Adelaide auctions cleared just 28% this weekend, Brisbane 20%. What spring's soft hammer market means if you're buying or selling

Another soft spring auction weekend. On Domain's early count for the week ending Saturday 24 October, Adelaide cleared just 28% and Brisbane 20%, while Sydney sat at 45% and Melbourne at 56%. Those are preliminary numbers — they will revise as more results land — but the shape of the weekend is already clear: the hammer is not delivering spring's usual lift, and buyers and sellers need to plan around that.

What a clearance rate actually measures

A clearance rate is the share of known auction results that sold — before, at or after the auction — including homes that passed in or were withdrawn. Domain publishes preliminary city results over the weekend and updates as agents report. Cotality publishes its own preliminary and final series for the combined capitals, with a slightly different sample and method.

Important: Domain and Cotality are not the same series. Lead with this weekend's Domain city preliminaries. Use Cotality only for the multi-week trend and for Victoria's public-reserve context. Do not put a Domain Adelaide % next to a Cotality Adelaide % as if they were one continuous line.

This weekend's Domain numbers (preliminary)

Domain's city pages for the week ending Saturday 24 October (last updated 24 October; labelled preliminary) show:

• Adelaide — 28% (74% this time last year). Scheduled 152; reported 95; sold 27; withdrawn 8; passed in 60. Median of reported sales $1,100,000; total sales about $20.7m.
• Brisbane — 20% (48% last year). Scheduled 200; reported 135; sold 27; withdrawn 16; passed in 92. Median $1,100,000; total sales about $22.1m.
• Sydney — 45% (70% last year). Scheduled 885; reported 499; sold 223; withdrawn 184; passed in 92. Median $1,650,000; total sales about $188.6m.
• Melbourne — 56% (66% last year). Scheduled 838; reported 618; sold 347; withdrawn 100; passed in 171. Median $1,181,000; total sales about $297.0m.
• Canberra — 46%. Scheduled 66; reported 46; sold 21; withdrawn 14; passed in 11.

Two details jump out. First, Adelaide's year-on-year drop — 28% versus 74% — on a still-busy list of 152 scheduled auctions. Sixty of 95 reported results passed in. Second, Sydney's withdrawals: 184 out of 885 scheduled, as vendors pulled or sold before auction. Brisbane's pass-in count (92 of 135 reported) is similarly soft. Treat the auction medians as small-sample weekend figures, not market-wide medians — for capital-city price levels, stick to Domain's September-quarter report.

How that sits against Cotality's recent weeks

Cotality's final clearance rates for the week ending Sunday 11 October (published 15 October) put the combined capitals at 44.1% — the lowest weekly clearance since late June, down from 45.4% the prior week and 24.1 points below 68.2% a year earlier. City finals that week included Sydney 45.6% (632 auctions), Melbourne 49.8% (703), Adelaide 44.9% (138; up 12.0 points on the prior week but still 32.2 points below 77.1% a year earlier), Brisbane 21.8% (197; near an 18-year low), and Canberra 38.5% (65). Cotality economist Annabelle Mezieres said spring "has not delivered the usual lift", clearance had declined for four consecutive weeks, and "buyer demand appears to be the main constraint."

Cotality's preliminary for the week ending Sunday 18 October (published 19 October) then rose to 51.2% on 1,084 collected results — the highest preliminary in four weeks — but volumes thinned: 1,423 auctions held across the combined capitals (18.6% fewer than 1,749 the prior week; 45.8% below 2,626 a year earlier). Melbourne hosted 500 auctions (vs 703 prior week and 1,142 a year earlier) in the first week of Victoria's public reserve-price disclosure, with a preliminary clearance of 56.2%. Sydney 54.6% (574 held); Brisbane 31.5% (164); Adelaide 36.4% (119 — still more than the 88 a year earlier); Canberra 65.9% (52). Cotality noted about 1,240 auctions scheduled for the following week — the weekend just finished.

So the multi-week picture is soft demand and thinner lists, with a bounce in Cotality's preliminary clearance on lower volume — not a return to last spring's 60s–70s clearances. This weekend's Domain city preliminaries keep Adelaide and Brisbane well below half.

