News Sydney's October listings surge are a sign of the downturn: SQM

Sydney's October listings surge are a sign of the downturn: SQM

SQM Research calculated that national residential listings fell in October by 1.4 percent to 324,228, with stock levels decreasing in most capital cities. 

Melbourne posted the biggest drop of 3 percent, but listings bucked the national trend in Sydney and Canberra.

Listings also rose in Adelaide by 2.6 percent.

 

There were gains of 2.8 percent in Sydney and 5.3 percent in Canberra.

 

Compared to a year ago, listings were down by 4.6 percent across all Australian capital cities.

 

The biggest drop was posted in Hobart, with listings down by 25 percent.

 

SQM said Melbourne followed, with listings down by 11 percent, reflecting tight supply in those two cities.

 

"It is not unusual to record a slight decline in listings in October," Louis Christopher at SQM said.

 

"The initial September spring surge in listings has run its course.

 

"A second surge in November usually occurs prior to the market closing for the year, and so, we expect listings to rise again next month." 

"There is no evidence of any major correction in any city, however the large year-on-year rises in Sydney are demonstrating a downturn," he added..

SQM noted capital city asking prices rose 1 percent for houses but were flat for units for the month to October 24.

 

The largest monthly rise came from Hobart, where unit asking prices rose 10 percent.

 

In Melbourne, asking prices for houses rose by 1.7 percent, with a 1.3 percent rise in asking prices for units.

Year-on-year gains were also the strongest in Melbourne, with both houses and unit prices rising 21 percent and 12.7 percent respectively.