Melbourne, the capital of Victoria, is known as Australia’s auction capital, hosting 38% of Australia’s auctions in 2024. With a lot of properties in Melbourne going to auction, when and how much properties are sold via auction can be indicators of how well the property market is faring. To collect auction data from a particular suburb, I developed an Excel spreadsheet that allows me to record what properties are going on sale via auction, as well as when and how much they were sold for. I can use this data to gauge how well the property market in a particular suburb is faring, as well as how much properties of a particular type typically go for. 

In this blog post, I will go through the Excel spreadsheet, showing you the data that I collect and how I collected it. I will then go through how I used the data to track what is happening in the property market of a particular suburb and property type. 

Going through the Excel spreadsheet

The Excel spreadsheet is a place where I can record auction data for different properties. It has a number of columns where I can record different types of data. For each property, I record the following:

• Date added: The date that the property was added to the spreadsheet. 
• Link: The link to the property advertisement (typically realestate.com.au). I can use the link to quickly access the specific property to see what it looks like, as well as when and how much it was sold for.
• Address: The address of the property being sold via auction.
• Type: The type of property being sold. The spreadsheet defines the following property types: 
  • House: A single residential building placed on a discrete piece of land.
  • Apartment: A self-contained home that is part of a multi-level residential building.
  • Unit/villa: A ground-level home that shares land with other units and/or a wall with a neighbouring unit(s)
  • Townhouse: A tall, narrow house that is typically attached to other townhouses.
• # bedrooms and # bathrooms: The number of bedrooms and bathrooms in the property respectively.
• Auction date: The date that the auction was held.
• Lower range and upper range: The estimated lower and upper price ranges from the price guide (a document indicating how much the property may sell for, along with a list of similar properties that were recently sold).
• Asking price: The lowest price that the seller is prepared to accept. This typically appears when a property was not sold on auction day (i.e., it is passed in).
• Sold at: How the property was sold, consisting of the following categories:
  • Auction: The property was sold on auction day, either in front of other bidders or behind closed doors.
  • Passed in: The property was not sold on auction day, either in front of other bidders or behind closed doors.
  • Post-auction: The property was sold within three business days after auction.
  • Pre-auction: The property was sold before auction day.
  • Private sale: The property was sold more than three business days after auction.
  • Too late: The property was still not sold more than three weeks after auction day.
  • Under offer: The seller is considering a buyer’s offer to purchase the property at an undisclosed price.
  • Withdrawn: The property could not be found on realestate.com.au, either because there was currently no demand for the property or it was sold off market.
• Sold date: The date the property was sold.
• Actual price: How much the property was sold for. 

The following columns are calculated for each property:

• Comparison: How the actual price compares to the upper price range.
  • Lower: The property was sold under the upper range.
  • Middle: The property was sold at the upper range. 
  • Higher: The property was sold over the price range.
• Money gap: The difference between the actual price and the upper price range. A positive number indicates the property was sold at a higher price than the range, while a negative number indicates the property was sold at a lower price.
• Days gap: Number of days between the sold date and the auction date.

As some property advertisements were regularly updated, I added these columns to the spreadsheet:

• Old auction date: The previous date that the auction was scheduled to be held. This is useful for tracking whether an auction was delayed or a property that was previously withdrawn is being sold via auction again.
• Old min and old max: The old lower and upper price ranges for the property. These are typically recorded whenever an agent is updating the price guide due to a lack of interest in the property or an offer was rejected. 

Each spreadsheet compiles auction data for one suburb. Multiple spreadsheets can be set up in one Excel workbook to collect and track auction data across multiple suburbs.

