Pellegrino put the company’s disappointing results down to “the toughest market conditions we have ever seen”, but he was upbeat about a rebound towards the end of the year, with listings lifting across both Melbourne and Sydney.

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Listings have increased 13.2 per cent since mid-June, with a 17.9 per cent rise across the capital cities, according to CoreLogic, a data firm that specialises in property analytics. The most recent data, charting the four weeks to August 13, shows new listings were up 3.3 per cent compared to five-year averages.

In Sydney, median housing prices have risen 280 per cent since 2002, with corresponding stamp duty jumping by 406 per cent, according to figures provided by Domain.

“If you think about that, the burden of that cost upfront for the average new home buyer, who is having to save between six and eight years for a deposit on a property. Stamp duty is another two years on top, so we really need to start looking at ways to reform that,” Pellegrino said.

“I think any discussion, any substantive effort at scale to address the problem, to put it on the agenda and not lock it in the too-hard basket is a positive step forward.”

The Greens’ push for a rental freeze is not a fix, according to the Domain boss, who said that proposal would “in fact, actually worsen the solution”. With investors bringing properties to market and reducing rental stock at the “highest rates we’ve ever seen”, Pellegrino said a price freeze would result in greater negative external costs than potential benefits.

Taking a similar approach to that made by REA Group chief executive Owen Wilson last week, the Domain chief said it was his expectation that the end of rate hikes was close, after two successive months of pauses by the Reserve Bank.

“Whilst it’d be a fool’s errand to predict the exact point at which rates peak, there is clearly an expectation we’re getting close to the peak,” Pellegrino said.

Regarding a rebound, Pellegrino said the property market looks beyond solely economic factors, and pointed to personal expectations and behavioural economics as driving factors in a resurgence in private listings, as demographic trends heavily influence decision-making.

“Where behavioral economics come in, people will pause bringing their properties to market when they don’t feel confident that they’re making the right decision, and particularly when other people around them are not bringing their property to market, or they feel there is risk,” he said.

Pellegrino said there had been a resumption of confidence in July and August, as the concerns over unknown shocks and rate increases from the previous months had diminished.

In February, commentary about the RBA’s decision to lift the cash rate for a ninth successive time was conflicting in its nature, Pellegrino said, which had amplified uncertainty.

“That was probably the low point of confidence, where your average Australian homeowner is saying, ‘These people who are in positions of power and authority and have the technical competence don’t know what’s going on, so I’m just going to wait and pause’,” he said.

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