In cities like Adelaide, Darwin, Brisbane, and Perth, the growth in unit prices has surpassed that of houses, according to Domain. This trend suggests that first-time home buyers and investors are gravitating towards options that offer better value and affordability as the market tightens.

Observe the image below to see the fluctuations in house prices across various states and territories.

House prices have witnessed a notable surge across Australia’s capital cities, as revealed by the most recent house price report from Domain.

Nicola Powell, Domain’s chief of research and economics, noted that these statistics reveal a transformation in what is considered “affordable.” Markets such as Brisbane and Perth, which previously appealed to first-time buyers, now feature among the regions with Australia’s highest median home prices.

Nicola Powell, chief of research and economics at Domain, said the figures showed a shift in the parameters of “affordability” — markets like Brisbane and Perth that were once more attractive for first-home buyers are now ranked among Australia’s highest median home prices.

“Borrowing capacity is slowly diminished in the face of rising property prices, and for first home buyers, it becomes quite challenging.”

Watch the image below change to see where unit prices have grown across different states and territories.

Unit price growth is outpacing house price growth in Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth and Darwin, according to the latest Domain house price report. Source: SBS News

Sydney has long been Australia’s most expensive city to live in, but over the past quarter, median house prices climbed to previously unseen heights.

The highest median house prices in Sydney were in Vaucluse, at $7.8 million, Bronte at $6 million and Mosman at $5.3 million. While high, property prices in these suburbs have seen limited growth over the years.

Melbourne house prices climbing

While some traditionally expensive suburbs like inner-city Carlton, coastal Sorrento and Windsor in the inner-south revealed an “improved affordability” — or, a drop in price — the average median property price in suburban localities like Heidelberg and Box Hill witnessed steep inclines into the millions, an annual rise of 25.9 per cent and 20.7 per cent respectively.

In that period, 38 Brisbane suburbs recorded a median price jump into the millions, bringing the city’s total number of seven-figure value markets to 205.