Australia’s housing market has entered the winter slowdown with auction clearance rates remaining below 50 per cent for a sixth consecutive week, as weaker buyer demand continues to weigh on property sales across the capital cities.
New figures from Cotality show 1,443 homes went to auction across the combined capitals in the week ending 5 July, down 17.4 per cent from the previous week and 19.6 per cent lower than the same week last year. The weighted average clearance rate edged up to 46.0 per cent from 45.0 per cent a week earlier but remained well below the 67.9 per cent recorded at the same time in 2025.
The latest result marks six consecutive weeks with the national clearance rate below the 50 per cent mark, reflecting softer conditions in Australia’s two largest auction markets, Sydney and Melbourne.
Annabelle Mezieres, Economist at Cotality, said the weakness was extending beyond weekly fluctuations.
“The weakness in clearance rates is not just a one-week story. The four-week average, which smooths out the weekly ups and downs, has dropped sharply since the start of 2026 and is now near its lowest in years. It is also well below where it sat in July last year.”
Melbourne recorded 583 auctions during the week, down 27.8 per cent from the previous week and 24.0 per cent lower than a year earlier. The city’s clearance rate improved to 49.6 per cent, while Sydney cleared 46.4 per cent of its 556 scheduled auctions, also recording a modest week-on-week improvement. Despite the gains, both cities remain well below clearance rates recorded a year ago.
“The weakness in clearance rates is not just a one-week story. The four-week average, which smooths out the weekly ups and downs, has dropped sharply since the start of 2026 and is now near its lowest in years. It is also well below where it sat in July last year”
Brisbane recorded the weakest result among the capitals, with a clearance rate of 23.5 per cent, its lowest reading since April 2020. Of the 119 properties taken to auction, 77 were passed in, indicating a wide gap between buyer and seller price expectations.
Cotality noted that auctions account for a relatively small share of Brisbane’s overall housing market, meaning the clearance rate reflects only a portion of sales activity. The figures nevertheless suggest buyers and vendors remain far apart on price.
Adelaide’s clearance rate eased to 45.5 per cent from around 110 auctions, while Canberra was the only capital to finish above the 50 per cent mark, recording a clearance rate of 52.4 per cent from 63 auctions. Perth cleared 44.4 per cent of its 10 auctions, while no auctions were held in Tasmania during the week.
Cotality said auction activity typically slows during June and July as fewer buyers and sellers enter the market before activity increases during spring. However, this year’s winter slowdown has been accompanied by weaker market conditions than those seen 12 months ago.
The report says the combination of lower auction volumes and softer clearance rates highlights the deterioration in housing market conditions over the past year as demand-side pressures have increased.
Looking ahead, auction activity is expected to ease further this week.
An estimated 1,358 homes are scheduled to go under the hammer across the capital cities in the week ending 12 July, down 5.9 per cent from last week and 5.2 per cent lower than the equivalent week in 2025. Melbourne is expected to host 572 auctions, followed by Sydney with 498. Brisbane is one of the few capitals forecast to record higher auction volumes than both last week and a year ago, with 133 properties scheduled for auction.
Cotality expects the seasonal slowdown to continue over coming weeks, with auction volumes likely to fall to around 1,300 next week before easing to approximately 1,200 the following week.
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