Australian property listings at its second highest level for 2023

• Combined capital new listings were at a 17-month high in October.
• November saw a fall of five per cent, month on month.
• Melbourne saw total supply at 20 month highs.

The Australian housing market saw reduced new listings in November across the capitals, however, it remained at the second highest level for 2023, according to Domain data.

New listings for the combined capitals fell five per cent from October and saw no annual change; October was when the Australian real estate market was at a 17-month high for new listings.

Across the capitals, Melbourne saw total supply at its highest point in 20 months and Canberra seeing its highest total supply since early 2020.

Other capitals also saw strong total supply levels, Adelaide was at 12 month highs, Hobart was at eight month highs, and Brisbane and Perth were both at five month highs.

The Nothern Territory capital of Darwin was the sole capital to buck the trend, recording the lowest total supply in nearly two years, according to Domain.

Domain listings for November 2023

Source: Domain.

Domain also noted that eyes will be on next year’s autumn selling season, which will be telling of whether supply will continue to grow.

Homes swiftly come off the market

Days on market for private treaty have fallen across some markets, according to the latest data from Domain.

Monthly increases in the time it took to sell a home were recorded across Sydney and Melbourne.

Annually, Melbourne, Hobart, and Darwin homes took longer to sell compared to last year.

Adelaide recorded its quickest time to sell since 2004 for house at 61 days, and the quickest time since 2008 for units at 66 days.

Homes swiftly moved off the market in Perth, with the figures steady at 38 days on market; it is the city’s quickest days on market since 2006.

Brisbane was also steady at its fastest figure in more than a year, with homes coming off the market in 46 days.

Units were also hot property, taking less time to sell in most cities; the exceptions were Canberra, Hobart, and Darwin.

The Sydney and Adelaide unit markets have recorded a fourth consecutive month of declines in time to sell, Darwin three consecutive months, and two consecutive months in Hobart.

Melburnian units remained steady at 76 days on market, the shortest in almost two years.

Sydney units spent 63 days on market, the fastest in 17 months, and Darwin units spent 131 days on market, the shortest in 12 months.

Discounting a mixed bag across the country

Brisbane has seen discounting go both ways depending on the market, with housing discounts at their lowest point in two years, while unit discounting is at its highest in seven months.

Perth is seeing discounting at nine month lows for houses and discounting for units is at its lowest point since 2013.

Canberran houses saw discounting reach nine month lows too, however, unit discounting increased compared to 2022.

Adelaide saw house discounting at its highest in 16 months, with Domain figures showing the city was the only one to record both a monthly and annual rise.

While Sydney saw increases in discounting on houses in November, the city saw unit discounts fall to a 20 month low.

Melbourne likewise saw more discounting on houses.

Distressed listings remain low across the nation

Australians seem to have weathered the fixed rate mortgage cliff well, with distressed listings remaining low throughout the year.

In particular, Perth saw another record-low for distressed listings in November, with other cities also recording several-month lows. Brisbane was at 19 month lows, Sydney, Melbourne, and Canberra were at 18 month lows, Adelaide at 17 month lows, and Hobart and Darwin at 14 month lows.

Domain data did find some statistical area three (SA3) that recorded higher levels of distressed listings than last year, including Sydney’s Blacktown, Brisbane’s Sunnybank, and Canberra’s Weston Creek.