Auction or private sale? It’s one of the most imperative decisions a vendor will need to make when considering selling property and for good reason—it can impact the final result.

In recent years, Canberra’s appetite for auctions has increased with more and more homeowners opting to put their properties under the hammer to secure the best price.

McGrath Canberra Auctioneer Hugh Rainger said auctions had become a favoured mode of sale for property in Canberra, especially in the current heightened property market. They also offered the most transparent property sales process, he said.

“At the moment, auctions are the best way to get a premium because you’re giving yourself the opportunity to sell it before, sell it during or sell it afterwards,” Mr Rainger said.

“Ultimately, if you’re going to put a price on it, you don’t know that you’re actually getting the right number. Even if you sell it for $20,000 over, the way the market is right now, it could make 20-30% more than what you’re chasing for it, so the only way you’re going to find true value is to put it to public auction and let people fight for it.”

Data shows more and more Australians are opting to sell their homes at auction. Nationally, last week was the second busiest auction weekend so far this year with 3062 homes going under the hammer.

CoreLogic data shows Canberra recorded the second highest preliminary auction clearance rate last weekend at 76.2%, second only to Adelaide with an 83.6% clearance rate.

And the number of auctions in Canberra has increased considerably, with the national capital due to host 150 auctions last weekend, compared to 97 last year, according to CoreLogic.

Mr Rainger said the Canberra market had evolved considerably over the past two years.

“The Canberra property market has almost been shoved forward 10 years from where it was two years ago. Five years ago, only 30% of homes would go to auction whereas I’d suggest now it’s well north of 60-70%,” he said.

“We used to get two or three registered bidders to an auction pre-COVID. Now, the standard is five to seven, or even more.

“Confidence is a big thing too. There’s confidence in the market, there’s confidence in Canberra and that’s ultimately leading to better prices and better results from an auction standpoint, regardless of whether it’s in Gungahlin or O’Connor or Woden.”