Vendor behaviour is shifting fast across the property market. Auctions accounted for almost 45% of new listings at their most recent peak in November, but that share has "retreated to just over 30% in June 2026," with clearance rates falling and a growing number of properties withdrawn amid weaker demand.
The report notes the long-term average sits closer to 28%, suggesting "there could be further to go" before the trend stabilises. Sydney and Melbourne are driving the shift most sharply, though vendors in less auction-reliant markets, such as Brisbane and Adelaide, have also moved toward private sales in recent months.
Buyer sentiment data backs this up: the Westpac-Melbourne Institute House Price Expectations Index fell to a three-year low, with only 47% of consumers now expecting prices to rise over the next year.
That hesitancy is already visible in the price data. Australian dwelling values fell 0.7% over the three months to June 2026, the largest rolling three-month decline since January 2023, according to Cotality's latest Monthly Housing Chart Pack.
Annual growth has also decelerated to 7.3%, down from stronger rates recorded earlier in the cycle, with momentum expected to ease further through the second half of the year.
The slowdown is concentrated in the largest capital markets. Sydney values fell 3.2%, and Melbourne fell 2.6%, over the June quarter, dragging combined capital city values down 1.3%, while combined regional values rose 1.1% over the same period. Sydney values now sit 3.7% below their January 2026 peak, and Melbourne is 4.0% below its March 2022 high. By contrast, Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane, and Darwin are all sitting at or near record highs, with Perth posting 23.9% annual growth and Darwin 19.8%.
The Reserve Bank held the cash rate at 4.35% in June following three consecutive hikes, with borrowing costs continuing to climb for both owner-occupiers and investors. Core inflation remains a risk, with trimmed mean CPI rising to 3.6% in May, and the report cautions that "even if this is the peak of the cycle, any cuts are unlikely until well into 2027."
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