In a powerful display of market momentum, Australian real estate auction activity has experienced a significant upswing, recording its busiest week in nearly a year ahead of the upcoming March long weekend. Buyers and sellers alike rushed to the market, pushing the number of homes going under the hammer across the combined capitals to a staggering 3,479.
According to Gerard Burg, Head of Research Australia at Cotality, this impressive figure represents the largest volume of auctions witnessed since the week ending March 24th of last year, which saw 3,519 homes taken to auction. Despite this sharp surge in available housing supply, buyer appetite has remained remarkably resilient. The preliminary auction clearance rate held incredibly firm across the nation, climbing nine basis points from the previous week’s early results to settle at a solid 68.9%.
Melbourne emerged as the undisputed powerhouse of the week’s auction activity. The Victorian capital hosted a massive 1,838 auction events, marking its highest volume of homes taken to market since the week ending December 19, 2021. Far from being diluted by the sheer number of listings, Melbourne’s preliminary clearance rate actually strengthened under the pressure, rising to a robust 70.4% from 68.1% the previous week. However, this frenzy is set to be short-lived; industry experts note that the coming days will be dramatically quieter across the Melbourne market due to the impending long weekend, with only about 550 homes currently scheduled for auction.
Meanwhile, the Sydney market experienced a notably different dynamic. The city recorded 1,182 auctions, which stands as its highest volume since the final week of November in 2025. Yet, unlike Melbourne, Sydney’s preliminary clearance rate experienced a downward shift as supply increased, slipping to 65.5%. This represents a drop from the 67.1% recorded two weeks prior and a sharp decline from the recent high of 79.6% seen during the week ending February 8th. Consequently, this marked Sydney’s lowest preliminary clearance rate of the calendar year so far.
Across the smaller capital cities, Brisbane proved to be the busiest property market, taking 175 homes to auction. This represented the city’s second-highest volume of the year, backed by a highly solid early clearance rate of 74.8%—its strongest result since the first week of February. Adelaide followed closely with 137 homes taken to auction and a positive reporting result of 75.9%, though this was a slight cooling from the 82.6% seen two weeks earlier. Further west, Perth saw 12 homes go under the hammer with a massive preliminary clearance rate of 85.7%, while Tasmania recorded a quiet week with just five auctions.
Looking ahead, property market watchers and investors should prepare for a temporary lull. The national volume of auctions is expected to drop sharply over the coming week to approximately 1,950. This anticipated decline is entirely seasonal, driven by the public holiday long weekend across Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, and the ACT.