With summer gone and football season about to commence, the research team at PEXA look back on what was a quieter February in property. All states witnessed declines in sales settlement volumes from January, as interest rates continued to increase. Check out the state-by-state snapshot below.
New South Wales highlights
After closing out 2022 strongly, New South Wales (NSW) experienced a second consecutive leaner month, with sales settlement volumes dipping by 17% (month-on-month) in February.
However, commercial settlements saw healthy growth after a slow January.
- Residential settlements were down 18.2% month-on-month
- Commercial settlements were up 8.4% month-on-month
- Greater Sydney Area was down 20.2% month-on-month
- The rest of NSW was down 12.5% month-on-month
- The aggregate value of sale settlements in NSW fell 19.3% month-on-month to $12.1B
- Sale settlements with a new loan were down 20.5% month-on-month
- Refinance settlements were 2.8% higher month-on-month.
Queensland highlights
The Sunshine State had a minor dip in sales settlements, with sales settlement volumes down 3.4% month-on-month in February.
However, similar to NSW, its commercial settlements saw a strong 13.4% month-on-month increase.
- Residential settlements were down 4.2% month-on-month
- Commercial settlements were up 13.4% month-on-month
- Greater Brisbane Area was down 5% month-on-month
- The rest of Queensland was down 2.1% month-on-month
- The aggregate value of sale settlements in Queensland fell 4.4% month-on-month to $9.6B
- Sale settlements with a new loan were down 7.1% month-on-month
- Refinance settlements were 10.6% lower month-on-month.
Victoria highlights
Victoria followed suit in line with its eastern counterparts, with an 8.5% drop in sales settlements in February from the previous month.
It saw the highest rise in commercial settlements however, with refinance volumes also trending strongly.
- Residential settlements were down 10.1% month-on-month
- Commercial settlements were up 18.2% month-on-month
- Greater Melbourne Area was down 7.2% month-on-month
- The rest of Victoria was down 12% month-on-month
- The aggregate value of sale settlements in Victoria fell 6.4% month-on-month to $10.7B
- Sale settlements with a new loan were down 12.2% month-on-month
- Refinance settlements were 5.9% higher month-on-month.
Western Australia highlights
It was a tale of metro vs regional in the west for February, with CBD sales settlements down for the month, but regional areas saw a healthy month-on-month spike in transactions.
- Greater Perth Area was down 8.5% month-on-month
- The rest of WA was up 6.6% month-on-month
- The aggregate value of sale settlements in WA fell 6.1% month-on-month to $3.8B
- Sale settlements with a new loan were down 10% month-on-month
- Refinance settlements were 2.6% higher month-on-month.
In summary
We have witnessed a slower start to the property market in 2023, however this trend is following on from record high levels of activity across 2021 and 2022. Keep an eye out for our quarterly wrap up due to be published in April.
