Spring, softly.

Worth knowing: Sydney property data, simplified. 

Through winter, Sydney had very few homes for sale, with new listings falling 14.1% year on year even as total stock rose 14.3%, according to Cotality. That began to change in August, though not with the same pace as previous years. Instead of a concentrated, pre-spring uplift, homes came to market steadily across the month. The number of prospective buyers inspecting homes for sale rose alongside this, reflecting shared participation in the market from both buyers and sellers. 

Across August, BresicWhitney recorded 22 new listings in each of the first two weeks, rising to 36 in the third and 28 in the fourth as spring approached. Buyer attendance at open homes climbed on July, though it remained 16% below the same month last year. Properties took 5% longer to sell than in July, and 79% longer than a year ago. 

Across the capital cities, 93% of suburbs recorded value declines through winter, according to Cotality. Sydney values now sit 7.1% below their February peak. 

Buyers entered the market at a similar pace to new listings, which BresicWhitney CEO Will Gosse said points to more equal footing across September. “We’re seeing less of a gap between what sellers expect and what buyers will pay. Sales are coming together in quicker timeframes than they were three months ago, and more people are attending open homes and auctions to understand where value is.” 
 
The type of homes coming to market shifted too, indicating renewed confidence at the higher end of the market. While the majority of BresicWhitney listings sat sub $2 million three months ago, August saw an increase in homes between $4 million and $6 million. A further four homes priced between $6.5 million and $8.5 million also sold across the month, the most active month in this price point since autumn. 

Field Notes. 

August’s results were shaped by more than a single factor. The ongoing macroeconomic complexity means that while buyer levels remain healthy, it doesn't take much to tip someone from interested to undecided.

Mr Gosse said a return to fundamentals supported strong sales results. “Well-presented homes make value easier for buyers to see. It’s not as much about whether the home has been renovated, more about the care that’s been invested into how it’s presented. 

“It becomes more important at the higher end of the market, where accurate pricing and how the home is positioned matter just as much. If someone can't picture themselves living there, or it doesn't present a compelling reason to secure the home, they'll keep looking,” he said. 

 Fewer homes leased across August than a year ago, yet rents rose almost 5% and properties leased in the same average of 16 days. Vacancy sat marginally higher at 1.8%, which was enough to give tenants a little more choice without changing what they had to pay.  

Loans to investors for established homes fell 14.8% over the June quarter, the largest quarterly decline since 2020, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The tax changes behind that shift are only months old, and most existing holdings are grandfathered. 

"Supply has been the defining issue in the markets we operate in for a decade, and vacancy across our portfolio has stayed low through every set of conditions we’ve seen," said Chantelle Collin, BresicWhitney Head of Property Management. "Conditions shift, but the fundamentals don’t." 

More owners were reviewing their long-term positions, she said, which wasn't the same as acting on them. "Very few owners have moved so far. If that changes through spring, an increase in listings will register it well before rents do.” 

Industry expectations point the same way, with NAB's most recent property survey forecasting rents to rise 3.9% over the coming year. 

What comes next. 

September arrives without a seasonal excuse. What it shows will shape the rest of the year.