How I collected the data

Every Sunday morning (the day after most auctions are run), I follow these steps to collect auction data from realestate.com.au:

1. I enter the suburb that I want to look at auction listings, and set search parameters to look for specific properties in a particular suburb going on sale via auction.
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2. While I was looking for my first home, I set the following search parameters to look for specific property types being sold via auction:
   • Property type: Townhouse, apartment & unit and villa
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   • Sale method: Auction
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3. Once I have set my search parameters and run the search, I copy and paste the URL to a comment in cell A1 (‘Date added’). In future weeks, I can click on the URL to quickly access the list of properties going on sale via auction with specific search parameters.
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4. I order the auction listings by ‘next auction’, going from the earliest auction to the latest auction. 
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5. I go through the list of auctions in order, checking off the properties by shading the address in green:
   • For auctions that have already been recorded on the spreadsheet, I check to make sure that the auction date and price range have not changed. If they have changed, I move the old date and price range to ‘old auction date’ and ‘old min’/‘old max’ respectively and record the new price range and/or dates. 
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   • For auctions that have not appeared on the spreadsheet, I add the details onto the spreadsheet.
6. Going to the spreadsheet, I go through auctions that have run in the past week and record whether the property has been sold or it is passed in, along with the sale method, the date that it was sold and the actual price (if it appears on the listing).
   • In some cases, a sold price might not be quoted, instead saying ‘Contact agent’.
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   • That sold price may appear a few weeks later, either on realestate.com.au or on CoreLogic’s list of recent sales over the past three months (check https://www.corelogic.com.au/our-data/recent-sales?postcode=[insert postcode] – you will get a list of properties that were recently sold over 90 days).
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7. Afterwards, I go through the properties that are passed in or under offer and see whether the property was sold.
   • If a ‘passed in’ or ‘under offer’ property has been sold, I record the sale results.
   • If the property has not been sold more than 3 weeks after auction, I record ‘too late’ under the ‘sold at’ column and shade the URL in red. This tells me to stop updating details on the property as it would have been sold via private sale (unless it goes on sale via auction again).
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8. In a separate spreadsheet, I count the number of properties that have been sold under a particular category. I use the data to calculate the clearance rate, the proportion of properties going on sale via auction that have been sold at auction. 
   • Individual states have different rules for auctions and cooling-off periods (the period of time where you can cancel the sale if you have changed your mind). In Victoria, properties that are sold via auction, or 3 business days before or after an auction, do not get a cooling off period. This means the person purchases the property without any conditions.
   • I use this definition to define the clearance rate as ‘the proportion of properties that have been sold during or around auction day’. I calculate this by adding the proportions of properties that have been sold pre-auction, auction or post-auction.
   • I use the clearance rate to see how well the market is faring for a particular property type and suburb. According to Veronica Morgan’s Auction Ready book, in Melbourne:
     • A clearance rate below 60% is a slow market – demand is low as there are not many buyers for a lot of properties. Consequently, property prices are likely to remain stagnant or even fall.
     • A clearance rate between 60% and 70% is a balanced market – demand is reasonable as there is a balance between buyers and properties on sale. Property prices are likely to remain stable.
     • A clearance rate above 70% is a rising market: Demand is high due to a lot of buyers competing for the few properties that are on sale. Due to the strong demand, property prices are likely to rise.

Results from my auction data

I was collecting auction data for different suburbs over August to December 2024 before I bought my first home. In this section, I wanted to present data of auctions that were held from 1^st September to 30^th November 2024 for Hawthorn, an inner city suburb 6km east of Melbourne. As I was only interested on strata properties such as apartments, units, townhouses and villas for my first home, I only collected auction data from these property types. I did not collect auction data from houses as they are a separate property market altogether. Also, I excluded five properties that were categorised under “Withdrawn” as it was unclear whether they were sold off market or were taken off the market.

Category	Number	Percentage
Pre-auction	19	27
Auction	30	42
Post-auction	1	1
Too late	3	4
Private sale	18	25
Passed in	0	0
TOTAL	71	~100

Out of the 71 properties on realestate.com.au that went on sale via auction during the period, 42% of them were sold via auction, with another 27% selling before auction. Combined with the one property that was sold during the post-auction period, the clearance rate of strata properties in Hawthorn during the period was 70%. That clearance rate was high, indicating that it was a rising market. This is because property sales tend to peak in spring when a lot of properties go on sale and many buyers are on the market searching for property. 

Plotting the number of days between the auction and sold dates, all properties sold via auction have a day gap of 0 days (as the property was sold on the same day as the auction). There was a sizable number of properties that were sold before auction, particularly within the 3 days before auction. Beyond the auction period, properties that were sold via private sale had day gaps that varied from 6 to 62 days after auction.

