New listings are rapidly rising across Sydney and Melbourne, setting up a busy spring for agents, according to a new report.
The PropTrack Listings Report July 2023, found that while national property market activity was a little quieter in July, Sydney (9.2 per cent) and Melbourne (9.1 per cent) both saw the number of new listings coming to the market increase compared to last year.
Both cities saw new listings higher than the 10-year average and it was the first time either city recorded positive annual growth since the spring selling season last year.
PropTrack senior economist and report author, Angus Moore, said property market activity showed early signs of picking up in Sydney and Melbourne amid what is typically the quieter winter season.
“Australia’s two largest property markets both saw more new listings than has been typical on average for mid-winter over the past decade,” Mr Moore said.
“Activity is likely to continue increasing over the next few months as we head into the spring selling season, with activity likely to peak over October and November.”
While the country’s two largest cities are starting to see an uptick in activity, across the country, conditions remain tight.
Nationally, new listings on realestate.com.au declined 4.9 per cent in July compared to the same time last year.
At the same time, the total number of properties listed for sale across Australia was largely unchanged in July, increasing just 0.4 per cent for the month.
Despite new listings rising, there is still a limited amount of choice for buyers, with the total number of properties listed for sale down 1.3 per cent compared to the same time last year.
The total number of properties available for sale is above decade-average in Melbourne and Canberra, and only slightly below in Sydney.
In contrast, the total number of properties listed for sale is close to 40 per cent below the prior decade average in Adelaide and Brisbane, and at a record low in Perth.
Mr Moore said the total number of properties listed for sale across Sydney increased 2.6 per cent over the month, though total listings are still 11.6 per cent lower than a year ago.
“While this is a substantial year-on-year decline, it in part reflects the fairly abundant choice available to buyers a year ago,” he said.
“Even with that decline, the total number of properties listed for sale across Sydney is only about 4 per cent below the average over the past decade.”
He said that more properties hitting the market helped lift choice for buyers in Melbourne, with the total number of properties listed for sale increasing 2.7 per cent in July.
Mr Moore said conditions and home prices have picked up compared to the second half of 2022, which was good news for sellers.
“Home prices nationally posted the seventh consecutive month of growth in July and have recovered 2.8 per cent since December,” he said.
“That means home prices nationally are now sitting just 1.4 per cent below the March 2022 peak.”
Mr Moore said the fact that the Reserve Bank held the cash rate at 4.1 per cent for the second consecutive month in July, means 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,” he said.
“As a result, markets are factoring in only a modest chance of further increases in interest rates.”
According to Mr Moore, the fundamentals of housing demand remain strong longer term.
“Unemployment remains extremely low by historic standards and has shown little sign of moving higher,” he said.
“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.”
