Largest annual home value decline since 2019: CoreLogic

CoreLogic’s Monthly Housing Chart Pack for February 2023 has reported a 7.2 per cent drop in dwelling values in Australia over the past 12 months. National home values fell 3.2 per cent in the three months to January.

Despite it being the largest drop in four years, the month of January saw national home values fall by 1.0 per cent, indicating an easing rate of decline since the 1.6 per cent drop recorded in August 2022.

In addition, the total value of residential real estate in Australia fell to $9.2 trillion by the end of January 2023, from $9.3 trillion (a decline of 1.07 per cent) recorded in December 2022.

Regional South Australia saw the highest annual growth rate in dwelling values among the regional and capital city markets, increasing by 15.3 per cent while the lowest change in values was across Sydney, where values dropped 13.8 per cent in the last 12 months.

Furthermore, CoreLogic found that sales volumes continue to trend lower due to slowing buyer demand. In the year to January 2023, national sales fell 19.1 per cent (an estimated 500,550 sales nationally) when compared to 2022.

Despite this decline, sales estimates are still 4.6 per cent above the decade-average annual sales volume.

New listings trends are moving through a seasonal low, dropping 22.1 per cent lower than the previous five-year average, with the volume of new listings totalling 13,936 nationally in the four weeks to 8 January 2023.

Sydney tops the list for most expensive capital

Recent research findings released by Domain revealed that Sydney ranks as the most expensive capital city per square metre in Australia.

Followed by Sydney, Melbourne ranked the second highest in price per square metre (sq m), sitting at $1,811 per sq m, while Sydney sat at $2,466 per sq m, revealing a 36 per cent difference in price.

The report stated that Sydney’s costliness comes from its population and high cost of housing, which reflected the city’s desirability. Factors such as education, lifestyle, career opportunities, climate and proximity to beaches have attracted both domestic and overseas residents.

Following Sydney and Melbourne in the rankings were Canberra at $1,517 per sq m, Brisbane at $1,254, Perth at $1,233, Adelaide at $1,194, Hobart at $1,087 and Darwin at $737.