By Michael Yardney October 26, 2026

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This week’s Australian Property Market Update – Latest Data, State by State October 27th 2026

Property Market News
This week’s Australian Property Market Update – Latest Data, State by State October 27th 2026

Key takeaways

Property prices continue to decline. Capital city dwelling values have fallen 1.2% over the past month and 3.2% over the year.

Auction markets remain weak. The latest national clearance rate fell to 43.4%, compared with 67.2% a year ago.

Properties are taking longer to sell. The national median selling time has increased to 41 days, compared with 26 days last year.

Housing stock is accumulating. Total advertised listings are 19.1% higher than a year ago, despite fewer new properties entering the market.

Strategic buyers have greater negotiating power. Weaker competition is creating opportunities to secure quality properties on more favourable terms.

Australia's property markets are continuing to soften, and the spring selling season has done little to restore buyer confidence, with falling prices, weaker auction clearance rates and longer selling times pointing to a market where buyers are increasingly in control.

To help keep you up-to-date with all that's happening, below is my updated weekly analysis of data and charts as of 26th October 2026, provided by SQM Research, Cotality, and realestate.com.au.

Capital city dwelling values have fallen 1.2% over the past month and are now 3.2% lower than a year ago, with Sydney and Melbourne recording particularly significant annual declines of 8.3% and 7.1% respectively.

Meanwhile, the latest weekend auction results provide further evidence of subdued conditions, with the national clearance rate falling to just 43.4%, compared with 67.2% at the same time last year.

Interestingly, despite fewer new properties coming onto the market, total advertised listings are 19.1% higher than a year ago, suggesting properties are taking longer to sell as buyers become more selective.

Of course, Australia's property markets are far from uniform. While Sydney and Melbourne have seen more pronounced price declines so far this year, the rate of fall seems to be slowing, while Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth property values are starting to weaken but still show overall increases over the last 12 months.

In my view, we're moving through a period of adjustment that will ultimately create opportunities for strategic investors. With less competition and greater negotiating power, those with secure finances, adequate buffers and a long-term perspective may be able to purchase quality investment-grade properties on more favourable terms.

On the auction front this week...Capital city auction volumes rise but preliminary clearance rate falls to 48.4%

Across Australia’s capital cities, 1,882 auctions were held last week, 33.1% more than the previous week.

As auction volumes rose, the preliminary clearance rate fell. Of the capital city auctions with results reported, 48.4% were successful, down from 51.2% the previous week.

See Cotality's full auction report below.

This week, Cotality also reports that:

Sydney property prices declined -0.4% over the last week, also declined -1.5% over the last month, and are -8.3% lower than they were 12 months ago.
Melbourne property prices declined -0.1% over the last week, also declined -0.7% over the last month, are -7.4% lower compared to 12 months ago.

Brisbane property prices declined -0.5% over the last week, declined -1.6% over the last month and are 2.8% higher than they were 12 months ago.

Overall, Australian capital dwelling prices declined -1.3% over the last month and are now -3.9% lower than they were 12 months ago.

Clearly, the property cycle is moving on but our markets are very fragmented.

Weekly Change 26 October

Monthly Change 26 October

12 Month Change 26 October

Source: Cotality October 26th 2026

Of course, these are "overall" figures - there is not one Sydney or Melbourne or Brisbane property market.

And various segments of each market are performing differently.

At the start of this cycle, the market's upper quartile led the upswing, but last year the lower quartile across every capital city recorded a stronger housing-value outcome than its upper-quartile counterpart. Now the more expensive properties are suffering the most.

The following chart shows how different segments of each capital city market are performing.

Quarterly Change In Hdi

28 Day Rolling Hvi 26 October

Current property asking prices

Property asking prices are a useful leading indicator for housing markets - giving a good indication of what's ahead.

