REA Insights Weekly Commercial Search Report – May 25

Weekly search volumes for commercial properties both for sale and lease are up once again.

For the eighth consecutive week, search volumes for properties for sale on realcommercial.com.au have increased, with the 5.3 per cent increase representing the largest jump in three weeks.

As we emerge from COVID-19 it seems businesses are continuing to reassess their property requirements, resulting in more people looking at what is available to purchase or lease.

While search activity increased at a national level, there were quite large falls in Australian Capital Territory and Tasmania. In the other states and territories it was a different story, with the largest increases occurring in Northern Territory and New South Wales.

For sale search volumes are up 9 per cent compared to the same week last year, with all states and territories recording annual increases.

Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory have recorded the largest year-on-year increases, while for sale search volumes have barely risen in Tasmania and are only moderately higher in Western Australia.

The volume of searches for commercial properties for lease rose by 5.8 per cent last week and is now 13 per cent higher than last year.

Queensland was the only state or territory in which search volumes fell over the week, while Northern Territory and Victoria recorded the largest increases.

When you look at the year-on-year figures, the largest increases were New South Wales and Western Australia, while searches were actually down in the ACT.

We would expect interest in commercial property options to continue to climb over the coming weeks as the economy slowly emerges from lockdowns and businesses reassess what type of property they may need for their operations.