The first decline in Australian property prices in two years

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Nearly two years of rising home prices have ended, with new data indicating a national decline.

According to property analytics provider CoreLogic, home values dropped 0.1 per cent in December 2024, following a period of price increases from February 2023 to October 2024, with prices stalling in November 2024.

Tim Lawless, CoreLogic’s research director, said he was not surprised by the latest data.

“This result represents the housing market catching up with the reality of market dynamics,” he said.

“Growth in housing values has been consistently weakening through the second half of the year, as affordability constraints weighed on buyer demand and advertised supply levels trended higher.”

House prices fall in major cities, rise in others

CoreLogic data reveals house prices fell by 0.2 per cent across all five largest capital cities in December.

Melbourne experienced the largest drop, with home values decreasing by 0.7 per cent, while Sydney, Australia’s largest housing market, experienced a 0.6 per cent decline.

Meanwhile, values increased in Adelaide (0.6 per cent), Brisbane (0.5 per cent) and Perth (0.7 per cent).

The quarterly capital city rankings also shifted in December, with Adelaide surpassing Perth as the strongest market.

“Extremely low advertised stock levels have continued to support strong growth conditions across Adelaide, with stock levels tracking a 34 per cent decrease below the previous five-year average in mid-December,” Lawless said.

“Perth, on the other hand, has seen a clear lift in advertised supply, which has provided buyers with more choice and less urgency, supporting a sharper slowdown in value growth relative to Adelaide,” Lawless said.

Darwin was another city that experienced a 0.4 per cent growth in December, while prices dropped 0.5 per cent in Canberra and Hobart.

National growth and regional variations in home prices

The data shows annual house prices rose by 4.9 per cent nationally in 2024, adding approximately $38,000 to median values last year.

Over the past 12 months (2024), house prices fell in Melbourne (down 3.0 per cent), Hobart (down 0.6 per cent), and Canberra (down 0.4 per cent). Meanwhile, Perth experienced the largest growth in the country, with a 19.2 per cent increase in home values.

In 2024, Adelaide and Brisbane also recorded significant gains, with prices rising by 13.1 per cent and 11.2 per cent, respectively, while Darwin experienced the slowest growth at just 0.8 per cent.

“Although the mid-sized capitals recorded double-digit annual growth in 2024, it is clear these markets have passed their peak rate of growth,” CoreLogic said in a media release.

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Prices in regional areas

Regional housing markets also finished the year with a 0.6 per cent increase in value, compared to a 4.5 per cent rise across the combined capital index.

The report shows prices increased in regional areas of Western Australia (16.1 per cent), South Australia (12.5 per cent ) and Queensland (10.5 per cent).

Regional Victoria and Northern Territory were the only “rest of state” markets to experience a drop in values, with a 2.7 per cent and 4.7 per cent decline, respectively.