The latest SQM research into the residential property market has shown an increase of 6.3 per cent in market listings during March.
The market movement means national residential property listings in March totalled 338,113.
Both Melbourne and Sydney experienced a jump in residential listings, up 13.5 per cent and 11.8 per cent respectively compared to the February figures. The trend experienced by Sydney in March was in line with the city’s 12-month trend, which showed listings up 23.2 per cent from a year earlier.
Melbourne’s yearly position did not mirror the March data, with listings remaining lower than this time last year by 6.3 per cent. Despite this fall in listings, the shortage of properties for sale has eased in the Victorian capital over recent months.
All of the other major capital cities’ residential property listings climbed in March, with Hobart leading the way with an increase of 7.8 per cent, followed by Adelaide (7.6 per cent), Perth (7.1 per cent), Brisbane (6.9 per cent), Canberra (6.3 per cent) and Darwin (3.1 per cent).
Hobart’s listing level was, however, 28.6 per cent short of the 2017 mark.
“With the year now well underway, homeowners are taking advantage of strong price gains over recent years to sell their properties before any correction in the property markets hurts the value of their homes,” SQM managing director Louis Christopher said.
“We also had a longer month in March compared to February, so we have seen a jump in property listings.”
The average asking price for houses rose by 1.2 per cent across all capital cities, but this was not matched by unit asking prices, which fell by 0.2 per cent for the month to 3 April 2018.
The Melbourne property market displayed the strongest performance in this area, with the average asking price for a house exceeding $1 million, reflecting an increase of 1.7 per cent. The average asking price for units in the city also rose by 0.3 per cent.
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