More voices are joining the chorus proclaiming Melbourne as the Australian property market of the future, relegating the once-sizzling Sydney to the role of second fiddle. The Australian Financial Review reports on latest property auction performance of the two capital cities and found that while rates fell for both locations, Melbourne posted a greater number of clearances than Sydney. Additionally, Sydney posted its third consecutive week of sub-60% clearance, and it’s lowest clearance rate (59.3%) since February of 2013. The publication spoke to Louis Christopher, an analyst at Australian property advisory and forecasting company SQM Research, about what these findings could portend. "The boom has not been as prevalent in Melbourne, that's why the market is holding," property analyst SQM Research's Louis Christopher said."We strongly believe Melbourne will outperform in 2016 … while the slowdown in Sydney is definitely accelerating."Mr Christopher who correctly predicted the size of the recent boom had predicted the Melbourne market will continue to rise to double digit growth in 2016 but Sydney will maintain in a 4 to 9 per cent range. "We are going to see more of the 4 per cent than a 9 per cent," he said.
While it may need to share the spotlight with Melbourne, it’s not all bad news for Sydney. The publication reports that total listings for the city are higher this year than last year, and Christopher notes that private treaty sales remain strong. [The Australian Financial Review]View full listing (pictured top)