Auction market takes big hit from Sydney slump

The clearance rate also slipped, from 66.2 per cent in December 2014 to 62.1 per cent in December 2015.

Sydney was largely responsible for the decline: auction sales fell 6.5 per cent to 12,610, while the clearance rate fell from 71.6 per cent to 59.8 per cent.

Melbourne registered a slight improvement, with sales rising 3.4 per cent to 15,438 and the clearance rate moving from 67.6 per cent to 67.8 per cent.

In Brisbane, sales fell 5.3 per cent to 2,236, while the clearance rate rose from 44.4 per cent to 45.6 per cent.

It was a similar story in Adelaide, where sales fell 8.6 per cent to 1,479, while the clearance rate rose from 57.0 per cent to 59.5 per cent.

Canberra experienced gains in both categories – auctions sales were up 20.0 per cent to 1,139, while the clearance rate climbed from 54.9 per cent to 61.5 per cent.

Perth experienced a 6.8 per cent increase in sales, to 534, alongside a decrease in its clearance rate from 39.0 per cent to 35.3 per cent.

Tasmania as a whole saw auction sales fall 4.5 per cent to 168, while the state’s clearance rate slipped from 38.0 per cent to 36.6 per cent.

Australia’s leading auction suburb in the last three months of 2015 was Reservoir in Melbourne, which held 275 auctions.

Sydney’s leading auction market was Mosman, which held 152 auctions in the December quarter.

The Brisbane suburb of Paddington held 49 auctions, the Canberra suburbs of Kambah and Narrabundah held 33, and the Adelaide suburb of Prospect held 30.

[Related: Housing market heading for correction]