Sydney had the highest median house value compared to other capital cities in Australia as of April 2025, with a value of over **** million Australian dollars. Brisbane similarly had relatively high average residential housing values, passing Canberra and Melbourne to top the pricing markets for real estate across the country alongside Sydney. Housing affordability in Australia Throughout 2024, the average price of residential dwellings remained high across Australia, with several capital cities breaking price records. Rising house prices continue to be an issue for potential homeowners, with many low- and middle-income earners priced out of the market. In the fourth quarter of 2024, Australia’s house price-to-income ratio declined slightly to ***** index points. With the share of household income spent on mortgage repayments increasing alongside the disparity in supply and demand, inflating construction costs, and low borrowing capacity, the homeownership dream has become an unattainable prospect for the average person in Australia. Does the rental market offer better prospects? Renting for prolonged periods has become inevitable for many Australians due to the country’s largely inaccessible property ladder. However, record low vacancy rates and elevated median weekly house and unit rent prices within Australia’s rental market are making renting a less appealing prospect. In financial year 2024, households in the Greater Sydney metropolitan area reported spending around ** percent of their household income on rent.

Average House Prices in Australia decreased to 976.80 AUD Thousand in the fourth quarter of 2024 from 979.10 AUD Thousand in the third quarter of 2024. This dataset includes a chart with historical data for Australia Mean Dwelling Price.

Graph and download economic data for Residential Property Prices for Australia (QAUN368BIS) from Q1 1971 to Q4 2024 about Australia, residential, housing, and price.

Key information about House Prices Growth

• Australia house prices grew 2.9% YoY in Dec 2024, following an increase of 5.8% YoY in the previous quarter.
• YoY growth data is updated quarterly, available from Sep 2004 to Dec 2024, with an average growth rate of 5.8%.
• House price data reached an all-time high of 24.1% in Dec 2021 and a record low of -6.1% in Mar 2019.

CEIC calculates quarterly House Price Index Growth from quarterly Residential Dwellings: Mean Price of Eight Capital Cities. The Australian Bureau of Statistics provides Residential Dwellings: Mean Price of Eight Capital Cities in local currency. House Price Index Growth prior to Q3 2012 is calculated from Residential Property Price Index: Weighted Average of Eight Capital Cities.

The house price-to-income ratio in Australia was ***** as of the fourth quarter of 2024. This ratio, calculated by dividing nominal house prices by nominal disposable income per head, increased from the previous quarter. The price-to-income ratio can be used to measure housing affordability in a specific area. Australia's property bubble There has been considerable debate over the past decade about whether Australia is in a property bubble or not. A property bubble refers to a sharp increase in the price of property that is disproportional to income and rental prices, followed by a decline. In Australia, rising house prices have undoubtedly been an issue for many potential homeowners, pricing them out of the market. Along with the average house price, high mortgage interest rates have exacerbated the issue. Is the homeownership dream out of reach? Housing affordability has varied across the different states and territories in Australia. In 2024, the median value of residential houses was the highest in Sydney compared to other major Australian cities, with Brisbane becoming an increasingly expensive city. Nonetheless, expected interest rate cuts in 2025, alongside the expansion of initiatives to improve Australia's dwelling stock, social housing supply, and first-time buyer accessibility to properties, may start to improve the situation. These encompass initiatives such as the Australian government's Help to Buy scheme and the Housing Australia Future Fund Facility (HAFFF) and National Housing Accord Facility (NHAF) programs.

Australia Standardised Price-Income Ratio: sa data was reported at 149.268 Ratio in Dec 2024. This records a decrease from the previous number of 152.371 Ratio for Sep 2024. Australia Standardised Price-Income Ratio: sa data is updated quarterly, averaging 82.643 Ratio from Mar 1970 (Median) to Dec 2024, with 220 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 153.422 Ratio in Jun 2024 and a record low of 62.554 Ratio in Sep 1983. Australia Standardised Price-Income Ratio: sa data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Australia – Table AU.OECD.AHPI: House Price Index: Seasonally Adjusted: OECD Member: Quarterly. Nominal house prices divided by nominal disposable income per head. Net household disposable income is used. The population data come from the OECD national accounts database. The long-term average is calculated over the whole period available when the indicator begins after 1980 or after 1980 if the indicator is longer. This value is used as a reference value. The ratio is calculated by dividing the indicator source on this long-term average, and indexed to a reference value equal to 100.

Residential Property Prices in Australia increased 5.45 percent in December of 2024 over the same month in the previous year. This dataset includes a chart with historical data for Australia Residential Property Prices.

In the metropolitan area of Melbourne, Australia, the median home price was approximately 860,000 Australian dollars in the year 2023. In 2022, the median house price was about 890,000 Australian dollars.

