Sydney, Melbourne have worst auction week in more than five years

Jun 28, 2026 – 12.52pm Sydney auctions sank to their lowest clearing rate in more than six years and Melbourne had its weakest week in almost five years, the number of homes offered plunging as sellers tried to avoid a softening market. The weakness of auction markets in the country’s two largest cities was likely to pull the preliminary capital city 49.2 per cent clearance rate down to a final rate closer to 40 per cent, following the previous week’s 42.3 per cent, Cotality research director Tim Lawless said.