The market has changed – and I am sure you can feel it.
Clearance rates have eased below 60% for the third consecutive week (58.9%), down from a March quarter average of 68.1%. More telling, nearly 27% of Sydney auctions are now being withdrawn – a clear sign that expectations on the sell side are adjusting.
From our side, it’s been noticeable. The phone is ringing – and it’s well-capitalised buyers on the other end, ready to move when something makes sense. With less noise in the market, those opportunities are becoming easier to identify – and act on decisively.
A More Considered Market
A Slower Year
Ahead?
Price growth is expected to moderate this year, with forecasts closer to ~2-3%, down from the ~8-9% growth seen previously. Rather than signalling weakness, this reflects a normalisation after a stimulus driven upswing – particularly one led by the lower end of the market and government incentives, which have now largely played through.
With borrowing costs elevated, a more measured pace was inevitable – and the data is starting to reflect that too. Recent insights from CoreLogic show time on market has lengthened and auction clearance rates have softened from their peaks (as previously mentioned) – both consistent with a transition away from urgency-driven decision making.
What’s more compelling, however, is the change in buyer behaviour.
In rising markets, decisions tend to be faster and more emotionally driven – a dynamic well documented in behavioural economics, where “fear of missing out” can compress decision timelines. In contrast, more balanced conditions tend to produce what researchers describe as deliberative decision-making – where buyers take longer, process more information, and ultimately make higher-conviction choices (as outlined in Behavioural Economics literature, including work by Daniel Kahneman).
We’re seeing that play out in real time. Buyers are asking better questions, conducting deeper due diligence, and showing greater price discipline – a change also supported by lending data from Australian Bureau of Statistics, which shows borrowing activity stabilising after the sharp fluctuations of recent years.
It’s exactly this kind of environment where experienced buyers tend to perform best – and where we’re seeing our clients move with clarity and momentum, rather than hesitation.
Home Delivered in April
Home Delivered in
April
I recently secured the Kalypso a sub-penthouse in Tamarama. Expansive harbour views, excellent natural light – the kind of property that immediately makes sense the moment you walk through it. A great result for an astute client who has capitalised on the softer market we are currently working in.
Something We’ve Been Working On
Something We’ve
Been Working On
We’ve always said the purchase is only part of the story. What happens after – how a space is finished, how it’s lived in – is just as important.
We’re currently in the process of introducing an art and interiors advisory arm, in collaboration with Barbara Flynn, one of Australia’s leading curatorial advisors. Her work spans from gallery ownership in New York through to major projects like Barangaroo and Quay Quarter – where art is considered as part of the architecture, not added at the end.
The idea is to give clients an even more complete experience – from acquisition through to the final layer of the home. It’s being led internally, and done in a way that feels aligned with how we already operate.
Still early stages – but it’s something I’m quite excited about.
Where Things Sit
I think the current market is starting to present a genuine window for buyers – if they recognise it.
When confidence softens, it doesn’t mean everything becomes cheap overnight. What it does mean is that expectations – particularly on the sell side – start to adjust. Agents become more realistic, sellers become more negotiable, and the gap between perceived value and actual value begins to close.
With the Reserve Bank of Australia widely expected to lift rates again next month, borrowing capacity may tighten slightly – which tends to further soften competition and create more considered buying conditions.
That’s usually where the better opportunities sit.
As always – if any of this raises questions, feel free to reach out.
I’ll keep you across anything worth knowing as it develops.
– Jeremy
