inflation Brings Rate-Rise Risk Back Into Focus

The most consequential economic development this week was the latest inflation release.

Australia’s annual CPI slowed to 3.5% in July, but the result exceeded economists’ 3.3% expectation.

More importantly, trimmed mean inflation—the RBA’s preferred underlying measure—remained at 3.6% for a third consecutive month.

That changed interest-rate expectations rapidly.

ANZ and NAB now expect a cash-rate increase as soon as September, while Commonwealth Bank expects a November increase and has warned an earlier move remains possible.

Another standard 0.25 percentage-point rise would add approximately $120 per month to repayments on a $750,000 mortgage, according to Mortgage Choice calculations cited by realestate.com.au.

For property markets, renewed rate-rise risk influences behaviour even before a decision is made. Buyers become more conservative about maximum bids. Banks may reassess serviceability. Investors recalculate yields. Vendors face a buyer pool less willing to stretch.

For readers monitoring RBA Interest Rates Australia, this will be one of the defining influences on the early spring market.

Buyer Sentiment

Buyer activity is improving, but confidence remains conditional.

The stronger Melbourne and Sydney auction rates indicate that more buyers are willing to participate when pricing is realistic. Yet the high pass-in and withdrawal figures tell us those buyers are still prepared to walk away.

This is very different from a fear-of-missing-out market.

Today’s buyers are comparing multiple properties, examining renovation costs and factoring possible mortgage increases into their budget.

Affordable homes and lower-maintenance stock therefore remain relatively well supported. This is also why Melbourne units remain relevant to affordability-focused purchasers even in a week when houses regained a slight clearance-rate edge.

Vendor Sentiment and Australian Property Listings

Vendors are returning gradually, with scheduled capital-city auction volumes beginning to reflect the seasonal lift into spring.

Cotality’s scheduled capital-city auction volume rose 11% week-on-week to 1,543 properties, marking a clear seasonal lift as winter ended.

However, volumes remained almost 30% below the corresponding week last year.

That means vendors remain cautious.

The coming month will reveal whether sellers who delayed during winter return in meaningful numbers. If spring stock rises significantly while demand remains constrained by rates, the balance could shift further towards buyers.

For sellers already prepared to launch, entering the market before peak spring competition may therefore offer an advantage. The next phase of listings will be important in showing whether the seasonal lift broadens beyond auction volume.

Global and Macroeconomic Factors

Australian housing remains influenced by competing forces.

On one side are high interest rates, persistent inflation, household cost pressures and global geopolitical uncertainty. On the other are population growth, constrained new housing supply and long-term demand for well-located residential property.

Global capital continues to invest in Australian housing projects despite short-term market volatility, reflecting longer-term confidence in the country’s structural housing shortage.

The resulting Australian Property Market is unlikely to move uniformly. Supply-constrained, affordable and well-located property can remain resilient even while national values soften.

Spring Outlook and Property Market Forecast 2026

The first weeks of September will provide an important test.

Melbourne has finished winter with clearance rates above 60% in one major dataset, but those numbers need to hold when auction volumes increase. This is a key point for both the Melbourne Property Market and the wider national market.

A sustained improvement would require:

• stronger final clearance rates, not just preliminary figures;
• fewer withdrawals and pass-ins;
• stabilisation in monthly home prices;
• continued buyer participation as listings increase; and
• greater certainty on interest rates.

Renewed expectations of an RBA hike are the key risk.

If borrowing capacity is reduced again, higher spring stock could place further pressure on Melbourne and Sydney values.

Brisbane’s auction channel is likely to remain weak, while Adelaide’s sharp weekend decline suggests its previously resilient market is becoming more balanced.

Regional Victoria should continue benefiting from affordability, but Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo are increasingly markets where individual property quality matters more than the regional postcode alone.

As a Property Market Forecast 2026, the evidence in this Australia Weekly Property Market Report points to a spring market where activity can improve without removing the pressure created by rates, affordability and buyer selectivity.

Actionable Insights

The Australia Weekly Property Market Report points to the following practical implications from the week’s data.

For vendors, use the most recent comparable sales and genuine buyer feedback when establishing your reserve. Do not interpret a 60%+ clearance headline as permission to return to last year’s pricing. Monitor contract requests, repeat inspections and bidder registrations, and have a post-auction strategy prepared before the campaign reaches auction day.

For buyers, secure finance with a buffer for another possible rate increase. Passed-in and withdrawn properties continue to provide valuable opportunities, but well-priced family homes can still generate competitive bidding.

For investors, focus on sustainable rental demand and net yield after finance, tax, insurance, maintenance and compliance expenses. Rate uncertainty makes cash-flow resilience particularly important. For Melbourne investors, the same discipline applies: property quality, local demand and realistic cash flow matter more than a broad market headline.

Key Takeaways

This Australia Weekly Property Market Report closes the final weekend of winter with several clear signals:

• Melbourne finished winter strongly, recording a 62.5% Saturday-based clearance rate from 638 scheduled auctions.
• Its reported combined median was $990,500, with houses at $1.066 million and units at $680,000.
• Sunday preliminary data was softer, with Melbourne around 54.9% and 244 known pass-ins or withdrawals, reinforcing the need to distinguish early and final results.
• Sydney improved to 62.2%, its strongest result since early June.
• Brisbane remained weak at 24.8%, while Adelaide fell sharply to 37.6%.
• Auction volumes increased as spring approached but remained almost 30% below last year nationally.
• July inflation came in hotter than expected, bringing another RBA rate rise back into serious consideration.
• Regional Victoria continues to transact, with notable sales reported in Kyneton, the Ballarat region and Bendigo.
• The market remains buyer-sensitive: good properties can perform strongly, but ambitious pricing is still being punished.

Taken together, the Australian Property Market Update remains one of improving activity rather than broad-based price acceleration. Melbourne House Prices are still below last year’s auction median comparison, while the Melbourne Unit Market continues to reflect the importance of affordability. Across the Australian Housing Market, buyers remain selective and rate-sensitive.

That is the central message of the Australia Weekly Property Market Report for the week ending Sunday, 30 August 2026.

Disclaimer: This report provides general property market information only and does not constitute financial, legal, taxation or investment advice. Auction results and clearance rates may be preliminary and may change as additional results are reported. Readers should seek independent professional advice before making any property or investment decisions.