Spring is coming. But sellers aren’t rushing to market

Spring and real estate have gone together for about as long as anyone can remember.

The weather warms up.

Gardens start looking respectable again.

Daylight hangs around a little longer.

And suddenly there’s conversations everywhere about getting properties ready for the “spring selling season.”

Except this year, sellers seem a little less enthusiastic about joining the rush.

Cotality’s latest analysis suggests the usually spring lift in new listings may be slower and more subdued this year.

New listings are sitting below recent averages across much of the country, with Sydney and Melbourne showing some of the clearest signs that vendors are holding back.

So much for the spring rush. Or at least, so far.

So, where the sellers at?

There’s probably no single answer.

Cotality’s report points to a combo of softer property values, cautious buyers and ongoing uncertainty around interest rates.

Together, those factors may be giving potential vendors a reason to pause before putting their homes on the market.

Properties are also taking a little longer to sell than they were during the stronger conditions of recent years.

Vendors are also accepting larger discounts, while auction results suggest buyers aren’t competing with the same urgency.

For someone thinking about selling, that’s quite a bit to take in.

And around the kitchen table, the conversation is probably more like:

“Maybe we’ll wait and see what happens.”

“Do you think we’d get more if we waited?”

“What are buyers doing at the moment?”

Or my personal fave:

“We’ll see what happens in spring.”

Well, spring has sprung.

And plenty of potential sellers still seem to be watching from the sidelines.

A hesitant seller is still a potential seller

This is where things get interesting for agents.

Someone who had an appraisal three months ago and hasn’t listed isn’t necessarily a lost opportunity.

Neither is the homeowner who told you they’ll “probably sell later in the year.”

Their timing might simply have changed.

When listings are coming through the door quickly, it’s easy to focus most of your attention on the people who are ready right now.

A quieter market gives agents a reason to look a little further back.

• Who had an appraisal earlier this year?
• Who mentioned they were thinking about downsizing?
• Who wanted to wait until spring?
• Who owns a property similar to something you just sold?

Some of your spring listings might already be sitting in your database.

They just don’t have a For Sale board yet.

“Why now?” is becoming a harder question

Telling someone that spring is a great time to sell probably isn’t going to be enough for every vendor this year.

They can see what’s happening too.

They’re watching properties sit online.

They’re checking what their neighbour sold for.

They’re reading the same interest rate headlines as everyone else.

And they have more information at their fingertips than sellers did ten or twenty years ago.

What they may need from their agent is context.

• How long are similar properties taking to sell locally?
• What are buyers responding to?
• How many comparable properties are currently available?
• Has anything sold nearby that changes the picture?
• Are buyers negotiating harder than they were six months ago?
• And what would waiting another three or six months actually change?

Those are much more useful conversations than calling every few weeks to ask, “Are you ready to sell yet?”

There’s already plenty of buyers to look at

There’s another important point in Cotality’s analysis.

While fewer new properties are coming onto the market, the total amount of property available has been building.

In some markets, the change has been particularly noticeable compared with the limited supply seen earlier in the year.

That means buyers don’t necessarily need a flood of new spring listings to have a choice.

There is already more property sitting on the market than there was previously.

For vendors, that changes the conversation.

Simply waiting for spring doesn’t automatically create stronger competition for their home.

If buyers already have plenty to choose from, the local market conditions matter far more than the season on the calendar.

A well-presented property, priced with current buyer behaviour in mind, may still attract strong interest.

But the old assumption that spring alone will bring a wave of eager buyers is looking less reliable.

Spring prospecting might need to look a little different

There will probably still be plenty of spring prospecting messages landing in the letterboxes and inboxes over the next few weeks.

“Spring is here. Thinking of selling?”

Nothing wrong with that.

But if a homeowner is already unsure about the market, giving them something useful to think about might get you a little further.

• Maybe a comparable property just sold around the corner.
• Maybe you’ve got active buyers looking for a similar home.
• Maybe local stock levels have changed.
• Maybe their appraisal is six months old and worth revisiting.
• Or maybe you simply have some useful information about what buyers are doing in their suburb right now.

Property activity gives agents a natural reason to get back in touch without forcing the conversation.

Got something worth telling your database?

If you’re using Reapit Sales, our upcoming Just Listed! Just Sold! & other great eMarketing tips training webinar looks at how to use eMarketing to keep your database informed when properties are listed and sold, along with practical tips for getting more from your email marketing.

It’s running 8^th September, 2026 @ 2pm AEST.

Register here.

Don’t forget about the sellers watching from the sidelines

We’re only at the beginning of spring, so there’s plenty of time for listing activity to pick up.

Historically, it usually does.

Cotality’s research shows that new listings tend to build through spring, particularly end of August into November.

This year is starting from a different place, though.

• Buyers have more choice.
• Properties are taking longer to sell.
• Vendors have seen values soften in parts of the country.
• And plenty of homeowners may decide they’d rather wait.

For agents, that makes the people sitting just outside the active pipeline particularly interesting.

They’re watching what sells.

They’re looking at prices.

They’re probably keeping an eye on the market more closely than they’re letting on.

And at some point, some of them will decide the time is right.

Spring doesn’t create listings. Conversations do.

Spring has always given the property market a natural sense of momentum.

This year, agents might need to create a little more of their own.

That starts with knowing who’s sitting in your appraisal pipeline, understanding what’s happening in your local market and having a useful reason to stay in touch with people who aren’t quite ready.

Because the seller who said “maybe later” in August could still be your October listing.

Being the agent who stayed useful in the meantime clearly won’t hurt.

Reapit Sales helps agencies keep contacts, appraisals, property activity and follow up together, making it easier to see where the next conversation might be.

Book a quick walkthrough with Reapit Sales.