Cotality Australia's first week of auction reporting for 2026 shows activity and success rates rebounding sharply from late‑2025 levels, with signs that vendors may be moving quicker than buyers to adjust to looming rate rises.
That shift is occurring against a backdrop of prices that are still creeping higher, with national measures showing values edging up in January even as talk of another RBA cash rate hike intensifies.
In total, 1,629 homes were taken to auction across the capital cities – a 17.2% increase on the same week a year earlier – following a very subdued December when just 483 auctions were held over four weeks, and all capitals except Perth recorded higher volumes.
At the same time, the preliminary clearance rate jumped to 69.7%. Clearance had been sliding through most of spring and early summer 2025, from a peak of 77.9% in late September to 62.7% by mid‑December. The latest early read is the highest since late-November, suggesting a more decisive start to 2026 than many expected.
“The pickup in the preliminary clearance rate could be a sign of vendors adjusting their pricing expectation ahead of an expected rate hike and the potential for a broader easing in purchasing demand,” Cotality said.
For brokers, that combination of more realistic seller pricing and still‑solid buyer depth could translate into more conditional approvals converting to settlements in the early months of the year.
Melbourne was again the nation’s busiest auction market, with 643 homes taken to market – a 33.1% increase on a year earlier. The city’s preliminary clearance rate lifted to 69.3%, up from 65.7% in mid‑December and the strongest early reading since late November.
Sydney saw 468 auctions, only 3.3% higher than the same week in 2025, but its preliminary clearance rate surged to 71.3%, well above mid‑December’s 58.1%.
Among the smaller capitals, Brisbane hosted 221 auctions, up 36.4% year-on-year, with a 75% preliminary clearance rate. Adelaide recorded 153 auctions, just 2% above last year, but delivered the standout clearance result at 86.1%, the highest of any capital and the strongest since early April 2025.
Canberra remained an outlier, with 135 auctions but a preliminary clearance rate of just 39.8%, the weakest of any capital and the lowest early reading since mid‑2019. Only eight auctions were held in Perth and one in Tasmania.
Cotality expects volumes to rise further, with around 1,735 auctions scheduled next week and just over 2,000 the week after, giving brokers a busy—and revealing—start to the 2026 lending year.
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