The average price of Australian residential property has risen over the past ten years, and in December 2024, it reached 976,800 Australian dollars. Nonetheless, property experts in Australia have indicated that the country has been in a property bubble over the past decade, with some believing the market will collapse sometime in the near future. Property prices started declining in 2022; however, a gradual upward trend was witnessed throughout 2023, with minor fluctuations in 2024. Australian capital city price differences While the national average residential property price has exhibited growth, individual capital cities display diverse trends, highlighting the complexity of Australia’s property market. Sydney maintains its position as the most expensive residential property market across Australia's capital cities, with a median property value of approximately 1.19 million Australian dollars as of April 2025. Brisbane has emerged as an increasingly pricey capital city for residential property, surpassing both Canberra and Melbourne in median housing values. Notably, Perth experienced the most significant annual increase in its average residential property value, with a 10 percent increase from April 2024, despite being a comparably more affordable market. Hobart and Darwin remain the most affordable capital cities for residential properties in the country. Is the homeownership dream out of reach? The rise in property values coincides with the expansion of Australia's housing stock. In the December quarter of 2024, the number of residential dwellings reached around 11.29 million, representing an increase of about 53,200 dwellings from the previous quarter. However, this growth in housing supply does not necessarily translate to increased affordability or accessibility for many Australians. The country’s house prices remain largely disproportional to income, leaving the majority of low- and middle-income earners priced out of the market. Alongside this, elevated mortgage interest rates in recent years have made taking out a loan increasingly unappealing for many potential property owners, and the share of mortgage holders at risk of mortgage repayment stress has continued to climb.

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.

Graph and download economic data for Real Residential Property Prices for Australia (QAUR628BIS) from Q1 1970 to Q4 2024 about Australia, residential, HPI, housing, real, price index, indexes, and price.

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.

Housing Index in Australia increased to 183.90 points in the fourth quarter of 2021 from 175.60 points in the third quarter of 2021. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - Australia House Price Index - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

Australia’s real house price index increased to ***** in the first quarter of 2025. House prices fluctuated over the reported period compared to the base year of 2015, experiencing a sharp increase throughout 2021, with the country’s house price index peaking in the first quarter of 2022 at *****. Prospective homeowners priced out of the market Recent house price increases reflect the ongoing challenges of housing affordability in Australia. Property prices largely outpace income growth, reigniting discussions about whether the country is stuck in a property bubble, a topic that has been debated for over a decade. The country’s house price-to-income ratio hit ***** in the second quarter of 2024, the highest ratio recorded over the past five years, making it increasingly difficult to get on the property ladder. Unaffordable rental conditions Australia’s rental market has also seen challenges, with the rent price index continuing to climb throughout 2024 into the first quarter of 2025, making the prospect of renting less appealing. As of March 2025, the average weekly house rent price in Sydney stood at *** Australian dollars, the highest across the country’s major cities. Canberra, Darwin, and Perth were the next most expensive markets for house rents, while Hobart was the most affordable capital city for both house and unit rent prices.

Average House Prices in Australia increased to 1002.50 AUD Thousand in the first quarter of 2025 from 995.60 AUD Thousand in the fourth quarter of 2024. This dataset includes a chart with historical data for Australia Mean Dwelling Price.

