Property Prices Rising Again in Australia
July 30th, 2009 | Published in Real Estate
Australian residential property prices rose 3.3 percent in the June quarter and have now recovered to June 2008 levels.
This is the strongest quarterly growth in house and unit prices since December 2007.
Australia’s two largest housing markets led the rises with quarterly price rises of 5.8 percent in Melbourne 3.7 percent in Sydney.
Brisbane and Perth are the country’s only property markets with both house and unit median prices under June 2008 levels.
Australian Cities
Average House Prices
June 2009
| City | Average House Price | 12 Month Change |
| Sydney, NSW | $547,000 | - 0.3 % |
| Melbourne, Vic | $465,000 | + 4.1 % |
| Brisbane, Qld | $421,000 | - 4.5 % |
| Adelaide, SA | $417,000 | + 0.5 % |
| Perth, WA | $476,000 | - 4.4 % |
Graph of Average House Prices ($thousands)
in Australia’s Major Cities
2004 – 2009
Australian Cities
Average Unit Prices
June 2009
(“Units” in Australia are usually apartments)
| City | Average Unit Price | 12 Month Change |
| Sydney, NSW | $381,000 | + 3.4 % |
| Melbourne, Vic | $345,000 | + 1.5 % |
| Brisbane, Qld | $339,000 | - 0.8 % |
| Adelaide, SA | $268,000 | + 2.4 % |
| Perth, WA | $336,000 | - 6.7 % |
Mathew Bell, Australian Property Monitors’ economist commented:
“The national housing market has experienced its strongest quarterly growth in both house and unit prices since the global financial crisis took hold late in 2007. The consolidation that began in the March 2009 quarter has now transformed into strong growth across the country.
“While low interest rates, flat prices and First Home Owner Grants supported the affordable end of the market through the end of 2008 and early 2009, its been the upper end of the market that’s driven the strong growth in the major capitals in the June quarter.
“For Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, median prices in the top 50% of suburbs grew by nearly double the rate of those of the bottom 50% in the June quarter. Not surprisingly this has coincided with the stock-market rebounding by nearly 30% from its March lows and the economic outlook improving as better-than-expected data flowed in.
“As the First Home Owner Boost begins phasing out in September, demand is expected to remain strong as potential buyers point to low interest rates and previous periods of flat or falling prices as important drivers in their decision to purchase a property within the next 12 months.
“Property investors who have been waiting for the removal of the Boost and the bottom of the interest rate cycle are expected to begin re-entering the market in greater numbers in the second half of 2009 and early 2010.
“Rising unemployment remains the biggest risk to house prices, but this risk has lessened over the past quarter with forecasts of peak unemployment falling below 8% and the economy expected to avoid a technical recession.
“With population growing strongly and strong housing finance figures yet to translate into a significant rise in new building starts, all indicators point to house prices continuing to rise in the second half of 2009 and well into 2010.”
Prices courtesy of Home Price Guide.