March was a positive month for Australia’s residential construction industry... Auction volumes remain above 2,000...
Rise in new home sales result of strong unit market
March was a positive month for Australia’s residential construction industry, with figures released yesterday revealing a solid bump in new home sales over the month.
After a disappointing February where new homes sales fell 5.3%, the latest edition of the Housing Industry Association’s (HIA) New Home Sales Report has revealed March saw an 8.9% increase in sales.
A strong monthly performance in the apartment sector was behind the result, as sales of new multi-unit dwellings surged 16.3%, while sales of new detached housing stock increased 7%.
The three months to March also saw a 2.8% increase in new home sales, however sales were 1.7% lower when compared to the March 2015 quarter.
Auction volumes remain above 2,000
Despite a moderation in auction volumes, Australia is set to see more than 2,000 homes go under the hammer for a second straight week.
After 2,675 auctions were held last week, CoreLogic RP Data is currently tracking 2,049 auctions across Australia, with all but on capital city recording a weekly decline.
Last week’s national clearance rate finalised at 69.4%, meaning national rate has not finished above 70% since the week ending 27 March.
Melbourne is by far the busiest auction market this week, with the Victorian capital set to hold nearly twice the amount of auctions as Sydney.
CoreLogic’s figures show 1,076 auctions are scheduled for Melbourne this week, down from the 1,404 it held last week.
