October was a month of adjustment for Melbourne’s property market. Victoria’s new reserve price rules took effect mid-month, auction volumes swung sharply from week to week, and clearance rates hovered around 50 per cent. Melbourne still posted some of the strongest results of the capital cities, but buyers spent the month absorbing September’s rate rise, and another arrived on Melbourne Cup Day.

The biggest change for local sellers and buyers was regulatory. Under rules that began on 1 October, Consumer Affairs Victoria requires agents to publish the seller’s reserve price as a single dollar figure at least seven days before an auction or fixed-date sale, for sales held on and from 16 October. If the reserve has not been published for the full seven days, the auction cannot go ahead. Sale prices must also be published once a sale becomes unconditional.

Cotality’s final figures show Melbourne held 666 auctions in the week ending 4 October and 703 the following week, still 43.7 per cent fewer than the same week in 2025. Volumes then fell to 495 in the week ending 18 October, the first week under the new rules, before jumping to 831 in the week ending 25 October as vendors brought campaigns forward ahead of the Spring Racing Carnival. Cotality noted that some campaigns were likely brought forward to finish under the old rules, while others were postponed.

Final clearance rates were steady but subdued. Cotality recorded Melbourne at 50.4 per cent in the week ending 4 October, 49.8 per cent the following week, 51.7 per cent in the first week of published reserves and 50.2 per cent in the week ending 25 October, the highest of the capital cities. The same week a year earlier cleared 67.4 per cent. Across the combined capitals, Cotality said October’s average clearance rate of 45.2 per cent was the lowest of any month so far this year.

Domain’s preliminary Saturday-evening figures, reported in The Age, ran a little higher, as early results usually do: 56 per cent on the first weekend of October, 53 per cent on the first weekend of mandatory published reserves, and 56 per cent from 612 reported results in the week ending 24 October. Providers use different reporting windows and methods, so each figure is best read as a guide rather than an exact score.

The Melbourne Cup weekend brought the usual seasonal dip. Cotality’s preliminary count showed 514 Melbourne auctions in the week ending 1 November, down 38 per cent on the previous week, with a preliminary clearance rate of 49.5 per cent, the second-lowest preliminary result this year.

Prices continued to ease. Cotality’s Home Value Index showed Melbourne values down 0.8 per cent in October and 7.6 per cent over the year. The realestate.com.au Home Price Report, powered by PropTrack, recorded a smaller monthly fall of 0.1 per cent, leaving Melbourne 6.1 per cent below its October 2025 peak with a median dwelling value of $815,000. PropTrack noted that Sydney has now overtaken Melbourne as the capital with the deepest correction, although Melbourne remains the only capital where prices are lower than five years ago.

Buyer sentiment was mixed. The Westpac–Melbourne Institute Consumer Sentiment Index fell 4.7 per cent to 80.4 in October, with confidence dropping sharply after the September rate rise and more than 80 per cent of consumers expecting mortgage rates to rise further. Yet the survey’s time to buy a dwelling index rose 3.4 per cent to 88.4, suggesting some buyers see opportunity. On 3 November the Reserve Bank lifted the cash rate again, by 0.25 percentage points to 4.85 per cent, its fifth increase this year and the highest level since 2008.

For sellers, published reserves mean pricing decisions now come earlier in a campaign. A reserve based on recent comparable sales gives buyers the confidence to register and bid, while one set well above the market can discourage them before auction day. Timing matters more too, because the reserve must be on public display for the full seven days.

For buyers, the new rules provide clearer price information, but a published reserve is not a prediction of the final price, and does not replace your own research. With rates higher again, it is worth confirming your borrowing capacity with your own broker or lender before you bid.

As November begins, for homeowners and buyers in Thomastown and across Melbourne’s north, the approach that served the market through October still applies: realistic expectations, careful preparation and a willingness to negotiate.