Hi ,

Melbourne property auction numbers are lower due to the school holidays with 436 auctions being reported to the REIV on the weekend.  231 sold at auction, 103 before auction and 102 passed in resulting in a clearance rate of 77%.  In addition, there were 306 private sales.

CoreLogic released their March quarter property price data and it shows that Australian property prices have increased for the fifth consecutive month to bring the median house price to $772,730.  Across the quarter, Perth  prices increased by the highest rate of 5.6%, followed by Adelaide at 3.3%, Brisbane at 3% and then Sydney by 0.9%.  Melbourne was the only capital city that saw a marginal dip of -0.2% for the quarter.

This would appear surprising due to the cost of living pressures and rising interest rates, but our population is growing at a rate not seen since the 1950’s and building approvals are down.

That being said, there has been a real shift in what purchasers are buying and the lower end of the housing market is the segment that is performing the strongest.  Buyers cannot access the amount of money from the banks they previously were able to and this has resulted in purchasers looking for smaller properties, unrenovated homes and also opting to move further out.

In Melbourne’s West, 44 Soudan Road, West Footscray went under the hammer.  West Footscray has long been an area sought after by investors and young families.  The renovated, three bedroom, two bathroom home on 464 sqm was quoted for $1,200,000 to $1,250,000 prior to auction.  Strong bidding pushed the price to $1,357,000 after being announced on the market at $1,310,000.

On the other side of town, 8 Farm Road, Cheltenham is a large, renovated family home located on a secondary main road.   The property was quoted at $1,500,000 to $1,600,000 prior to auction and three buyers participated.  The property was announced on the market at $1,600,000 and sold to a bidder on their first bid of $1,601,000.

The most expensive property that sold at auction on the weekend was a large modern house in the Glen Waverley Secondary School zone selling for $3,780,000.

Have a great week!

Kim Easterbrook