Here is the latest data available:

Sydney

Property type	Price ($)	Weekly Change	Monthly Change %	Annual % change
All Houses	2,049.763	-3.874	-1.3%	-2.4%
All Units	893.641	-0.346	0.6%	2.7%
Combined	1,576.749	-2.431	-0.9%	-1.4%

Source: SQM Research

Melbourne

Property type	Price ($)	Weekly Change	Monthly Change %	Annual % change
All Houses	1,301.450	2.549	0.4%	0.1%
All Units	685.019	1.481	0.8%	4.6%
Combined	1,106.914	2.212	0.5%	1.0%

Source: SQM Research

Brisbane

Property type	Price ($)	Weekly Change	Monthly Change %	Annual % change
All Houses	1,316.837	-7.787	-1.3%	0.4%
All Units	810.655	-5.955	-2.4%	2.7%
Combined	1,188.133	-7.321	-1.5%	0.7%

Source: SQM Research

Perth

Property type	Price ($)	Weekly Change	Monthly Change %	Annual % change
All Houses	1,245.663	8.860	0.8%	5.5%
All Units	752.410	-8.154	-2.1%	10.4%
Combined	1,115.766	4.379	0.2%	6.3%

Source: SQM Research

Adelaide

Property type	Price ($)	Weekly Change	Monthly Change %	Annual % change
All Houses	1,093.341	-4.141	-1.0%	3.2%
All Units	634.430	5.570	0.9%	8.8%
Combined	1,012.000	-2.385	-0.8%	3.8%

Source: SQM Research

Canberra

Property type	Price ($)	Weekly Change	Monthly Change %	Annual % change
All Houses	1,231.487	2.625	0.2%	-3.6%
All Units	601.113	-1.738	-0.4%	2.7%
Combined	990.088	0.954	0.1%	-2.7%

Source: SQM Research

Darwin

Property type	Price ($)	Weekly Change	Monthly Change %	Annual % change
All Houses	902.215	12.585	8.0%	16.2%
All Units	516.831	1.169	5.0%	17.8%
Combined	750.687	8.096	7.2%	16.6%

Source: SQM Research

Hobart

Property type	Price ($)	Weekly Change	Monthly Change %	Annual % change
All Houses	933.041	-1.241	1.0%	6.1%
All Units	516.506	-0.206	-2.0%	4.4%
Combined	869.086	-1.082	0.7%	5.9%

Source: SQM Research

National

Property type	Price ($)	Weekly Change	Monthly Change %	Annual % change
All Houses	1,053.667	-7.681	-1.0%	1.5%
All Units	657.708	1.593	0.3%	6.5%
Combined	967.239	-5.657	-0.8%	2.2%

Source: SQM Research

Cap City Average

Property type	Price ($)	Weekly Change	Monthly Change %	Annual % change
All Houses	1,510.182	3.031	-0.6%	-0.2%
All Units	790.364	-1.375	0.2%	4.3%
Combined	1,293.896	1.707	-0.4%	0.5%

Source: SQM Research

The value of property asking prices as a leading indicator for housing markets is quite significant.

In fact it's more valuable than median prices which can be quite misleading.

Let's delve into why this is the case and how it impacts the real estate market.

Early Market Sentiment Indicator: Asking prices often reflect the current sentiment of sellers in the real estate market.

If sellers are confident, they might set higher asking prices, anticipating strong demand.
Conversely, if sellers are uncertain or perceive a market downturn, they might lower their asking prices to attract buyers.
This makes asking prices a real-time indicator of market sentiment, often preceding changes in actual sales prices.
Predictive of Future Price Trends: Trends in asking prices can be predictive of where the actual property prices are headed.
For example, a consistent rise in asking prices over a period can signal an upcoming rise in transaction prices.
Impact of Economic Factors: Economic factors such as interest rates, employment rates, and broader economic health influence asking prices.
For instance, changes in the Reserve Bank of Australia's policies or shifts in the job market can quickly reflect in the asking prices, providing insights into how these factors are influencing the housing market.
Regional Variations: In a diverse market like Australia's, asking prices can also provide insights into regional disparities.
For instance, the property markets in Melbourne and Sydney might behave differently from those in Brisbane or Perth. Asking prices can give early indications of these regional trends.
Influence of Supply and Demand: Asking prices are also a response to the balance of supply and demand in the market.
In areas with limited supply and high demand, asking prices tend to be higher and vice versa.

