There is no doubt that our housing markets are facing challenges from all directions, but clearly they have remained more resilient than the property pessimists had predicted. To better understand what’s happening, this monthly collection of charts from Cotality paints an interesting picture. According to Cotality, Australia’s most expensive homes are leading the housing downturn, with upper-quartile…
Most auction markets reported higher clearance rates from higher listings over the past week – with the exception of Sydney. Weekly Auction Results to Saturday, September 12th 2026 Capital City This Week Last Week Same Week Last Year Auctions Rate Auctions Rate Auctions Rate Sydney 706 57.8% 709 62.6% 989 77.1% Melbourne 768 64.2% 654…
Something interesting is happening in Australia’s property market, with auction clearance rates only telling part of the story. Auctions work best when several motivated buyers compete for the same property, creating urgency and pushing prices higher. But as buyer demand has softened in 2026, that competition has become harder to generate. New Domain research shows…
There is a dangerous tendency in Australia’s housing debate to assume that anything that makes life harder for property investors must automatically make life easier for first-home buyers and tenants. It’s a good political argument that sounds appealing, particularly when housing affordability is such an emotional issue, but housing markets don’t work in isolation. Investors,…
Australia’s rental markets are tightening again, with vacancy rates falling across most capital cities and remaining at historically low levels. Yet, rather surprisingly, asking rents eased in many cities over August. So, has the rental crisis finally reached a turning point, or is this simply a temporary pause before rents begin rising again? And what…
Six months ago the conversation about Australian property was all about resilience, about how our markets kept climbing despite thirteen rate rises and a cost of living squeeze that refused to ease. That conversation has changed. Australia’s property downturn gathered sharp momentum in July, with Cotality’s national Home Value Index (HVI) falling 0.7% – the…
Labor has retreated from one of the most contentious parts of its 2026 federal budget tax package, although Australians who use discretionary trusts shouldn’t mistake the change for a return to business as usual. The original proposal in the Federal Budget would have imposed a 30 per cent minimum tax on the taxable income of…
Australia’s property downturn became more widespread in August, with Cotality’s national Home Value Index falling 0.9% for the month and 3.6% from its March peak. Values declined across 93% of capital-city suburbs during winter, more than double the 45.8% recorded during autumn, confirming that the weakness has spread beyond premium markets. Sydney led the falls,…
Capital city home rental vacancy rates generally tightened over August with most remaining at historically low levels. Despite low and tightening vacancy rates, rents for both houses and units however were mostly lower over the month. Hobart was the only capital to report higher monthly house rents, rising sharply by 2.4%. Perth rents were steady…
Australia’s economy expanded by 0.4% in the June quarter, with spending growth driven by record sales of imported electric vehicles. For the year to June, gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 2.1%, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, slightly stronger than market expectations. The bureau noted overall growth remained subdued, with spending growth and…
