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SLOW MARKET
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Perth housing market slows further in September PERTH MEDIAN PRICE
Perth’s sluggish housing market has continued to slow through the September quarter, with data out today from the Real Estate Institute of Western Australian showing a general fall for the third consecutive quarter in median prices.
REIWA President Rob Druitt said the Institute’s preliminary data for the September quarter shows that the metropolitan median price has dropped by around 4 per cent, pulling the median down from $445,000 in June to a new median price of $426,000.
“Perth’s median house price has now dropped by 10 per cent since the December quarter last year as the market correction continues to ripple through the housing system after the boom.
“However, it seems that the fallout from the US sub-prime crisis and recent interest rate uncertainty has also contributed to low consumer sentiment in sections of the property market,” Mr Druitt said.
The slow down is also reflected in the number of selling days which has stretched from 74 days in June to 79 days currently, marking the time between a property being advertised and a contract for sale being agreed to.
The number of properties on the market is largely unchanged from the June quarter, with REIWA recording listings for 17,300 properties during the quarter. This includes 2,250 blocks of land, down by 8 per cent on June.
The sales volume is up 13 per cent on the June quarter, with much of this increase attributed to first home buyer activity, which in turn has contributed to the decline in median price, given that first home buyers purchase cheaper property.
The percentage of sales for houses valued over $500,000 has dropped by 3 percentage points since the June quarter.
AREAS OF METRO GROWTH
While the overall median price has retracted in the quarter, some sub-regions reported growth in sales prices. These included Joondalup North, the Western Suburbs and Rockingham/Kwinana. The region of Armadale/Serpentine remained flat in price.
RENTS
In good news for tenants there has been no recorded increase in the overall median rent for Perth dwellings, suggesting that this is the first quarter for about three years where rents have plateaued.
“The vacancy rate for rental properties in Perth has relaxed to a manageable 2.7 per cent, which provides tenants with reasonable choice. Busy home-opens for rental properties are less common and the panic around finding a suitable rental property that has been a recent feature in Perth’s housing system has gone,” Mr Druitt said.
Median rents in Perth settled during the September quarter at $350 per week for houses and $340 per week for units - which increased by a modest $5 per week.
REGIONS
REIWA data for the Mandurah/Murray region show that median prices have dropped by around 6 per cent since the June quarter, pulling the price from $400,000 in the last quarter to around $375,000. Median rents have stabilized at $280 per week while the vacancy rate sits at 5.1 per cent.
In Greater Bunbury, the median price saw some upward movement of around 1 per cent, taking the June quarter median from $350,000 to around $354,000. Median rents have stabilized at $275 per week with a vacancy rate at 2.7 per cent.
Geraldton/Greenough experienced a negligible 1 per cent drop in September, resulting in a new median price of around $347,000. Rents have jumped by 7 per cent to $300 per week whilst the vacancy rate remained stable at 2.7 per cent.
In Kalgoorlie/Boulder, the median price has retracted by about 5 per cent from $312,000 in June to just under $300,000 in September. Median rents increased by just over 6 per cent to $360 per week, while the vacancy rate remained very tight at 0.8 per cent.
- REIWA