![\"Wes](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/62260e856e5deacf47c16645e58a88f9513fb355be454aa2a0088a6dfde3d44d.png\")
Save<\/p>\nSave<\/p>\n
You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n
Remove items from your saved list<\/a> to add more.<\/p>\n AAA<\/p>\n Auction clearance rates have fallen to similar levels as the 2022 downturn and property prices are falling, but buyers who aren\u2019t ready to capitalise risk missing out.<\/p>\n Lower prices<\/a> are on offer, Sydney auctioneer Damien Cooley said, and smart buyers could be at an advantage.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a window of opportunity right now for buyers to be buying property for less than what they may have otherwise bought them for two to three months ago,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n But a buyer\u2019s market<\/a> comes with its own challenges. Including finances, bidding tactics and dealing with pass-ins, here are some tips to make the most of the current market at auction.<\/p>\n Related Article Loan Market Connect Victoria director Jacob Decru said before buyers even think about bidding at auction, they need to make sure their finances are pre-approved.<\/p>\n \u201cSee your mortgage broker and get a fully verified pre-approval,\u201d he said. \u201cThat means that it\u2019s been picked up and assessed by an assessor, not system-generated.\u201d<\/p>\n He said buyers needed to make sure they could service the loan long term, including with potential rate rises. He suggested factoring in up to another 1 per cent over the current 4.35 per cent Reserve Bank cash rate.<\/p>\n \u201cWork out \u2026 where you feel comfortable with a mortgage repayment, and then we can reverse-engineer it,\u201d he said, rather than focusing on the maximum amount you can borrow.<\/p>\n Sydney buyer\u2019s advocate Michelle May said she told every client \u201cno property is worth eating baked beans for the rest of your life\u201d.<\/p>\n Before auction<\/p>\n It\u2019s important to know that auctions are an unconditional sale, Emily Wallace of Melbourne-based Wallace Advocates said.<\/p>\n Related Article That means securing building and pest inspections before bidding and having any additional conditions \u2013 such as a reduced deposit or a shorter or longer settlement period \u2013 agreed to in writing in advance.<\/p>\n In Victoria, offers made three business days before or after the auction are also unconditional, Wallace noted.<\/p>\n \u201cIf it passes in and reverts to a negotiation, most agents will leverage the fact that it\u2019s still under auction conditions,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n May said it was also important to check conditions and restrictions that may not be obvious \u2013 she recently walked a first-home buyer away from a property she discovered was on a flood plain.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve read that people spend more time researching what car they are going to buy than their property,\u201d she said. \u201cDue diligence should reach a bit deeper than that.\u201d<\/p>\n Registering and making yourself known<\/p>\n In NSW, buyers have to register before they can bid at an auction.<\/p>\n \u201cYou need to make sure that you have a form of ID that shows your name and address, to be able to register to place a bid,\u201d Cooley said.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019ll be given a bidder\u2019s registration card. You need to show that card every time that you bid,\u201d he said, noting that if someone is bidding on your behalf, they will also have to register.<\/p>\n While there\u2019s no legal requirement to register before bidding in Victoria, Wallace said it was still in a buyer\u2019s best interest to make themselves known to the agent.<\/p>\n \u201cI think a lot of buyers fail to [do that], and they could see a property sell for a price that they would have paid if they were a known quantity,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Bidding<\/p>\n Before buyers put their hand up, Decru said they needed to know two prices: how much they want to pay, and their \u201cwalk away price\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201c[That\u2019s] a strict number,\u201d he said, after which bidders should stop.<\/p>\n \u201cIt baffles me how many people determine their limit in the auction, particularly couples,\u201d Wallace said. \u201cThat is a conversation to have outside the auction arena.\u201d<\/p>\n Woodards Bentleigh auctioneer Ben Quigley agreed it was important to have a plan and to bid with confidence.<\/p>\n \u201cAuctioneers appreciate when someone starts the auction,\u201d he said. \u201cBid confidently and have a limit. Once you get to that limit, stop. Then head to the next one.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of buyers at the moment, instead of a fear of missing out, have a fear of overpaying,\u201d Cooley said, which was stopping them from bidding and thus securing properties.<\/p>\n Related Article May agreed, but said \u201cFOMO\u201d was still something to be cautious about.<\/p>\n \u201cI was a mess when I bought my own place \u2013 I broke all my own rules,\u201d she said. \u201cBut when I buy for a client, I am there with one mission only, and that is to, A) get the keys, and, B) get it for the best price possible.\u201d<\/p>\n Cooley and Wallace said it was important to be aware of vendor bids \u2013 in both Victoria and NSW, auctioneers can bid on behalf of the vendor as long as it\u2019s before the property is declared on the market, and it\u2019s clearly stated.<\/p>\n \u201cVendor bids are common in a transitioning market,\u201d Cooley said. \u201cDon\u2019t see it as bidding against yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n Passing in and negotiations<\/p>\n![\"Buyers](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/d946f93d153ac263b172d736d3ce26c5ed8909c3.jpeg\")
Buyers have the opportunity to bid in an increasingly weak market.Joe Armao<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/1779835452_123_17a75bb11f4f57fea35903e2898cffdc9938c658.jpeg\")
<\/a>Finances<\/p>\n![\"Armando](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1c82ac4bea31fdeaaf162c50ac9aadfe50f55d93.jpeg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Emily](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/853ef823e67591d44148353f1f18f67db57e2e37.jpeg\")
Emily Wallace says buyers should make themselves known to the agent, even if they don\u2019t have to register.Joe Armao<\/p>\n![\"In](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/b4357b84a399bebd97e579acf50b4a3b60a8d8c1.jpeg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n