Conclusion

Creating this Excel spreadsheet and establishing a routine to check the status of auctions weekly have helped me stay up-to-date with how the property market is faring in a particular suburb. This allows me to gauge how competitive the property market might be for a specific property type in a particular suburb. It also allows me to set realistic price expectations for properties that I am looking to buy so that I can succeed in buying the property at auction without paying too much. This was how I managed to buy my first home via auction. 

You can use the spreadsheet attached to this blog post to keep track of auctions in the suburb(s) you want to live in, as well as a sample auction spreadsheet. This will definitely help you in your research to see how competitive auctions are in the suburb(s) of interest and what properties might go to auction. Happy collecting!

Disclaimer

Anything that is posted on The Active Evaluator blog is for general informational purposes only. You should not interpret this information as formal financial advice. If you would like advice tailored to your personal situation, please seek an accredited professional. I am not responsible for any subsequent actions you take by reading my blog as well as any expenses, costs, losses, damages and injuries you or another person may incur in the process. 

Since my last blog post on 7th December 2024, I have been preparing for settlement day on 29th January 2025 (the same day as Chinese New Year day). For most of the period, I was waiting for my home loan to be formally approved by both the bank and the Victorian State Revenue Office (who provides the funds from the Victorian Homebuyer Fund). I received formal approval from the Victorian State Revenue Office during the New Year break and from the bank last week. I visited the bank to sign the home loan documents and set up my bank accounts to pay the loan. While I have received formal approval for my home loan, the money from the bank, the Victorian State Revenue Office and my initial deposit is not enough to fully cover the purchase price. This resulted in a shortfall of a few ten-thousand dollars that I needed to cover. Luckily, I have enough money to cover the shortfall plus establish a buffer to pay off the home loan in case I cannot work for a period of time. This was all thanks to my diligent saving over the past few years that I am able to raise enough money to buy my first home. Even though there are government schemes where one can buy a home with just a 5% deposit, saving as much money as possible gives me more options as to the property I purchase, as well as favourable home loan terms.

I am also working to get quotes for renovations that I would like to complete before I move into the apartment. Even though the renovations are minor, I would like to replace the existing carpet and wooden floors with new laminate floorboards. Last weekend, I visited a few floor shops to look at some samples and speak to a few people to get a feel of price. Apparently, laminate (printed) and hybrid (textured vinyl) floorboards are cheaper to purchase and install compared to timber floorboards while being more water and scratch resistant. I have received some quotes that fall within the budget of replacing the floors. Additionally, replacing the floors would only take about 2 days, meaning if everything goes well I will have new floors when I move in. I would also like to replace the electric wall heater with a split system air conditioner (which would providing both cooling and heating), repair the wooden windows and install fly screens. I am getting quotes to get these jobs done before I move into the apartment.

Lastly, I am starting to do some research on the electricity, gas and internet providers I will use, with the aim to minimise costs. I have found an electricity provider that seems cheap on the surface, but is not a well-known brand. I will need to do some research on them. I also found a few internet providers that are cheap for the speeds they are offering. However, as I do not know what their reputation is like, I will need to do some research as well. Water is not a worry for me at the moment as I just need to pay the water rates upon settlement, so the water will be connected by the time I move in.

Overall, things are going well at the moment as I am busily getting everything ready for settlement and moving into the apartment.

I finally bought my first home, one month after getting my pre-approval! That home is a two-bedroom apartment in a quiet street in Hawthorn East. The apartment is located near a train station where I can catch the train to the city, as well as near a park where I can do some exercise. It is also a few minutes walk to Camberwell which has all the shops and supermarkets I need to fulfil my daily needs. The home is also near some op-shops where I can buy some cheap used items, aligning with my beliefs of reusing items where I can. Hence, the apartment is very conveniently located to everything I need.