However, it's important to note that while asking prices are a valuable indicator, they should not be used in isolation.

Other factors like actual sales prices, time on the market, auction clearance rates, and economic conditions also play crucial roles in understanding the property market dynamics.

Last weekend's auction report

Capital city auction volumes rise but preliminary clearance rate falls to 48.4%

Across Australia’s capital cities, 1,882 auctions were held last week, 33.1% more than the previous week.

The total was still 41.8% lower than the same week last year. This was the second consecutive week that capital city auction volumes were more than 40% below last year's levels.

Auction volumes rose in most cities, led by a 68% increase in Melbourne.

As auction volumes rose, the preliminary clearance rate fell. Of the capital city auctions with results reported, 48.4% were successful, down from 51.2% the previous week.

The preliminary clearance rate has stayed below 50% in three of the past four weeks.

Capital City Auction Statistics 26 October

The number of homes taken to auction in Melbourne increased significantly from 495 to 831.

However, compared to the same week last year, the city held 54.7% fewer auctions.

This substantial reduction is partly attributable to softer selling conditions while the implementation of the state’s reserve price transparency requirements has also prompted a period of adjustment while vendors assess how best to sell their homes.

The preliminary clearance rate declined by 1.4 percentage points to 54.8%, marginally below the spring-to-date average of 55.4%.

For the first time in twelve weeks, Sydney’s preliminary clearance rate fell below 50%. The result of 48.2% was only just above the recent low of 47.3% in June.

Sydney hosted 631 auctions, up 10.7% on the previous week, but auction volumes were 34.1% lower than the year prior.

Brisbane had by far the lowest preliminary clearance rate of any capital city, at 25.2%.

It was the city's fourth-lowest preliminary result so far this year. With 200 homes taken to auction, Brisbane’s auction volumes were 25.0% higher than the previous week.

The city was also one of the few capitals with higher auction volumes than a year ago, up 6.4% from the same week last year.

In Adelaide, 141 homes went to auction last week. This was 16.5% more than the previous week but 2.1% fewer than the same week last year.

Against a spring-to-date average of 44.3%, the preliminary clearance rate was slightly lower at 42.5%.

A 13.8 percentage-point drop brought the ACT’s preliminary clearance rate to 52.1%. Year on year, auction volumes in the ACT were one-third lower, though the total of 60 auctions was 11.1% higher than the previous week.

Half of the reported results from Perth’s 19 auctions were successful. Tasmania did not hold any auctions last week.

Our rental markets

Rental trends have evolved over recent months, with the vacancy rate moving higher, rental growth easing and gross rental yields lifting.

The national vacancy rate reached 2.0% in September, up from a record low of just 1.5% in February 2026.

This is the highest national vacancy rate since January 2025, but still well below the pre-COVID decade average of 3.3%.

Annual Change In Rents Houses

Hobart is recording the highest vacancy rate, at 3.0%, followed by Sydney at 2.3%, Brisbane and Perth at 2.1%.

The tightest capital city rental market is Adelaide with a vacancy rate of just 1.4%.

The rise in rental vacancy comes despite a sharp pullback in investment but may be attributable to structural changes in
rental demand, where renters are progressively forming larger households in an effort to combat stretched rental affordability.

Annual Change In Rents Units

The monthly pace of rental growth eased to 0.3% in seasonally adjusted terms, the smallest monthly rise since May 2025, taking the annual change in national rents to 5.5%.

Although rental growth looks to be slowing a little, gross rental yields are continuing to repair, rising to 3.85% nationally, the highest since August 2019.

Across the capitals, gross rental yields range from just 3.4% in Sydney to 6.5% in Darwin.

However, even with yields rising, opportunities for neutral to positive cash flow remain low, given the high holding costs including interest rates but also insurances, maintenance and strata fees.

Gross yields are likely to rise further as rents continue to push higher and housing values trend lowe

Gross Rental Yields Dwellings