Perth’s house market is on the rise, while the city’s unit market has remained stable, according to the latest figures.
Data from the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia shows the preliminary median house price for April increased 3.2 per cent over the year to $547,000.
“Our data is showing increased activity in the $500,000 – $1 million price range and this is contributing to the increase,” REIWA Chief Executive Officer Cath Hart said.
“On the other hand, the unit market is remaining relatively stable.
“The preliminary annual median is $399,500, $500 lower (down 0.1 per cent) than March.
“It is also $500 lower than three months ago and down $15,500 (3.7 per cent) over the year.”
Ms Hart said the strong demand for houses was also reflected in the selling time, with houses snapped up in a median of 14 days in April, while units sold in a median 26 days.
The rental market shows a similar trend with the median weekly rent for houses climbing 4.5 per cent to sit at $575 per week in April.
Median weekly unit rents remained at $500 in both March and April, but up $70 higher than in April 2022.
“In this tight market it’s worth considering that units can be a more affordable option for buyers and renters,” Ms Hart said.
“They’re a good step for first-home buyers looking to get into the market and can potentially be rented out in the future and used to provide equity for a future second home.”
Listings
There were 6,570 properties for sale on reiwa.com at the end of April, which is a 7.8 per cent decrease from March and 18.5 per cent lower than the same time last year.
“While April traditionally has less market activity due to the number of holidays during the month, the last time we saw the number of properties available for sale at this level was in June 2010,” Ms Hart said.
“While this sounds concerning, properties are still coming to the market at reasonable levels. It is the speed of sales that is keeping this number low.
“Right now sales are tracking at the same level as new listings, which essentially means that as one property comes to the market, another sells.”
Time on market
Orelia took out the title of fastest selling suburb in April with the average time on market being just two days.
This was followed by Cooloongup and Merriwa (four days), Brabham and Lynwood (five days), and Alkimos, Aveley, Heathridge, Southern River and Warnbro (six days).
Ms Hart said Orelia had a median house price for $370,000, which indicated buyers saw value in the suburb and acted quickly.
“Similarly, nine of the 10 suburbs with the most sales for the month also have median house prices below the Perth median,” she said.
Rental rates
The suburbs that saw the most growth in their median rent in April were Wilson (up 43 per cent to $650 per week), Kardinya (up 39 per cent to $650), Beckenham (up 31 per cent to $525), Mosman Park (up 20 per cent to $663), and Fremantle (up 20 per cent to $650).
Rental listings
The number of listings rose three per cent in April to 1977, but remained 20.6 per cent lower than April 2022.
“Rental listings remain below 2,000 and have been at this level since August 2022,” Ms Hart said.
“New listings for rent are at low levels at the moment and this will see the number of available homes remaining low.”
Median leasing times
It took a median of 16 days to lease a rental property in April, which was two days slower than March, but still two days faster than a year ago.