House price index in Australia, December, 2024 The most recent value is 195.13 index points as of Q4 2024, an increase compared to the previous value of 194.75 index points. Historically, the average for Australia from Q1 1990 to Q4 2024 is 86.77 index points. The minimum of 28.24 index points was recorded in Q1 1990, while the maximum of 195.13 index points was reached in Q4 2024. | TheGlobalEconomy.com

Median prices for dwellings/townhouses, and apartments by their year of settlement for the City of Melbourne.

Provides estimates of changes in house prices in each of the eight capital cities of Australia. The information is presented in the form of price indexes constructed separately for established …Show full descriptionProvides estimates of changes in house prices in each of the eight capital cities of Australia. The information is presented in the form of price indexes constructed separately for established houses and for project homes.

This report analyses the price of residential housing in Australia. This is measured by taking the average of the residential property price index produced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). The index is an aggregation of an established house price index and an attached dwellings price index. The index measures the price change in all residential dwellings in Australia's eight major capital cities. The data for this report is sourced from the ABS and has an index base year of 2011-12.

Portugal, Canada, and the United States were the countries with the highest house price to income ratio in 2024. In all three countries, the index exceeded 130 index points, while the average for all OECD countries stood at 116.2 index points. The index measures the development of housing affordability and is calculated by dividing nominal house price by nominal disposable income per head, with 2015 set as a base year when the index amounted to 100. An index value of 120, for example, would mean that house price growth has outpaced income growth by 20 percent since 2015. How have house prices worldwide changed since the COVID-19 pandemic? House prices started to rise gradually after the global financial crisis (2007–2008), but this trend accelerated with the pandemic. The countries with advanced economies, which usually have mature housing markets, experienced stronger growth than countries with emerging economies. Real house price growth (accounting for inflation) peaked in 2022 and has since lost some of the gain. Although, many countries experienced a decline in house prices, the global house price index shows that property prices in 2023 were still substantially higher than before COVID-19. Renting vs. buying In the past, house prices have grown faster than rents. However, the home affordability has been declining notably, with a direct impact on rental prices. As people struggle to buy a property of their own, they often turn to rental accommodation. This has resulted in a growing demand for rental apartments and soaring rental prices.

Australia Standardised Price-Rent Ratio: sa data was reported at 168.732 Ratio in Dec 2024. This records a decrease from the previous number of 171.919 Ratio for Sep 2024. Australia Standardised Price-Rent Ratio: sa data is updated quarterly, averaging 70.511 Ratio from Sep 1972 (Median) to Dec 2024, with 210 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 189.671 Ratio in Mar 2022 and a record low of 48.119 Ratio in Sep 1972. Australia Standardised Price-Rent Ratio: sa data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Australia – Table AU.OECD.AHPI: House Price Index: Seasonally Adjusted: OECD Member: Quarterly. Nominal house prices divided by rent price indices. The long-term average is calculated over the whole period available when the indicator begins after 1980 or after 1980 if the indicator is longer. This value is used as a reference value. The ratio is calculated by dividing the indicator source on this long-term average, and indexed to a reference value equal to 100.

This statistic displays the median price for dwellings in major cities in Australia, as of August 2016. That year, the median price for a dwelling in Darwin was about 459 thousand Australian dollars.

This report analyses mortgage affordability in Australia, which is measured as the proportion of a household's monthly income that remains after making their mortgage repayment. This is calculated based on the average monthly repayments for a standard 25-year mortgage on the mean house price less a deposit in Australia. An increase in the percentage indicates an improvement in the affordability of the average mortgage. The data for this report is sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and is measured as a percentage of average household income.

In the June quarter of 2024, the average residential property price in Queensland exceeded 885 thousand Australian dollars. This marked the highest quarterly mean dwelling price in Queensland during the reported period.

In 2022, Sydney was listed as the second-least affordable city worldwide in terms of housing affordability, as well as the most unaffordable capital city for houses in Australia, with a median multiple house price relative to income value of 15.3, meaning that housing prices in Sydney were over 15 times the average annual gross median household income.

The average housing costs for Australian renters of private property amounted to 415 Australian dollars per week in 2020. In 2022, between 21 to 29 percent of the household income of renters was spent on rent across the country.

Short-term impact of the coronavirus pandemic

With the global outbreak of COVID-19, the historically strong Australian housing market is not immune. In the short-term, the country saw a drop in rental housing demand as a direct result of migration ceasing, falling overseas student numbers, and younger people opting to stay home. With travel opening up, a spike in rental vacancy rates is expected, with short-term rentals, such as those from travel websites, suddenly flooding the long-term rental market. The influx of housing may ease pressure on potential tenants in certain areas, and it may have the carry-on effect of rental costs stabilizing, or in some cases declining. In the inner suburbs of Sydney and Melbourne, for instance, there has already been a significant increase in rental listings compared to the previous year.

This statistic depicts the annual change in residential property prices in Australia between April 2018 and April 2019, by city. In this period, the average house price in Sydney decreased by around 10.9 percent; the largest change across Australia.