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While new property listings declined in January, buyers have more choice than they did in the same month last year, according to the REA Group’s latest PropTrack Report.
The report said that nationally new listings in January increased by 49.8 per cent compared to December 2022 but decreased by 9.4 per cent compared to January 2022.
However, the total number of listings nationally, which includes new and existing listings, increased by 11.5 per cent year-on-year.
PropTrack economist Angus Moore said the surge in new listings for January on a month-on-month basis was expected.
“New listings in capital cities were up almost 93 per cent month-on-month in January as vendors returned to the market after a typically quiet December,” Moore said.
“While a large increase, it reflects just how quiet the end-of-year break was.”
Capital city listings
| New listings, month-on-month | New listings, year-on-year | Total listings, month-on-month | Total listings, year-on-year | |
| Sydney | 158.7% | -16% | -2.1% | 6.4% |
| Melbourne | 100.5% | -15.4% | -3.4% | 7.4% |
| Brisbane | 80% | -6.9% | 2.5% | 21.0% |
| Adelaide | 84.9% | -3.9% | 0.6% | 8.5% |
| Perth | 45.9% | -14.9% | -6.6% | -6.6% |
| Hobart | 69.5% | 24.6% | 6.2% | 101.2% |
| Darwin | 31.9% | -20.5% | -3.8% | 1.6% |
| Canberra | 91.3% | -4.7% | -4.0% | 34.6% |
| Nationally | 49.8% | -9.4% | -0.3% | 11.5% |
^ Source: REA Group's PropTrack Report, January 2023
Darwin experienced the biggest drop in new listings for January 2023 compared to January 2022 with a 20.5 per cent decrease while Sydney recorded a 16 per cent drop, Melbourne a 15.4 per cent drop and Perth was down 14.9 per cent.
“Despite the increase, new listings were still below 2022’s strong levels,” Moore said. “Conditions and activity slowed in the back half of 2022 following an extremely busy spring in 2021 which extended into early 2022.”
Total listings in January increased across all capital cities compared to the previous year except Perth which declined by 6.6 per cent.
Nationally, total listings last month compared to January 2022 were up 11.5 per cent. Hobart topped the list with a 101.2 per cent increase followed by Canberra, up 34.6 per cent.
Regional areas had a total listing increase year-on-year of 15.8 per cent with regional Tasmania posting the highest increase, 50.5 per cent, while regional Victoria and NSW were up 46.5 per cent and 43.5 per cent respectively.
Brisbane’s total listings increase by 21 per cent last month compared to January 2022.
Moore said the decline in house prices was part of the reason for the market slowing down as well as the increasing interest rate.
“Home prices nationally declined 0.1 per cent month-on-month in January and are now down 4.5 per cent from their peak in early 2022,” Moore said.
“Those price falls, and the slowing in market activity, have come on the back of the Reserve Bank of Australia raising interest rates at an extremely brisk pace.
“The RBA is expected to continue raising rates this year, though there may not be much further to go.”
Moore said that activity is expected to pick back up in the near future.
“The unemployment rate was sitting around multi-decade lows for the majority of 2022 and has remained there for much of the past six months,” Moore said.
“Wages growth, while running slower than inflation, has started to pick up.
“International migration has also returned, which will further add to housing demand.”