Why the hammer is soft

Borrowing capacity and confidence are the twin constraints. The cash rate has been 4.60% since late September (effective 30 September after the September rise), with the next Reserve Bank decision due Tuesday 3 November. Lenders still assess most owner-occupier applications at your rate plus a 3% buffer, so every cash-rate move cuts how much buyers can bid. Domain's September-quarter house-price report — already on this site — showed house prices falling in all eight capitals, with the combined-capital median house at about $1,226,566 and a quarterly fall of 4.7%. Soft auction clearances and falling quarterly prices are consistent with each other; they are not the same dataset.

For the rate backdrop into Cup Day — including Deputy Governor Hauser's "materially worse" inflation comments and Wednesday 28 October's CPI — see Saturday's piece rather than rehashing it here.

Adelaide snapshot

Adelaide's Domain preliminary of 28% against 74% this time last year is the sharpest year-on-year city contrast on the weekend's list. The schedule was still full (152), but 60 of 95 reported results passed in and only 27 sold. That does not mean every suburb is soft, and preliminary figures will revise — but for anyone listing into spring, campaigns are taking longer and more homes are failing to clear under the hammer. Pair that with Domain's September-quarter price falls already published: soft clearances and softer quarterly prices usually mean more negotiation room for buyers and more realism required on reserves for sellers.

What it means if you're buying or selling

• Buyers: Soft clearances and high pass-in counts — especially Adelaide and Brisbane — usually mean more room to negotiate: pre-auction offers, buying after a pass-in, or shifting to private sale. Auction purchases are typically unconditional, so recheck borrowing capacity at today's rates (lenders assess at your rate plus a 3% buffer) before you bid. Don't treat a quiet weekend as a blank cheque — the right property in the right suburb can still clear — but the balance of power has tilted.
• Sellers / upsizers: Campaigns are taking longer and more homes are passing in. Price the campaign for today's market, not last spring's. If you're buying before you sell, talk bridging and timing through before you commit. Melbourne sellers also face Victoria's public-reserve rules — price expectations are more visible to buyers, which can change how campaigns are run.
• Owners not moving: Clearance rates don't change your mortgage rate. They can affect how long a sale takes, and therefore equity timing and LVR if you refinance or top up. For the rate path into November, see the Hauser/CPI piece; for capital-city price levels, see Domain's September-quarter report.

Key facts

• Domain prelim week ending 24 Oct: Adelaide 28% (LY 74%), Brisbane 20% (LY 48%), Sydney 45% (LY 70%), Melbourne 56% (LY 66%), Canberra 46%.
• Adelaide: 152 scheduled / 95 reported / 27 sold / 60 passed in. Brisbane: 200 / 135 / 27 / 92.
• Cotality final w/e 11 Oct: combined capitals 44.1% (prior 45.4%, LY 68.2%). Cotality prelim w/e 18 Oct: 51.2% on 1,423 auctions held.
• Cash rate 4.60%; next RBA Tuesday 3 November. Domain Sep-Q: all eight capitals' house prices fell; combined capital median houses ~$1,226,566 (−4.7% q/q).

Related reading

• Every capital city's house prices fell in the September quarter (22 October — Domain Sep-Q)
• The RBA just said inflation looks "materially worse" (24 October — Hauser / CPI / Cup Day)
• Fewer than half of spring auctions are selling (11 October — older Cotality week)
• Spring housing market stalls (15 October)
• This week's lender policy changes for self-employed, investors and bridging (23 October)

Sources: Domain auction results, Adelaide / Brisbane / Sydney / Melbourne / Canberra city pages, week ending 24 October 2026 (preliminary; last updated 24 October 2026) — clearance %, scheduled, reported, sold, withdrawn, passed in, medians and total sales. Cotality, "Final Clearance Rates – week ending 11 October 2026", published 15 October 2026 (combined 44.1%; city finals; Mezieres quote). Cotality, "Fewer auctions, higher clearance rate and reserves go public in Victoria", published 19 October 2026 (prelim 51.2%; 1,423 held; Melbourne public-reserve week; city prelims). RBA cash rate target 4.60%; Monetary Policy Decision 3 November 2026. Domain September-quarter house prices via Loanworth article 22 October 2026 / ABC coverage 21–22 October 2026 (combined capital median houses ~$1,226,566; −4.7% q/q; all eight capitals down). Cotality Auction Results methodology note (sold before/at/after as share of known results including passed-in and withdrawn).

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