The two-bedroom apartment is also a good property for my first home. Both bedrooms are pretty big for a two-bedroom apartment, meaning I have more than enough room to fit everything I have. I will use the bigger bedroom as my main bedroom, with the other bedroom as my home office where I can do some work. The living room is also large, with enough room to fit both living and dining room furniture. The kitchen is also fully renovated with a lot of storage space to store food, bench space to do some cooking and a breakfast bar to eat my meals. Plus it has a washing machine/dryer combo which would allow me to do all my laundry in the apartment. Overall, this apartment has everything I need to live in now and in the future, and I am so glad that I got to buy that property.

I bought the property via auction last Saturday. I have been preparing for the auction for a few weeks, attending inspections to assess the suitability of the home, asking questions to learn more about the property and the owners corporation and ordering a building and pest inspection report to see whether the property is habitable. I have also been looking at properties on the street that have recently been sold to form a basis of how much I should pay for the property. That gave me a high level of confidence coming into the auction. During the auction, I was able to make a first bid that was within the price range of the property and knocked other bidders out of contention. There was one other seriously interested bidder who was trying to call someone to raise their limit, but they could not get a bid in time before the property was passed onto me. The reserve price that I received was not only within my expected range but was also what I expected to be market value, being cheaper compared to recently sold properties in the street. Having accepted the offer, after providing a few signatures, the property was sold to me. The weeks of preparation have been well worth it for me as I got the property I wanted.

I feel ecstatic about buying my first home that would suit me for a long time, being located in a quiet street with a lot of amenities at a fair price. With the contract signed, I am now trying to get everything done ahead of settlement where the keys to the property would be handed to me. The signed contract has been sent to the bank to order a valuation for the property that would form the basis for formal approval of my home loan. I have also sent the contract to my conveyancer to start the property transfer process from my end. Lastly, I am planning the renovations that I would like to make before I move in. Mainly, I would need to replace the carpet with floorboards as well as replace the heater with a reverse cycler air conditioner/heater. I’ll have to get the relevant approvals from different stakeholders, as well as a few quotes from different companies, before settlement day so that the renovations can be done straight away. There are other renovations that need to be done to the property, but these can be done over time after I move into the property.

Anyway, I feel glad that I will have a place I can call home in a few months. That home will be a place where I can establish my own lifestyle that would suit me, away from the expectations of family. I cannot wait to move into a new place where I can live by myself and do things my way.

Over the past month, I have been looking at two apartments located in quiet streets within my suburbs of interest. One of them is a ground-floor apartment in Ormond, located south of Carnegie in Melbourne’s inner south-east. The other one is a first-floor apartment in Hawthorn East, between Hawthorn and Camberwell in inner east Melbourne. I have inspected both properties twice, checking the condition of each property, locating the plugs and NBN ports to put my appliances in and seeing how I could arrange my furniture. I also did some due diligence on both properties. I did some research online to see which planning zone the properties are in and whether there are any problems with the property such as being located in a flood zone. I have also read the contract and vendor statement for each property myself and got them reviewed by the conveyancers to see if they need to be revised. Lastly, I have ordered building and pest inspections to see whether there are any oustanding problems that need to be rectified.

Looking at both properties closely, I can see both the positives and negatives of each one. The Ormond property is only a 10 minute walk to the nearest train station in the Frankston line. That makes it easy for me to catch the train. Moreover, when the Metro tunnel opens next year, I can change to an express train in Caulfield station to go straight to the city. I also really liked the big outdoor space of the apartment. In fact, there is enough space to build an outdoor deck and set up some small garden beds to grow some plants and vegetables.

However, I have spotted a few negatives with the Ormond property. The aforementioned outdoor room has the fences in the wrong places, meaning the window of one of the bedrooms is overlooking a neighbouring backyard, presenting an invasion of privacy. I have alerted the agent of the issue who relayed it to the vendor. The fence problem is nearly being fixed with a quote being organised to move the fence. What cannot be fixed; though, are the rooms in the apartment being small. This not only means I cannot fit everything that I have in the apartment, but I would outgrow it quickly, forcing me to sell in the short-term. That is what is stopping me from buying the property.