The rent price index in Australia in the first quarter of 2025 was *****, marking an increase from the same quarter of the previous year. Rent prices had decreased in 2020; in Melbourne and Sydney, this was mainly attributed to the absence of international students during the coronavirus outbreak. The current state of the rental market in Australia The rental market in Australia has been marked by varying conditions across different regions. Among the capital cities, Sydney has long been recognized for having some of the highest average rents. As of March 2025, the average weekly rent for a house in Sydney was *** Australian dollars, which was the highest average rent across all major cities in Australia that year. Furthermore, due to factors like population growth and housing demand, regional areas have also seen noticeable increases in rental prices. For instance, households in the non-metropolitan area of New South Wales’ expenditure on rent was around ** percent of their household income in the year ending June 2024. Housing affordability in Australia Housing affordability remains a significant challenge in Australia, contributing to a trend where many individuals and families rent for prolonged periods. The underlying cause of this issue is the ongoing disparity between household wages and housing costs, especially in large cities. While renting offers several advantages, it is worth noting that the associated costs may not always align with the expectation of affordability. Approximately one-third of participants in a recent survey stated that they pay between ** and ** percent of their monthly income on rent. Recent government initiatives, such as the 2024 Help to Buy scheme, aim to make it easier for people across Australia to get onto the property ladder. Still, the multifaceted nature of Australia’s housing affordability problem requires continued efforts to strike a balance between market dynamics and the need for accessible housing options for Australians.

CoreLogic Dwelling Prices MoM in Australia remained unchanged at 0.60 percent in July. This dataset includes a chart with historical data for Australia CoreLogic Dwelling Prices MoM.

As of September 2024, the average rental yield of houses in Sydney, New South Wales, was **** percent. In Darwin, the rental yield for houses measured **** percent, which was the highest across all Australian capital cities during that quarter.

Rental is Australia’s emerging tenure. Each year the proportion of Australians who rent increases, many of us will rent for life, and for the first time in generations there are now more renters than home owners. Though the rental sector is home to almost one-third of all Australians, researchers and policy-makers know little about conditions in this growing market because there is currently no systematic or reliable data. This project provides researchers and policy stakeholders with an essential database on Australia’s rental housing conditions. This data infrastructure will provide the knowledge base for national and international research and allow better urban, economic and social policy development. Building on The 2016 Australian Housing Conditions Dataset, in 2020 we collected data on the housing conditions of 15,000 rental households, covering all Australian states and territories. The project is funded by the Australian Research Council and The University of Adelaide, in partnership with the University of South Australia, the University of Melbourne, Swinburne University of Technology, Curtin University and Western Sydney University and is led by Professor Emma Baker at the University of Adelaide. The Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute provided funding for the focussed COVID-19 Module.

Divergent trends in the building and infrastructure sectors have constrained the Construction division’s performance through the end of 2024-25, with revenue expected to drop by an annualised 1.2% to $521.2 billion. Rollercoaster-like trends in the residential building market and pandemic-related supply chain disruptions have constrained the performance of homebuilders and many special construction service industries. Still, favourable trends in non-residential building construction and non-building infrastructure construction generate buoyant conditions for some Construction division segments. New house construction surged to a record peak in 2021-22, supported by the Federal Government’s HomeBuilder stimulus and record-low interest rates. Still, new house construction has plunged in recent years following the hike in mortgage interest rates as the RBA seeks to quell inflation. Many small homebuilders have hit the wall in response to intense competition, escalating input costs and plunging profit margins. Conversely, the construction of multi-unit apartments and townhouses has gradually recovered from the deep trough in 2021-22 as investors return to address the severe rental shortages in the face of mounting population pressures. Divisional revenue contracted with the 2023-24 housing slump and is expected to sink 3.2% in 2024-25. Some large prime and specialist trade contractors have derived substantial stimulus from constructing landmark road and rail developments, including the WestConnex motorway in Sydney and the Cross River Rail in Brisbane. Similarly, conditions have been strong for contractors working on non-residential building projects, particularly accelerated growth in the construction of industrial warehouses and distribution facilities. Favourable trends in the residential building market are forecast to underpin modest growth in Construction division revenue at an annualised 1.2% over the five years through 2029-30 to $554.0 billion. Many prime building and special construction contractors will benefit from an upswing in demand for constructing multi-unit dwellings and, to a lesser extent, single-unit housing and home renovations. The housing market will benefit from the initiatives under the National Housing Accord. Construction activity will remain stable in the non-residential market. At the same time, the principal constraint on the Construction division will come from the staged completion of several landmark road and rail projects.