Photo by Parag Gaikwad on Unsplash
The number of properties coming onto the market in Melbourne has soared to its highest level since March, skyrocketing by 330% since private inspections resumed in late September.
After Premier Daniel Andrews' announcement on September 28 that private real estate inspections would be allowed, property listings skyrocketed almost instantly.
CoreLogic data shows the number of new property listings added to the market for sale increased by 330% in the four weeks ending 18th October.
This represents an increase in new listings from 1,606 in the four weeks to September 20th to nearly 7,000 over the period to October 18th.
Buying a home or looking to refinance? The table below features home loans with some of the lowest variable interest rates on the market for owner occupiers.
Lender | |||||||||||||
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Variable | More details | ||||||||||||
FEATUREDUNLIMITED REDRAWSSPECIAL OFFER | Smart Booster Home Loan Discounted Variable - 2yr (LVR < 80%)
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Smart Booster Home Loan Discounted Variable - 2yr (LVR < 80%)
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Variable | More details | ||||||||||||
FEATUREDAN EASY DIGITAL APPLICATION | Neat Variable Home Loan (Principal and Interest) (LVR < 60%)
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Neat Variable Home Loan (Principal and Interest) (LVR < 60%)
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Variable | More details | ||||||||||||
FEATURED100% FULL OFFSET ACCOUNTNO APPLICATION FEE OR ONGOING FEES | Low Rate Home Loan - Prime (Principal and Interest) (Owner Occupied) (LVR < 60%)
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Low Rate Home Loan - Prime (Principal and Interest) (Owner Occupied) (LVR < 60%)
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Variable | More details | ||||||||||||
NSW/VIC/SA METRO & INNER REGIONAL AREAS$5000 CASHBACK. T&Cs APPLY. | Variable Home Loan (Principal and Interest)
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Variable Home Loan (Principal and Interest)
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- Fast turnaround times, can meet 30-day settlement
- For purchase and refinance, min 20% deposit
- No ongoing or monthly fees, add offset for 0.10%
Base criteria of: a $400,000 loan amount, variable, fixed, principal and interest (P&I) home loans with an LVR (loan-to-value) ratio of at least 80%. However, the ‘Compare Home Loans’ table allows for calculations to be made on variables as selected and input by the user. All products will list the LVR with the product and rate which are clearly published on the Product Provider’s web site. Monthly repayments, once the base criteria are altered by the user, will be based on the selected products’ advertised rates and determined by the loan amount, repayment type, loan term and LVR as input by the user/you. *The Comparison rate is based on a $150,000 loan over 25 years. Warning: this comparison rate is true only for this example and may not include all fees and charges. Different terms, fees or other loan amounts might result in a different comparison rate. Rates correct as of May 25, 2022. View disclaimer.
CoreLogic Head of Research Eliza Owen said listing numbers have been extremely responsive to changes in social distancing policies.
"After months of restrictions, pent-up demand from sellers has accumulated so much, that more stock was recently added for sale in Melbourne than any other capital city region," Ms Owen said.
Source: CoreLogic
Ms Owen said it's possible part of the surge in new property listings could be a sign of distressed sales.
"A significant increase in new stock across Melbourne can mean different things for the state of the market. ‘Forced’ selling was a possibility from the pandemic, as significant job losses across Victoria may have limited the ability of some households to keep paying their mortgage," Ms Owen said.
"The latest financial stability review from the RBA noted that October was the period most mortgage deferrals were set to expire, which may have contributed to an increase in new listings in recent weeks. However, CoreLogic data does not point to a significant increase in mortgagee in possession events across Victoria."
Data from the Australian Banking Association (ABA) shows repayments have resumed on almost half (45%) of all deferred mortgages.
But recent data from Commonwealth Bank showed 14% of deferred home loans had at least one borrower still receiving JobSeeker payments, which could mean borrowers may struggle to meet their repayments beyond the four-month mortgage deferral extension.
Rising listings sign of market rebound
Ms Owen said the large increase in property listings could also point to a market rebound as vendors sell to meet rising demand.
"High buyer demand can also mitigate risk for distressed sales, because the added demand pushes up prices," Ms Owen said.
"One way to assess the state of the market through listings data is to observe how total listing volumes are tracking against new listings. New listings rose faster than total listings across Melbourne in the four weeks ending 18th of October.
"New stock added to market increased by around 5,370 properties, but the change in total stock was only 4,790. This suggests at least some stock on market has been absorbed over the past four weeks."
Other indicators could signal an improvement in property market conditions. In the week ending 18th of October, the final auction clearance rate was 60.2% in Melbourne, which Ms Owen said was achieved alongside the highest volume of auctions seen in two months.
"Over the past month, the rate of decline across Melbourne dwelling values has also eased. It is clear that even after long, strict restrictions, vendors are keen to sell," Ms Owen said.
"However, due to the lag between an initial property listing and a sale, it will be a few weeks before we can understand how strong buyer appetite is."
Disclaimers
The entire market was not considered in selecting the above products. Rather, a cut-down portion of the market has been considered. Some providers' products may not be available in all states. To be considered, the product and rate must be clearly published on the product provider's web site. Savings.com.au, yourmortgage.com.au, yourinvestmentpropertymag.com.au, and Performance Drive are part of the Savings Media group. In the interests of full disclosure, the Savings Media Group are associated with the Firstmac Group. To read about how Savings Media Group manages potential conflicts of interest, along with how we get paid, please visit the web site links at the bottom of this page.
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