Australia’s housing market is facing one of its most significant supply shortages in years, with national listings continuing to fall and competition intensifying, according to the Real Estate Buyers Agent Association of Australia (REBAA).
SQM Research reports that total national residential listings are now about 10 per cent lower than a year ago, confirming a structural tightening in supply across the country.
The steepest annual falls were recorded in Darwin (-36.7%), Brisbane (-19.6%), and Perth (-18.0%), highlighting the depth of the shortage in several key markets. Older listings have also dropped 10 per cent year‐on‐year, while distressed listings have plunged 29.4 per cent, which signals strong buyer absorption and fewer forced sales, according to SQM Research.
REBAA President Melinda Jennison said the national trend is unmistakable with buyers competing in markets where quality stock is scarce and sells quickly.
“We’re not just dealing with seasonal fluctuations because there is a structural shortage of listings and buyers are feeling the pressure nationwide,” Ms Jennison said. She said the sharp annual declines in cities like Brisbane, Perth and Darwin reflect what buyers’ agents are seeing on the ground.
“When listings fall nearly 20 per cent or more in a year, as they have in Brisbane and Darwin, buyers simply don’t have enough choice,” she said. “That’s when access to pre‐market and off‐market opportunities becomes absolutely critical.”
She said that buyers’ agents are increasingly relied upon to uncover opportunities that never reach the major portals because of the current mismatch between available listings and demand from property purchasers.
“In a tight‐supply environment, access is everything,” she said. “Our members are securing quiet, pre‐market, and off‐market listings because selling agents know they bring qualified, ready buyers to the table.”
With national asking prices also rising 12.8 per cent year‐on‐year, according to the data, competition remains fierce even as affordability challenges persist, she said. “Good properties are always in strong demand, regardless of broader market conditions and supply constraints,” she said. “When national stock levels are this low, that demand becomes even more
concentrated.
“A skilled and experienced buyers’ agent helps clients move quickly, negotiate
confidently and avoid costly mistakes. “In markets where listings are shrinking year‐on‐year, that expertise can be the difference between securing a home and missing out repeatedly.”
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