In contrast, I prefer the Hawthorn East apartment more. That apartment is located within a quiet street in Hawthorn East. It is near a train station, meaning I can easily catch the train to the city; Camberwell, where there are plenty of shops, markets and amenities; and a park, where I can do some running. The rooms are also big, meaning I can fit everything that I have while still having enough room to buy more things. That makes it less likely that I will outgrow the apartment and being forced to sell the apartment too soon. Lastly, the kitchen and bathroom are renovated, meaning there are only a few things that I need to do (mainly replace the carpet with the floorboards and the heater with a split system) before moving in. Despite a higher price tag and higher strata fees, it is a really nice apartment that I can see myself living for years to come.

The auction for the Hawthorn East apartment is happening tomorrow. Having done a lot of research on the apartment, I will be coming to this Saturday’s auction and bidding with the intent of buying the property. I feel I have a good shot of winning the auction. Not only have I done a lot of research on that property, but I have decided on the prices that I think will get me the property without paying too much. If I fail to get the property; though, there are still plenty of properties that I can buy that would suit me. It has only been over a month since getting my pre-approval, but I am already getting stuck into the property search and seeing what it is like to be looking for the property that would be right for me. I can use the upcoming Christmas/New Year break to recharge and reflect on what I have learnt so far. Hopefully when I get back into the property hunt in the new year, I will be renewed and ready to find the property that is right for me.

I think I may have made a mistake in applying for my home loan too soon. Late last month, I submitted my credit and Victorian Homebuyer Fund applications to the bank with the required documents. I was motivated to submit these applications before the RBA announced that it would not be changing interest rates as I did not want to miss out on getting a place in the Victorian Homebuyer Fund. Also, given that it takes around 6 weeks to get a spot, I wanted to submit these applications soon to get the process started. This motivation was further fuelled by the fact that I would not be eligible for the Commonwealth Government’s “Help to Buy” scheme as I exceed the $90,000 per year income threshold as a single person. Hence, if I failed to get in the Victorian Homebuyer Fund, there would be no other shared equity schemes I would be eligible for. This would restrict my budget on buying my first home.

Since submitting my applications last month, the bank has sent numerous enquiries and requests for more documents to provide evidence behind my income and employment history. Having previously provided the minimum number of documents I needed to submit my applications, for the bank to come back to me asking for more documents was a bit dispiriting. In particular, the bank wanted a letter from my employer to show that I am now working full-time in the university. Because I have been moving around jobs over the past few months, they wanted that document to show that I am now earning a full-time income from the university.

Even though I have the letter to submit to the bank, I am hesitant to do so because one of my roles is contracted to end soon. My work in the university is split across two fixed-term roles. While one role will last until mid-2027, the other role is contracted to conclude by the end of the year. I did not disclose that detail in my credit application as I am in the process of getting that role converted into a continuing role and assumed that I would be working full-time in the university next year. The fact that the bank wants an employer letter from me saying that one of my fixed-term roles will end soon will lay bare the fact that I did not fully disclose my current employment situation in my credit application.

I have emailed the bank to see what they will do with my credit application. Best case scenario, they put my credit application on hold while I negotiate to secure a continuing role in the university, meaning I can work full-time in the university until at least mid-2027. Worst case scenario, I need to submit the required documents now with the current situation that one of my roles would be ending soon. This would either decrease my borrowing capacity massively, limiting the properties I can buy, or they reject my credit application outright. If that happens, that would put a black mark on my credit history which would make it harder for me to get a home loan. I am hoping that I can delay my credit application without the bank rejecting my application outright so that I have time to negotiate for a continuing role with the university.

Upon reflection, I was driven by FOMO in trying to get a place in the Victorian Homebuyer Fund before those places run out. The presence of the government getting an equity on my first home would allow me to buy a more expensive property with the money I have, increasing the chances that I would stay in it for a longer period of time. I overlooked the fact that full-time employment in the university was not guaranteed from the end of this year. If I had waited until I secured full-time work beyond 2024, I would have the evidence I need to show the bank that I have the income to keep up with my minimum repayments for my home loan. Here’s hoping that this is not a fatal mistake in my home buying process and that the bank would be kind enough for me to ameliorate this mistake.