Autumn has arrived and what a wonderful time of year to turn over a new leaf with a property purchase.
While national housing values are generally rising, the pace of growth has trended downwards since April last year, according to CoreLogic figures. CoreLogic director of research, Tim Lawless, said every capital city and broad ‘rest of state’ region was now recording a slowing trend in value growth, albeit with significant diversity.
If you do happen to come across a bargain, you’ll want to be able to jump on it pronto. Speak to us about pre-approval on your finance today.
Interest rate news
At its March meeting, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) decided to keep the cash rate on hold at the historically low level of 0.10 per cent.
RBA Governor Philip Lowe said while the global economy was continuing to recover from the pandemic, the war in Ukraine was a major new source of uncertainty.
He said inflation had picked up quicker than expected, but the Board wouldn’t increase the cash rate until actual inflation was sustainably within the two to three per cent target range.
There’s still speculation a rate rise could come in the second half of 2022 and banks have been lifting fixed mortgage rates for months, so now is the time to ensure you’re getting a competitive deal.
Home value movements
National housing values crept up 0.6% in February – the lowest monthly growth reading since October 2020.
Sydney recorded its first decline in housing values since September 2020 (-0.1%), while Melbourne housing values were flat (0%) over the month.
Brisbane (1.8%) and Adelaide (1.5%) saw the strongest growth in dwelling values in February. Brisbane property values could see a drop this month due to the recent floods, but property analysts are expecting the market to recover quickly.
Meanwhile, regional Australia continues to record a substantially higher rate of growth than the capital cities. In February, dwelling values increased across the combined regionals by 1.6%, according to CoreLogic figures.
“Sydney and Melbourne have shown the sharpest slowdown,” CoreLogic’s Research Director Tim Lawless said.
“Conditions are easing less noticeably across the smaller capitals, especially Brisbane, Adelaide and Hobart, where housing values rose by more than 1% in February.
“Similarly, regional markets have been somewhat insulated to slowing growth conditions, with five of the six rest-of-state regions continuing to record monthly gains in excess of 1.2%.”
| All dwellings | Auctions | Clearance rate | Private sale | Monthly home value change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VIC | 1015 | 82% | 1420 | ▲ 0.01% |
| NSW | 705 | 91% | 1600 | ▼ – 0.10% |
| ACT | 112 | 88% | 83 | ▲ 0.43% |
| QLD | 153 | 71% | 1451 | ▲ 1.96% |
| WA | 3 | 67% | 782 | ▲ 0.25% |
| NT | 3 | 100% | 28 | ▲ 0.44% |
| TAS | 0 | 0% | 200 | ▲ 1.20% |
| SA | 118 | 94% | 400 | ▲ 1.53% |
* Monthly Home Values figures as of 28 February, 2022
* Australian auction results, clearance rates and recent sales for the week ending 27 February, 2022.
* The clearance rate is preliminary and current as of 4:30 pm AEDT, 2 March, 2022.
Ready for an autumn property purchase? Get in touch and we’ll help you find the right finance for your needs.
Additional sources
CoreLogic RP Data Daily Home Value Index: Monthly Values
