Peter O'Malley

Principal of Harris Partners Real Estate. Author of Real Estate Uncovered and Inside Real Estate. Available now at

[Peter O'Malley @HarrisPartners]

Talking Property - State of the Market June 2026
SQM Research's Louis Christopher offers a breakdown on Sydney property. In this review, we cover the issues driving property prices lower and rents higher.
https://t.co/7eTpHCociB via @YouTube

[Dr Richard Hirschson @richardhirschs1]

Judo bank’s collapse may be the canary in the coal mine of Australian bad debts.

We are entering a bankruptcy cycle that Australia hasn’t seen for decades.

We will only get to find out the strength of our big bank balance sheets after the fact.

https://t.co/7PBE2NtXrK

[Peter O'Malley @HarrisPartners]

@MichaelPascoe01 Any property analyst that quotes the corporate media’s preliminary auction clearance rate as a credible source of truth should be treated with circumspection. The rest of his points in the post are valid.

[Louis Christopher @LouiChristopher]

Good to do the straight talking with Peter. Hope you like it.

[Shane Oliver @ShaneOliverAMP]

Here’s a breakdown of the top and bottom contributors to inflation in May. Housing costs are at the top.

[Peter O'Malley @HarrisPartners]

Sobering analysis.

[Noel Whittaker @NoelWhittaker]

State treasuries are warning: stamp duty receipts are collapsing.
Housing turnover at multi-year lows. Auction clearance rates down. Investor retreat accelerating. Prices flat or falling. Higher interest rates crushing borrowing capacity.
State budgets—heavily dependent on stamp duty—are facing a revenue cliff and rising debt ahead.
The dominoes are falling. It's just the start of many unintended consequences from the budget.

[Alex Joiner 🇦🇺 @IFM_Economist]

Trimmed mean inflation accelerating, monthly volatility is evident but the RBA will be watchful of this and rate hikes remain on the table.

[Pete Wargent @PeteWargent]

SMSF borrowing for property axed

https://t.co/0VfVp6lI6g

[Peter O'Malley @HarrisPartners]

Clearance rates in Sydney have failed to exceed 40% for the past 3 months. The most significant yet understated aspect of these results is its on very low stock levels, given we are in winter. As stock levels increase come spring, clearance rates & prices will fall further.

[Louis Christopher @LouiChristopher]

Sydney final auction results:
Week ending 21 June, 2026
@SQMResearch

The final clearance rate was 31.9% from 943 scheduled auctions.

Preceding week - 35.4% from 1,094 auctions.

Same week, last year - 51.1% from 1,032 auctions.

This week sees 854 auctions for Sydney.
#HousingMarket
https://t.co/U1ZJmks3kX

[Peter O'Malley @HarrisPartners]

Great write up on our record breaking sale at 17 Fitzsimmons Ave Lane Cove North
https://t.co/lgOzZJrPWF

[Peter O'Malley @HarrisPartners]

Small business is hard and difficult business. Respect to @marklevy2gb

[The Daily Telegraph @dailytelegraph]

2GB host Mark Levy has repaid all $674,119 owed to creditors after his Sydney restaurant collapsed, refinancing his home to ensure no one lost a cent ➡️ https://t.co/FoQCidN0X4

Get the news first with The Daily Telegraph app: https://t.co/nwh13xF0HY

[rabbittail @rabbit_wealth]

Sydney's property fall isn't just a top-end problem.
Not a Paddington terrace, just a 4-bed brick veneer in Blacktown. Bought $1.285m (Nov 2024). Sold $1.215m (Jun 2026), below Domain's bottom end valuation range.
~$150k torched in 19 months after stamp duty and agent fees.

[Peter O'Malley @HarrisPartners]

@toy59496 @Chartrader1 Auction has never been our preferred sales method, even more so in a market like this one. The Sydney auction clearance rate has not exceeded 40% since Easter, hence the price falls.
After 30 years in the industry, I am still baffled as to why agents love auctions so much.

[Peter O'Malley @HarrisPartners]

@Chartrader1 @toy59496 Yes, that’s what many will do for sure. Offering no benefit to the next generation who missed out on NG , making a further mockery of the Governments Intergenerational Narrative.

[Peter O'Malley @HarrisPartners]

@Chartrader1 @toy59496 Technically, the tax rules don’t allow you to refinance against negatively geared property and still claim the negative gearing benefit on the refinanced amount. This has probably not been policed as well as it could, but rest assured it’s a loophole they will now tighten.

[Milton Friedman Quotes @MiltonFriedmanW]

Milton Friedman: “Keep your eye on one thing and one thing only: how much government is spending, because that’s the true tax.”

“If you’re not paying for it in the form of explicit taxes, you’re paying for it indirectly in the form of inflation or borrowing.”

[Peter O'Malley @HarrisPartners]

🎯

[David Bassanese @DavidBassanese]

Not to be the bearer of bad news, but the changes to housing policy will put upward pressure on rents and new home prices and downward pressure on existing home prices. Which two are included in the CPI?

[Gav Meister @GavinBrx]

What Jim Chalmers (@JEChalmers) didn’t say about today’s 4.2% inflation drop:
Headline CPI fell from 4.6% to 4.2% thanks to the fuel excise cut (26c/l from 1 April).
Without it? Roughly 4.5–4.7% — fuel’s 7% monthly plunge masked sticky core pressures (trimmed mean actually ticked up to 3.4%). Housing & services still biting.
The hidden cost? That one month of lost excise added ~$800–950 million to the budget deficit → more borrowing & national debt growth. Full 3-month package: ~$2.55–2.9 billion.
Temporary relief at the pump, paid for by future taxpayers. Classic smoke & mirrors on cost-of-living.
#Inflation #FuelExcise #AusPol

[Louis Christopher @LouiChristopher]

Auction clearance rates from @sqmresearch are increasingly being quoted as the authoritative read on what's really happening on the ground.

Reporting on housing prices always involves a trade-off. Housing isn't a standardised asset class, so you're constantly balancing timeliness against accuracy.

Preliminary clearance rates are highly timely — but they capture only part of the market. The late-reported results and withdrawn auctions that come in over the following days consistently move the number, and almost always lower.

Final clearance rates take a little longer. But they tell you what actually happened - which, in the current market is critically important to get right.

https://t.co/7GLRIRtypo

[Peter O'Malley @HarrisPartners]

How is the Sydney property market responding to the Budget? Rents are up and prices are down!! The new Negative Gearing changes set up a trap for investors chasing the tax break. We discuss in depth on the Weekly Property Wrap with 2GBs John Stanley. https://t.co/swmHI4Pwnm