Sydney median home value edges above $1 million

Australian residential property prices have continued to rise across the board over the past month, though the rate of growth appears to be losing momentum according to CoreLogic figures released this morning.

CoreLogic’s latest Home Value Index shows that while national home values rose by 1.6% during July, the figure is both down on the increase recorded in June (1.9%) and the most recent high point reached in March (2.8%). 

The latest spurt of growth means that national house prices have now risen by 14.1% in 2021 and 16.1% over the past year. 

“The 16.1% lift in national housing values over the past year is the fastest pace of annual growth since February 2004, however the monthly growth rate has been trending lower since March this year when the national index rose 2.8%,” said CoreLogic research director, Tim Lawless. 

“With dwelling values rising more in a month than incomes are rising in a year, housing is moving out of reach for many members of the community. Along with declining home affordability, much of the earlier COVID related fiscal support (particularly fiscal support related to housing) has expired. It is, however, encouraging to see additional measures being rolled out for households and businesses as the latest COVID outbreak worsens.”

Canberra leads July growth

Looking at the capital cities, CoreLogic’s figures show that the Canberra market continues to run red hot, as the median dwelling value in the nation’s capital increased by 2.6% in July to just under $800,000.

Canberra was followed by Brisbane and Sydney which both recorded increases of 2% in July, while Perth’s median dwelling value rose by just 0.3%.

Interestingly, Sydney’s 2% increase means that the median home price in the Harbour City has now eclipsed $1 million.

Australian home value changes - CoreLogic Home Value Index (July 31, 2021)

On the value of homes in Sydney, Lawless said that growth was actually down in July compared to previous months, with the issue of affordability and the impact of the city’s lockdown starting to take effect.

“Sydney is the most expensive capital city by some margin and it has also been the city where values have risen the most over the first seven months of the year,” he said.

“Worsening affordability is likely a key contributing factor in the slowdown here, along with the negative impact on consumer sentiment as the city moves through an extended lockdown period.”

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