The median value of a dwelling in Canberra is now $844,277, making it the third most expensive capital city in Australia behind Sydney and Brisbane. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
Canberra’s dwelling prices have largely held steady during 2024 but still remain 6.8 per cent below the record highs seen in May 2022, according to CoreLogic’s annual Home Value Index released today (2 January).
Dwelling values in the ACT dropped just 0.4 per cent throughout 2024, while values grew 4.9 per cent nationally, despite a 0.1 per cent fall in the last quarter.
A 2.9 per cent fall in unit values was the main drag on Canberra’s headline growth numbers while house values edged 0.4 per cent higher in 2024.
Molonglo recorded the largest annual gain, up 2.3 per cent, followed by Tuggeranong at 1.6 per cent. The weakest market was Gungahlin, where values fell 3.2 per cent, followed by South Canberra with a 1.7 per cent fall in values.
Colin McIntyre of McIntyre Property said the fall in unit prices was skewing the real estate figures in the ACT.
“The Canberra residential property market has held its own, particularly in the later half of the year,” Mr McIntyre said.
“We finished the year particularly strongly, but that may be the market we are in. We deal with a lot of properties at the entry level.”
In the rental market, the December quarter saw rents rise by 0.6 per cent after falling 0.9 per cent in the September quarter.
The median value of a dwelling in Canberra is now $844,277, making it the third most expensive capital city in Australia behind Sydney and Brisbane.
Last quarter was the first time national home values had declined in almost two years.
The December decline in the national HVI was enough to drag the quarterly change into negative territory, down 0.1 per cent. This marked the end of what CoreLogic said had been a surprisingly strong and resilient period of growth between February 2023 and October 2024 – a period characterised by high interest rates, cost-of-living pressures and reduced borrowing capacity.
The ACT was one of three capital cities to record a decline in values over the year. Table: CoreLogic.
CoreLogic’s research director, Tim Lawless, said the decline in values was no surprise.
“This result represents the housing market catching up with the reality of market dynamics,” Mr Lawless 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.”
The first half of 2024 saw national home values rise 4.1 per cent, before slowing to just 0.7 per cent through the second half of the year, with five of the eight capitals recording a decline in values between July and December.
In annual terms, Australian home values were up 4.9 per cent in 2024, adding about $38,000 to the median value of a home.
The ACT was one of three capital cities to record a decline in values over the year. In Melbourne, prices were down 3 per cent and in Hobart 0.6 per cent.
At the other end of the spectrum, values surged 19.1 per cent in Perth, Adelaide was up 13.1 per cent and Brisbane 11.2 per cent.
Regional housing markets finished the year on a stronger note, with values up 6 per cent over the year, compared with a 4.5 per cent rise across the combined capital index. Like the capital cities, regional value growth was dominated by the regional areas of WA (16.1 per cent), SA (12.5 per cent) and Queensland (10.5 per cent).
Looking to 2025, Mr McIntyre said he expected a relatively steady market in the ACT.
“I think it’s more of the same,” he said.
“Markets tend to go up, then they plateau, then they go up again. We are in that plateau stage before they go up again.
“I don’t think we are going to see any major movement. A quarter of a per cent interest rate cut won’t make a big difference – if you can’t afford to buy at the moment, a quarter of a per cent won’t change that.”
Mr McIntyre said buyers looking for a particularly good deal should consider unrenovated properties.
“There are some good buys if you are willing to buy something that needs a bit of work done,” he said.
“The pretty houses are still selling well.
“In Canberra, there are a lot of buyers from the public sector who have the borrowing capacity that allows them to buy renovated property. They don’t have the will or the skill to renovate themselves, and the cost of trades is putting people off.”
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