Demand Our record result for October was clearly driven by our record volume of buyer demand . Across all of our metrics , demand was up . One of the metrics we watch with particular interest is the number of registered bidders at our auctions . For October was saw a record 5.3 registered bidders on average across our auctions .
Chart 3 : Online enquiries
This chart compares the number of online enquiries made through Ray White websites over the 2019 and 2020 calendar years . It shows that online enquiries are 24 per cent above levels at the same time last year .
The initial buyer metric we take into consideration is the number of buyers viewing properties online . Over the past 28 days we have seen over 4.2 million views across our Ray White websites . This is 42 per cent higher than this time last year . This has resulted in over 48,786 enquiries being sent , a volume which is 24 per cent higher than the same period last year .
# Online Enquiries / 28 days
70k 60k 50k 40k 30k 20k 10k
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
2019 2020
Source : Ray White Online Analytics
The demand hasn ’ t stopped at online activity . Across our auctions over the past week we saw an average of five registered bidders per auction and of these bidders an average of 2.9 were actively bidding at these auctions . These levels are some of the strongest we have seen all year ( refer to Chart 4 ).
Chart 4 : Bidding by month
The chart illustrates that the average number of registered bidders per auction has been increasing through 2020 as at 23 November 2020 .
The final consideration that we look at when measuring the volume of demand in the market and arguably the most significant is the number of people obtaining pre-approvals for finance . Pre-approvals are a key leading indicator to buyer confidence knowing they have the financial capacity to buy the property . Our partners at Loan Market ( refer to page 20 for more information ) are seeing record numbers of pre-approvals across the country with 31 per cent more than this time last year ( refer to Chart 5 ). |
# / 28 days |
7.0 6.0 5.0 4.0 3.0 2.0 1.0
Jan
|
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Avg . Active Bidders per Auction Avg . Reg . Bidders per Auction
Source : Ray White EARS Auction Reporting System
|
As we continue to see strong numbers across these buyer metrics , we often ask ourselves why . So what factors are contributing to buyer confidence ?
• Interest rates are at record lows . Importantly , the general consensus among economists is that they will remain at these low levels for the foreseeable future .
• Banks and lenders remain very supportive of lending for residential property .
• The low Australian dollar is attracting strong overseas buyer interest .
• Record levels of government stimulus continue to support buyer sentiment .
Chart 5 : Loan pre-approvals
This chart compares the number of loan pre-approvals submitted via Loan Market brokers over the 2019 and 2020 calendar years . It shows higher levels of pre-approvals now compared to 12 months ago .
# Loan Pre-approvals / 28 days
450 400 350 300 250 200 150 100 50
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
2019 2020
Source : Loan Market
11