September brought the first real test of spring for Melbourne’s property market. Auction numbers climbed steadily through the month, reached their busiest point since June in the week before the AFL Grand Final, and then dropped away sharply over the long weekend. Melbourne’s clearance rates held up better than most capitals, but the month ended with another interest rate rise, and that sets the tone heading into October.

On auction volumes, Cotality’s weekly reporting recorded 656 Melbourne auctions in the week ending 6 September, then 710 in the week ending 13 September. The week ending 20 September reached 918 auctions, the city’s busiest week since late June, as vendors got in ahead of the Grand Final break. Even at that peak, volumes were well below a year earlier. Cotality noted that the 710 auctions in mid-September were 42.7 per cent lower than the same week in 2025.

Final clearance rates showed modest strength early in the month. Cotality recorded Melbourne at 54.6 per cent in the week ending 6 September, then 57.3 per cent the following week, which was the city’s highest result since late March. The busy pre-Grand Final week finalised at 54.2 per cent. That was down slightly, but it was still the highest of any capital city, and it marked 11 consecutive weeks of Melbourne clearing above 50 per cent. The same week in 2025, however, finalised at 71.6 per cent.

Domain’s preliminary Saturday-night figures told a similar story. Domain recorded 59 per cent from 654 scheduled auctions in the first week of the month, 63 per cent from 768 in the second, and 57 per cent from 913 in the week before the Grand Final. Over the long weekend itself, only 291 auctions were scheduled, and Domain’s preliminary rate was 52 per cent from 178 reported results. Cotality’s preliminary figure for that weekend was 48.8 per cent, its weakest Melbourne reading since September 2021. On such a thin holiday list, that says more about timing than the trend. Cotality’s final figure for the week is due in early October.

The gap between preliminary and final numbers is worth understanding. Early results are usually stronger because successful auctions tend to be reported first. Cotality’s preliminary Melbourne rate of 56.3 per cent for the week ending 20 September later finalised at 54.2 per cent. Different providers also count results in different ways. It is best to treat any single clearance figure as a guide rather than an exact score.

Behind those numbers is a market where passing in has become a common result. Across the combined capitals in the week ending 20 September, Cotality found that nearly seven in ten unsuccessful auctions were passed in rather than withdrawn. It said this could indicate that buyers and vendors are apart on price. Many of those homes go on to sell through negotiation in the days after the auction.

Prices have been easing for most of the year. The PropTrack Home Price Index, published by realestate.com.au, showed Melbourne values 5.3 per cent below their October 2025 peak in its most recent reading, which is already a larger fall than the city’s whole 2022 correction. Cotality’s Home Value Index recorded a 1.1 per cent fall for Melbourne in August. Both providers publish their September results at the start of October.

The biggest influence on buyer sentiment was interest rates. On 29 September the Reserve Bank lifted the cash rate by 0.25 percentage points to 4.60 per cent, its fourth increase this year and the highest level since 2011. Each rise reduces borrowing capacity. Cotality economists noted that many buyers had already adopted a wait-and-see approach through September, and with more homes on the market, those who are active have room to negotiate.

For sellers, the lesson from September is that well-presented, realistically priced homes are still selling, often under the hammer. Setting a reserve based on recent comparable sales, rather than last year’s prices, gives a campaign the best chance of reaching the buyers who are ready to act.

For buyers, spring is offering more choice and less competition than in recent years. It is worth confirming your borrowing position with your own broker or lender after the latest rate rise, since your pre-approval figure may have changed.

As October begins, auction volumes are expected to rebuild once the long weekends have passed. For homeowners and buyers in Thomastown and across Melbourne’s north, the approach that worked through September still applies: realistic expectations, careful preparation and a willingness to negotiate.