API has released The Victorian Guide Gap, new research prepared with support from property data firm Homer and covered by The Australian Financial Review.

Drawing on 102,681 Victorian residential sales in the year to June 2026, the report found two in three homes sold at auction finished outside the price guide first advertised. Fewer than half of all homes sold within their guide. Auction guides tended to sit below the sale price, and private sale guides above it.

API supports the underquoting reforms in both states. Victoria now requires the reserve to be published at least seven days before auction. NSW’s reforms, which commence on 17 November, bring price guide rules and stronger penalties.

These are real steps forward, but the guide is still the agent’s own estimate. API is asking both states to take one more step: require vendors to obtain an independent valuation before a home is advertised, and disclose it to buyers.

In Victoria, API is calling on all parties contesting the 28 November election to commit to the reform. In NSW, API is calling on the Government to add it to its reforms.

Read The Victorian Guide Gap

Read the AFR Coverage