Australia property prices have climbed a further 0.28% in August, ahead of the spring selling season, according to the latest PropTrack report.
“August marked the eighth consecutive month of national home price growth,” said Eleanor Creagh (pictured above), senior economist at PropTrack. “This is the longest period of consecutive monthly growth since the pandemic boom when prices rose for 23 months straight between May 2020 and March 2022. National home prices have now regained the majority of price falls seen in 2022.”
The continued price growth reversed much of last year’s price falls, with national home prices now up 3.51% from the low point recorded in December following a total 4.12% of price declines since March. Current home prices now sit just 0.75% below their March 2022 peak and were 2.64% higher than their year ago levels.
Sydney has continued to lead Australia’s home price recovery. Sydney prices lifted a further 0.47% in August taking them to be 6.19% higher than their trough in November and just 1.29% below the February 2022 peak.
All capitals, except Darwin (-0.38%), enjoyed price increases in August, with Adelaide leading the price gains with a +0.64% increase, followed by Sydney. In third place was Perth, with a price lift of +0.31%.
Capital cities have continued to deliver stronger home price growths than regional areas in August. Regional areas were up by a meagre 0.09% while capital city prices rose 0.35%. This saw home prices in the capital cities to be now up 4.46% since December, compared to just 1.2% in regional areas.
Regional South Australia and Queensland continued to outperform other regional markets, however. The pair saw prices reaching new peaks this month.
“For much of this year, stronger housing demand and a limited flow of new listings hitting the market have offset the impact of interest rate rises,” Creagh said.
“In Sydney and Melbourne, the flow of new listings is increasing as seller confidence improves. However, buyer demand still far outstrips supply, putting upward pressure on prices. Limited choice in Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, has led to strong buyer competition and solid selling conditions, pushing prices to fresh peaks in August.”
The PropTrack economist noted that the full impact of recent rate hikes is yet to be felt, and that the potential for further tightening remained a headwind for the market – but there’s a bright spot.
“As the volume of new listings coming to market continues to increase as the spring selling season unfolds, the pace at which prices have grown this year may slow,” Creagh said. “However, interest rates have stabilised in recent months and are very likely at peak. This is likely to sustain confidence and maintain the lift in home prices, resulting in more markets returning to positive annual price growth.
To read the original article and for more details, visit the realestate.com.au website. You can also download the PropTrack Home Price Index - August 2023 report.
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