Now that we are past the winter halfway point, spring is only a little over five weeks away. The number of properties on the market continued to drop last week across the Upper North Shore Ku-Ring-Gai suburbs as existing listings were sold and very few new listings hit the market. It was encouraging to see an increase in buyer activity at The Marshall Group opens, with contract requests and open home attendees at their highest levels in weeks.
Sydney total property listings also remain low, as demand is beginning to increase, helping to sustain stronger-than-anticipated auction results and property value growth despite ongoing economic challenges. Auction volume picked up slightly last week, and the preliminary clearance rate rebounded to 74.6% after dipping below 70% the previous week, according to CoreLogic.
The combination of low stock levels and increasing buyer engagement could prove advantageous for savvy sellers ahead of the spring selling season. Previous years have shown similar trajectories, with stock levels and auction volumes rising through the remainder of the year as more listings come onto the market. Whether auction clearance rates will hold strong remains to be seen.
Despite the winter school holiday lull, The Marshall Group has sold 12 properties so far in July, totaling over $30 million, and 102 properties in 2024, amounting to more than a quarter of a billion dollars.
On another note, the Q2 2024 national Cordell Construction Cost Index (CCCI), which tracks the cost to build a typical new dwelling, recorded a modest 0.5% rise, slowing from the 0.8% increase in Q1. Annual costs rose by 2.6% during FY24, the smallest increase since 2002 and well below the pre-COVID decade average. CoreLogic Research Director Tim Lawless noted, “While the growth in costs has returned to normal margins, construction and renovation prices remain nearly 30% higher than pre-COVID levels after a prolonged period of rising costs.”
As always, if you have any questions or need further insights into the market, feel free to reach out to us. We are here to assist you with all your property needs.