The auction market had a lacklustre third quarter as nervy buyers held fire in the wake of property cooling measures, home loan curbs and share market volatility. Only three of the 117 properties that went under the hammer in the three months to Sept 30 were sold. This is down a touch from the four sales recorded in the 119 auctions held in the second quarter. That modest fall in sales volume was more pronounced in terms of value, with homes totalling $4.6 million selling in the third quarter, down 39 per cent from the $7.6 million racked up in the three months to June 30. Knight Frank auction head Sharon Lee said the slew of government regulations introduced this year reined in demand at auctions as home buyers anticipated price cuts amid a weakening market. “Dampened demand could persist in the next few quarters following the implementation of the TDSR framework on June 29.” Ms Grace Ng, deputy MD of Colliers Intl added that buyers were diverted from the auction market to new launches as developers started lowering their prices to move units.... Continue Reading