- Australian house prices have beaten previous peak of September 2017
- CoreLogic's national home value index rose a further 0.9% in January 2021
- House prices are now above pre-Covid levels
Continuing on from where the left off 2020, Australian house prices rose in January 2021 to new highs. They are now back above where they were a year ago before the pandemic hit, according to CoreLogic‘s latest monthly report.
Every capital city and combined regional areas saw price increases during the past month, with the highest being recorded in Darwin (+2.3%) and the lowest in Sydney and Melbourne (+0.4%).
Regional house prices are outpacing the city areas, rising at more than twice the rate (+1.6%) compared to the average of all capitals (+0.7%).
Taken over the last year, national house prices have risen 3.0% – during a pandemic – which includes an incredible 7.9% growth in the regions.
The median house price across the country is now $583,157 ($659K in the cities, and $429K in the regional areas.) The highest price capital city is Sydney ($879K), and the cheapest is Darwin ($426K).
“Internal migration data shows more people are leaving Sydney and Melbourne for regional areas, resulting in a transition of activity from the metro regions to the outer fringe and regional markets,” said CoreLogic’s research director Tim Lawless.
“This demographic trend is further compounded by the demand shock of stalled overseas migration. As Melbourne and Sydney historically receive the vast majority of overseas migrants, these metro areas have been the hardest hit by this…”
“Better housing affordability, an opportunity for a lifestyle upgrade and lower density housing options are other factors that might be contributing to this trend, along with the new found popularity of remote working arrangements.”
Another trend CoreLogic has reported on is the relative popularity of houses over units. House prices have risen 3.5% over the past half a year, whereas unit prices have remained steady.
“Demand for units has diminished through COVID-19 amidst record low levels of investor participation and changing living preferences. At the same time supply levels are heightened in some precincts. While demand and supply remain imbalanced we are likely to see units continue to underperform relative to detached housing markets,” Lawless said.
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Source: CoreLogic.
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