Most of Australia’s property market has been savaged this year, with the worst performing capital city seeing house prices fall a whopping 6 per cent.
Property analysis firm PropTrack released data to news.com.au which showed that 2022 was generally a bad year for anyone with a property in a major city.
Growth was either sluggish and minimal, or it went backwards, leaving the property with a lower price tag than the year before.
It comes after the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) hiked interest rates for eight consecutive months, making it harder to obtain or service a loan, and pushing down demand for properties.
PropTrack’s most recent Home Price Index found that Sydney and Melbourne homeowners endured a rough ride. However, in a surprise twist, one capital city actually had a great year and is only just peaking now.
In the past 12 months, Sydney properties have lost their shine, as they are down 6.44 per cent.
The median house and unit price dipped below $1 million, to sit now at $992,000.
That’s a significant fall from grace from last year, with one analysis finding that Sydney houses rose by around $1100 per day to a new record of $1.6 million in 2021.
The news wasn’t great for Melburnians either.
Victoria’s capital has nosedived 4.49 per cent. However, it’s actually down even more if you consider its peak last year – declining by 5.3 per cent in all.
On average, capital cities are down 3 per cent.
Bucking this trend, however, is an unlikely candidate – Adelaide.
The South Australian hub has actually gone through a lucrative 12 months, with house prices soaring to 12.6 per cent higher than the previous year.
PropTrack says Adelaide is currently “at peak” in terms of its growth.
The median Adelaide home or unit is now worth $648,000.
In the past month, all capital cities declined slightly in growth, except Adelaide.
On average, capital cities dropped 0.16 per cent, with Melbourne topping that with a 0.33 per cent decline.
But Adelaide grew by 0.25 per cent.
Regional areas had a slightly better year than their capital counterparts.
They actually rose in value by 3.89 per cent.
It’s still a massive slowdown compared to 2021, when some regional localities recorded property growth of as much as 49 per cent.
Regional Victoria grew the least, at 1.71 per cent.
Meanwhile, residents in regional South Australia enjoyed a 15.92 per cent lift to their property values.
Both South Australia and the Northern Territory – which has seen an increase of 4.76 per cent – are not at their peak, while every other regional centre has slumped.
That said, regional areas are still up 46 per cent since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020.
Australian homeowners are waiting with bated breath to see if 2023 will be an even worse year as warnings of a possible collapse emerge.
Earlier this week, an expert report warned that the Australian property market bubble may very well burst next year.
The report warned that if such a thing were to occur, property prices could drop by as much as 30 per cent.
The dreaded crash happened in 1989, when property prices fell sharply. Sydney was hit the hardest, experiencing a 24 per cent sudden decline.
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