Home listings take a tumble
Residential property listings dropped sharply in April as asking prices rose.
Residential property listings dropped sharply in April as asking prices rose.Figures from SQM Research show that nationwide residential real estate listings fell by 8.3% in April. Sydney and Melbourne saw the largest declines, at 12.7% and 15.2%, respectively.
“The sharp fall in listings in Sydney and Melbourne reflects the fact that many homeowners are looking for higher prices to be convinced to sell their properties," SQM Research managing director Louis Christopher said. "This is causing many would-be vendors to stay sidelined, which is only perpetuating price increases. Some vendors are reluctant to sell as they might not be able to buy back in, given price momentum.”
Asking prices headed higher across most of Australia’s capitals. Asking prices for capital city houses rose by 12.2% from the previous week, but were up by only 2.1% for units. Asking prices for houses in Sydney were up 13.2% from the previous week, while unit prices were up by 3.5%. The divide between house and unit prices was more pronounced in Melbourne, with house asking prices up 10.6% from the previous week and unit asking prices up by only 0.3%.
April property market month in review
Christopher says that underlying property demand remains strong in Sydney and Melbourne.
“Combined with strong local economies, these factors are working together to drive property prices higher. Contrary to recent reports of a slowdown taking place, I see no signs of a slowdown in either Sydney or Melbourne.”
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