Fewer Victorian auctions on the first weekend reserve prices had to be shown

Some sellers may have held off a week under the new rules, The Age reported.

Developing

Victorian home sellers now have to publish a single reserve price at least seven days before an auction. The reserve is the lowest price a seller will accept. Consumer Affairs Victoria says the rule applies to auctions from 16 October, and an auction cannot go ahead without it. The first weekend under the new rules was quieter. There were 466 auctions scheduled for Saturday, compared with 698 the Saturday before, The Age reported. It said 853 were already scheduled for next Saturday, which suggests some sellers waited a week. One Black Rock home with a $2,175,000 reserve sold for $2,283,000, the paper reported. The Real Estate Institute of Victoria's chief executive, Toby Balazs, said last week's clearance rate was 53 per cent, on Domain figures. The clearance rate is the share of homes that sell at or around auction. Agent Charles Atkins said it was "probably a little too early to tell the overall impact". It is not yet known whether the rule will change prices.