Houses for sale in Australia increasingly popular

Houses for sale in Australia are increasingly popular,
according to the latest research from domain.com.au.

The report, conducted by the Oz
property portal, found that the number of transactions in Sydney is rising,
with auctions proving particularly popular.

Something for the
weekend

Buyers are finding that auctions offer them something for
the weekend, with 572 properties up for auction last Saturday and Sunday.
That’s “the same number as the previous weekend”, the Australian portal adds,
and close to the 588 from the equivalent number of days in 2010.

Clearance rates, however, beat the other two periods, with
the highest rate in a month (54.9 per cent) recorded.  Out of the 392 auctions last weekend, 252
ended in successful sales, with a total value of $219.7 million.

The average property value was $871,825, but prices ranged
as high as $2,115,000, a three-bedroom house in Cooge, which was the most
expensive, and as low as $232,000 for a two-bedroom property in Mount Druitt.

In addition to the auction activity, overall sales are on
the up too, with home loans increasing by 3.9 per cent in September – the sixth
monthly increase in a row.

“Give them the
housing they want”

The sales in Sydney increased despite a recent report that
says buyers in Australian aren’t being given the houses they want. The report
from the Grattan Institute found “a clear mismatch” between current housing
stock and desired real estate, with “200,000 fewer semi-detached homes than
people wanted”, according to OPP.

There were fewer apartments in high-rise buildings than
wanted, too, the Institute also found.

Given this discrepancy between supply and demand, Grattan has
proposed a priority for developers willing to help overcome problems frequently
reported by residents.

By fast-tracking such projects, Australians would be
able to get the houses they want, while allowing to industry to encourage innovative
design as well as meet buyer demand.