House prices no longer doubling every 10 years

According to PropTrack’s latest Market Insight report, the average house price nationally had doubled in 185 months (15.4 years) from $365,000 to $720,000, while the median unit price doubled in 213 months (17.8 years) from $280,000 to $560,000 in May 2023.

House prices in the capital cities doubled quicker than those in regional areas (14.3 years for the capitals and 16 years for regional areas) from $412,000 to $825,000 and $290,000 to $582,000, respectively while unit prices in regional areas doubled faster than those in capital cities, 17.5 years compared to 18.1 years ($255,000 to $510,000 in regional areas and $290,000 to $580,000 in the capitals).

Out of all the regions, Hobart house prices doubled the quickest from $360,000 to $720,000 in 6.8 years, while house prices in Perth ($280,000 to $563,000) and regional Queensland ($275,000 to $550,000) were the slowest to double, taking 17.8 years.

Units in Hobart also doubled the quickest in the unit category at 7.8 years ($272,500 to $545,000) while Perth units were also among the slowest at 19.2 years ($197,000 to $395,000).

This has taken Hobart to the spot of fifth most expensive capital for houses and fourth most expensive for units after prices in Tasmania were previously the cheapest in the country.

According to the report, it’s commonly stated that property prices double every seven to 10 years, however, this hasn’t been the case as of late as very few markets have achieved this growth in under a decade despite strong price gains nationally during the COVID-19 pandemic.

PropTrack director of economic research Cameron Kusher stated that while prices rose significantly since the beginning of the pandemic, it has taken many years for median prices to double to the current values across most parts of Australia,” Mr Kusher said.

“This highlights that as the cost of housing has increased, the percentage gains in prices have reduced.

“Median price increases for houses are typically stronger than units, particularly in capital cities. In fact, house prices have doubled sooner than unit prices across all capital cities and regional markets.”

Mr Kusher added that prospects of prices doubling in the future will be determined by rising interest rates, higher prices, and other economic and demographic factors.

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