Auctions rise
There were 1,134 auctions this week, as volumes continue to rise.
Volumes are still well down on a year ago, as Melbourne continues to hold relatively few auctions.
Auction clearance rates continued to strengthen, with Sydney's preliminary clearance rate rising to 76 per cent from 560 reported results so far.
Canberra remains very strong, consistently reporting even higher results.
Summary results via Tim Lawless of CoreLogic:
Source: CoreLogic
Clearance rates were above 80 per cent on Sydney's Lower North Shore, Northern Beaches, and Central Coast, according to MyHousingMarket's Chief economist Dr. Andrew Wilson.
Melbourne restrictions ease
Australia's virus spread has all but ceased as the country heads into summer, with no ICU or ventilator cases reported yesterday nationwide, and a total of only five positive tests were reported for Victoria across the past three days.
The tug of war continues with furious businesses demanding an immediate reopening but the state government conceding only modest restrictions and an effective lockdown continuing for a large proportion of residents.
ABS figures reported this week showed that up until September nearly a quarter of a million Victorians have been put out of work since January as the state's economy has seized up.
Melbourne restaurants will be allowed to open from November 1 - still a fortnight away - but will only be allowed to seat a maximum of twenty indoors.
With only seven weeks between that time and Christmas this is surely going to further cripple the local hospitality industry.
