In This Week’s How’s The Market | Edition 165
Melbourne’s Market Has Shifted
Clearance Rates Under Pressure
Quoting Games Are Changing
Where Buyers Can Win
Quoting Has Changed In Melbourne
There is no doubt that the market has shifted significantly across Melbourne in 2026, and this doesn’t just affect prices; it affects how agents sell homes.
According to SQM’s auction clearance rates, the first weekend of August has seen a small increase from a clearance rate of 40.29% to 43.44%, however, this shows the market is still very weak overall.
And what we are seeing on the ground is that real estate agents are combating the softer expectation of the market with multiple different quoting strategies.
Some agencies are intentionally quoting above expectations so that they can be negotiated back down to the price the vendors really want.
Others are still underquoting and running to auction to see what happens.
Today, we are going to discuss and give some tips to protect yourself and make sure that you are still buying for a great price and with me I have Jack Leahy from Loan Market Razor to discuss the finance side of the equation.
- Do you think your clients have been finding it easier or harder to buy overall this year?
The Upper End Market
If you’re on our auction emails, you would know that we send out a weekly report of the auction results for properties quoted above $1.5m across Boroondara, Stonnington, Port Philip & Yarra.
Historically, this is a market that has experienced a lot of underquoting.
It’s sort of the norm for many agents to have the reserve either $50k or $100k above the top end of the advertised range.
We can track this by seeing what properties are readvertised at if they don’t sell across the market.
For example, if a home is quoted $1,800,000 – $1,980,000 – if it doesn’t sell, it might be readvertised with a single price of $2,000,000 or even $2,100,000.
What I’m seeing recently is that reserves are actually more often now within the range or even at the bottom of the range as agents are anticipating the property passing in from day one.
The Middle Market
In the $800k – $1.5m range – I’m seeing a lot more private sales.
This is where things have started to shift a lot.
Agents have told us that they are starting to price properties more aggressively in this range so that they can be negotiated down.
I was putting together a brief for a client today, and I showed them a number of properties that have transacted recently and what they were quoted.
- Sold for $1,100,000 on 16th Jul 2026
- Quoted: $1,200,000
- Sold for $1,140,000 on 9th Jun 2026
- Quoted: $1,150,000 – $1,250,000
- Sold for $1,000,000 on 22nd Apr 2026
- Quoted: $1,000,000 – $1,100,000
As a buyer, if you’re not across this, you could get caught out and massively overpay.
The First Home Buyer Market
This market is still largely the same as it has been for years.
Many agents will still opt for private sales and chase the top of the quoted range.
We are still seeing some auctions with certain agencies leaning towards boardroom auctions or private auctions at the property to only draw in serious competition.
Stay ahead of the market – get the real auction results every week!
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Final Thoughts
Melbourne’s market is shifting, and buyers who understand changing quotes, auction results and negotiation tactics will be best placed to secure the right property at the right price.
If you or someone you know would like assistance to buy this year, book in a call and we can discuss if we can help.
Thanks for reading this far!
We value feedback and if you have any suggestions on what you would like covered in the future please email me at [email protected]
Happy Buying!
Note: This is general advice and does not take into consideration your objectives, situations or needs. Please consider if this advice is suitable for you and your circumstances and speak to a professional before making any financial decisions.
