The median home price for Australia’s capital cities stands at $1 million.
The quarter ended in 2021 saw the median capital house value rise 6.5% to $1.07million
The median unit price in capitals rose 1.9% each quarter to $621 0880.
Domain chief of economics, Dr. Nicola Powell said that the new records for house and unit markets were due to lockdown recovery, high levels household savings, strong intention from homebuyers, as well as high levels household saving.
“Demand continues to outstrip supply across a majority of the cities however rapid price growth and affordability issues are likely to shift demand in 2022,” Dr Powell said.
Median House Prices – December 2021 quarter
Median Unit Prices – December 2021 quarter
Perth remains most affordable city
According to Domain’s report, Perth, along with Darwin, managed to hit new record high house prices.
Perth house prices rose 1.8% in December quarter, to $612 348. Perth unit prices increased by 2.2%, to $380 353.
“Perth has been benefiting from a positive net flow of residents into the city, although easing slightly from the highest point in eight years,” Dr Powell said.
“This has been a huge change for the city that had seen a drain of residents away — that being said, sale volumes are sitting close to record numbers and demand remains strong but looks to be easing.”
Despite these gains, Perth is still the most affordable city worldwide.
Dr Powell stated that Western Australia’s capital remains favorable for sellers, and that homeowners are being attracted by the rising prices to sell their homes.
“While it is still a competitive market for home hunters, rising supply and easing demand trends should support more realistic seller prices and greater buyer choice.”
Million-dollar homes in cities
The median price in Sydney, Melbourne, and Canberra was all over $1m
Sydney experienced its greatest annual gain at 33.1%. This results in a daily gain equivalent to $1,100 for the past one year.
“The rapid escalation in price is proving to be a significant financial barrier to entry for buyers and upgraders against a backdrop of low wage growth,” Dr Powell said.
After Melbourne, Canberra is now the second-highest house price.
Canberra saw its strongest quarterly and annual growth in December.
Melbourne was the most affected area by lockdowns. It gained momentum in quarter three due to the rebound in seller-buyer activities.
Dr Powell said that many people are still leaving the city, even though the supply of Melbourne continues its growth.
“Melbourne sellers should move into 2022 with some confidence that the pace of price growth will ease, and they will need to have a more realistic view of pricing because buyers now have more choices,” she said.
Brisbane is a hotbed of competition
Brisbane is still quite affordable when compared to larger cities.
The median Queensland house price increased by 10.7% during the December quarter. This is second after Canberra.
Brisbane’s unit prices also increased by 2% to record $416,000.
Surprisingly house prices rose seven times faster that unit prices over the past year. This is the largest discrepancy ever recorded, pushing the gap between property types up to an all-time high.
“While housing affordability remains less challenging in Greater Brisbane compared to other cities, the volume of choice is problematic, making it highly competitive for buyers,” Dr Powell said.
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