News: NEC UPDATE 1-Domain Holdings Australia YTD revenue dips in housing downturn

(Adds background on Nine-Fairfax deal, details)

Oct 12 (Reuters) - Property classifieds website operator Domain Holdings Australia Ltd (DHG) on Friday said its year-to-date revenue fell 1 percent, as a downturn in Sydney and Melbourne housing markets crimped new listings and auction volumes.

Booming property markets in Sydney and Melbourne have lately slipped into reverse, as tightened lending rules and higher taxes on foreign buyers ended seemingly inexorable rises in sale prices.

Domain was spun off from newspaper publisher Fairfax Media Ltd (FXJ) , which posted a 5 percent fall in total revenue for the period, ahead of its buyout by television network Nine Entertainment (NEC) .

Australia's oldest media company Fairfax in July agreed to a A$2.16 billion ($1.54 billion) buyout by Nine Entertainment, in one of the biggest shake-ups in Australian media for decades, as the companies attempted to capture the scale they need to face the challenges of the softening market.

Nine said its metropolitan television advertising revenue for the September quarter was broadly flat compared to the corresponding period a year ago, as a softer market was offset by Nine owning a larger chunk of it.

Nine continues to expect fiscal 2019 core earnings of A$280- to $300 million, excluding specific items. ($1 = 1.4045 Australian dollars)