Brisbane Leads Property Value Surge Amid Nationwide Market Shifts

Brisbane Leads Property Value Surge Amid Nationwide Market Shifts

• Posted By Ayla Miels

Mid-sized capital cities continue to set the pace in property value growth, with Perth home values increasing by 2.0% in May, Adelaide rising by 1.8%, and Brisbane seeing a 1.4% uptick. This translates to a median dwelling value increase of over $12,000 in each of these cities on a month-to-month basis.

Other capital cities experienced more subdued changes, ranging from a 0.6% rise in Sydney to declines of -0.5% in Hobart and -0.3% in Darwin.

Home Value Index (Month)

According to CoreLogic research director Tim Lawless, the stark difference in growth rates can be attributed to extremely low property supply in the strongest markets.

"The number of properties for sale in Perth and Adelaide is more than 40% below the five-year average for this time of year, while Brisbane's listings are 34% below average," said Lawless.

"Despite an increase in vendor activity compared to last year, inventory levels in these markets remain low. Fresh listings are quickly absorbed by market demand, maintaining low stock levels and driving prices up."

Conversely, listings in Hobart are 41% above the five-year average due to lower demand, with home sales 6.4% below the previous five-year average over the rolling quarter.

Shift in Rankings:

In May, Brisbane housing values consistently posted solid gains, surpassing those in the ACT and making Brisbane the second-highest median dwelling value among the capitals, a position it hasn’t held since 1997.

In January, it was noted that Brisbane's dwelling values had overtaken Melbourne's median. This was partly due to Melbourne’s overall median being affected by a high number of relatively cheap units. However, Brisbane's house values are now also higher than Melbourne's median house value for the first time since June 2008, with Brisbane's median house value at $937,479, $190 higher than Melbourne's. Brisbane's median unit value is now $615,429, surpassing Melbourne's $614,299.

Before the pandemic, Melbourne’s median dwelling value was about 37% higher than Brisbane’s, and the ACT’s median was around 24% higher. Since COVID-19 began, Brisbane's values have grown by 59.8%, compared to Melbourne's 11.2% and the ACT's 31.8%.

Sydney's Recovery:

In May, Sydney's market reached a new milestone, recovering to match the previous record high set in January 2022. Following a -12.4% drop after the January 2022 peak, the market found its floor a year later and has since risen by 14.1%.

Upper quartile home values have generally shown the lowest growth rate over the past year. This trend is evident across all capital cities except Darwin, indicating stronger conditions in the more affordable segments of the market.

"After seeing higher gains early in the growth cycle, the upper quartile has slowed as borrowing capacity decreased and affordability constraints pushed demand towards middle and lower-priced properties," Lawless explained.

Across the combined capitals index, upper quartile dwelling values have risen by 6.7% over the past year, compared to a 13.4% increase in the lower quartile.