Wading through August: rain, rates and resilient results

August might be remembered for its sideways rain – it was relentless, record-breaking and downright miserable. My father used to say “never buy a car on a rainy day because the salesperson knows you’re keen”. Well, real estate’s no different and when we see people trek through open homes in a downpour, they tend to be pretty serious about buying, not just casually taking a stroll around the area.

And to be fair, that’s who we dealt with all month – genuinely serious buyers keen to strike a deal. Excuse the pun, but we waded through the weather and still landed outstanding results. It helped that August began with the RBA’s third rate cut of this cycle, taking the cash rate to 3.6%, nudging the best home loan rates to just under 5% and adding roughly 15% to buyer borrowing power. Technical on paper, but on the ground these rate cuts are slowly accumulating into real momentum. We’ve argued we need at least four cuts to really start pushing the market and the RBA is mulling over more cuts, but we wouldn’t hold our breath for that occurring in September.

Auction clearance rates also edged higher through August as listing levels started to rise late in the month. But let’s not overstate it – the final clearance rate sat between 53% and 55%, which on our scale is reflective of a market still lacking some confidence and definitely a price-sensitive one. The media has been firing off very bullish headlines with the strength of the preliminary auction numbers on Saturday night, which have pretty consistently been circa 75%. However, it’s the final clearance rate that matters, and it’s the one to base your next decision on. Let’s cut to the chase, the media headlines remain misleading on the mood of the market. There are signs of improvement but we’re a long way off a bullish sellers’ market. Every month we connect with agents across the key pillars of Sydney property sectors in the East, North, Beaches and Inner West and the pattern is consistent – most properties attract one or two serious buyers if the price is right. Miss your guide by as little as 5% and it can be crickets. On the CH Market Mood Meter, that reads to us as 6.5-7 out of 10. Blow-out auction results still happen, sure, but they’re rare and usually reserved for listings priced well below market or for the best-in-suburb homes that always draw in a crowd and competitive spirit.

Speaking of top-tier real estate, our team raised the bar once again in Leichhardt with the sale of the reinvented Lindsay Toy Factory. During the campaign it was the third most-viewed property in NSW and ultimately broke through the $5m barrier – a price never seen in the suburb. It was a stellar campaign by Santos and Frank Sulfaro and it carried a personal moment for me. My Nonno ran a mannequin factory on Norton Street for three decades and he’d be stunned to see what Leichhardt properties are fetching in the old Italian stronghold.

3 Foster Street, Leichhardt – the old Lindsay’s Toy Factory

Across the board we pushed through the rain to sell 47 properties in August. Buyer numbers stayed resilient at an average of 16 groups per open and our time on market was just 18 days. The reality of this market is clear with transactions getting done, but only when a cautious, data-driven buyer pool finds common ground with a seller willing to meet the market. It sounds simple enough but we’re seeing first-hand that there are still financial pressures on both sides of any sale, so finding that sweet spot to trade can be elusive.

Looking ahead, we expect to see a sharp rise in listings through September and October. The early signs point to a couple of bumper months, and this will really test whether buyer depth can stretch to meet the extra stock. Property markets never move in a straight line and it seems more than ever that our market is susceptible to weekly changes which could be triggered by a shift on a single RBA announcement, or just as quickly on one record-breaking sale that jolts buyers into some urgency to act. The clock to be listed and sold this year is now on time trial mode as there are roughly 80 good selling days left in 2025, and they’ll go fast.

If you’re considering a move this year, now is the time to talk. In this environment, the best outcomes come from a sensible, tactical plan with pricing discipline, solid presentation and a campaign built for how buyers are behaving right now.