The combined value of residential real estate in Australia has reached $10.2 trillion, according to data out of the month of October.
CoreLogic reported that national home values are on a steady rise, with October’s total besting that of September’s $10.1 trillion valuation.
That means that national home values have increased 2.3 per cent in the three months to October – a steady rise, but down from the recent high of 3.1 per cent in the June quarter.
Perth had the highest three-month growth rate of the capitals at the end of October, up 4.6 per cent. Darwin and Hobart shared the title for the lowest three-month growth rate at 0.3 per cent.
With Australia in the midst of a housing shortage, it’s clear that supply issues are at the forefront of the price rises. CoreLogic reported there were 40,993 sales in October nationally, compared to a historic five-year average of 44,813 for the month of October.
Moreover, new property listings increased by 10.2 per cent from last year, reaching 43,421 in the four weeks to 5 November, although they remain 5.4 per cent below the previous five-year average.
But even with a tight market giving sellers the advantage, it appears that buyers aren’t increasingly rushing in – the amount of time it takes on average to sell property trended slightly higher through the three months to October, with the median days on market nationally rising to 30 days.
Perhaps that’s also due to vendors’ market confidence giving them the patience to wait. Sellers are apparently offering less of a discount on their properties. The median vendor discount nationally was -3.6 per cent in the three months to October, up from -4.3 per cent at the end of 2022. But the upcoming anticipated seasonal lull over the holidays could speed up, and see more sellers – and buyers – eager to pull the trigger.
In the rental market, prices continued skyward with rent values climbing 0.7 per cent in October, contributing to an 8.1 per cent national increase over the year.
Dwelling approvals, meanwhile, dropped by 4.6 per cent in September, while housing finance secured in September grew by a modest 0.6 per cent.