THE quarterly round up of median house price analyses has revealed a spike in Perth residential property values during the past three months of 2009, although the exact figures are in dispute.
THE quarterly round up of median house price analyses has revealed a spike in Perth residential property values during the past three months of 2009, although the exact figures are in dispute.
The latest figures, released early this week by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, indicated Perth’s median house price increased by 5.7 per cent in the December 2009 quarter, resulting in an 11.5 per cent increase over calendar 2009.
Nationally, the ABS’s Australian house price index rose 5.2 per cent in the December quarter, up from 4.4 per cent in the preceding three months.
Australian Property Monitor statistics for Perth also revealed a spike in the December quarter, but indicated a more modest growth figure of 3.1 per cent, for an annual increase of 8.7 per cent over the calendar year.
The APM report, which was released last week, indicated Perth’s median house price was currently at $512,178, a level not recorded by APM since March 2008.
The 3.1 per cent growth from $497,011 reported by APM was the highest quarterly growth recorded since September 2006.
The APM report showed median house prices nationally had grown by 12.1 per cent in 2009, and 4.8 per cent in the December quarter, driven by increased activity in the top end of the market in all capital cities.
And preliminary figures from the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia released in December showed strong sales turnover among more expensive homes had lifted the metropolitan median price to $475,000, just $10,000 short of the record median house prices of 2008.
APM economist Matthew Bell agreed it was activity at the top of the market that had driven the national price growth in 2009.
“In the major capitals, the median sale price of houses in the most expensive 50 per cent of suburbs rose by 17.1 per cent from its March quarter lows, compared with a rise of 9.6 per cent for the bottom half of the market,” Mr Bell said.
“In the December quarter alone, the price growth for the top end almost doubled the growth seen by the remainder of the market.”
Mr Bell said the long-term outlook for property prices remained strong, as high population growth, rising incomes and relative lack of new supply meant there would be more demand for housing than supply.
But median price analysis released by RP Data/Rismark International last week showed the median price in Perth had only increased 0.5 per cent for the December quarter, for annual growth of 7.1 per cent.
Price growth over all capital cities recorded by RP Data-Rismark was 2.1 per cent of the December quarter, an increase of 11.1 per cent over the year.
However, the RP Data-Rismark Hedonic Home Value Index showed a median price of $490,000 in Perth, confirming the trend of a surge in home values.
The RP Data figures found units outperformed houses nationally, with a value increase of 13.5 per cent, compared with 10.4 per cent increase in house values.
Perth units also outperformed houses, according to RP Data, with the median unit price hitting an all time high of $400,000, after 9.5 per cent annual growth.
