Regional Queensland has recorded the highest growth in the country in the past four years, with prices rising 66.5 per cent.
According to the latest PropTrack Market Insight report, national home prices have climbed 39.9 per cent in the four years since the global pandemic, but some areas have far outpaced even that significant rate.
Queensland experienced an unprecedented influx of new residents from across the country and has six of the Top 10 highest growth regions since March 2020 within its borders.
PropTrack Senior Economist Eleanor Creagh said home prices across the country had staged “a remarkable feat”.
“From fears of sharp falls through the pandemic, to the expectation of steep declines when interest rates began to quickly climb, home prices have defied the expectations of many, surging, 39.9 per cent,” she said.
“The supply of properties for sale, population growth, building activity, rental market conditions, interest rates, and interstate and regional migration have all influenced home price growth as well as how it has been distributed Australia-wide since March 2020.
“Through the pandemic strong demand, low supply and record low interest rates combined to drive a once in a generation price boom.”
Nationally, the area to record the highest price growth over the past four years was Wide Bay, in regional Queensland, with the median value soaring 80.5 per cent to $542,000.
Ipswich, in Greater Brisbane, followed close behind with 79.7 per cent.
The median property value there is now $636,000.
Adelaide – North came in third with 77.6 per cent growth, to reach a median home value of $625,000.
This was followed by the Gold Coast (74.3 per cent), Logan-Beaudesert (74.1 per cent) and South Australia – South East (71.3 per cent).
“Coastal and regional areas, along with Brisbane and Adelaide, benefited most from affordability advantages and pandemic induced preference shifts resulting in surging property prices,” Ms Creagh said.
“Four years on and regional home prices have outperformed their capital city counterparts in every state except WA and NT.”
Ms Creagh said Perth was currently the strongest market in the country when comparing annual home price growth.
Following considerable home price growth during the pandemic, Perth largely avoided the downturn in prices in 2022, and prices have continued to surge since.
This period of outperformance has seen Perth climb the ranks to land as the third strongest capital city market since the pandemic onset, with prices up 57.3 per cent.
Mandurah, in Greater Perth, also takes seventh spot on the list of highest growth regions since March 2020, with prices rising 69.6 per cent to a median value of $721,000.
“Since covid, the housing market has cycled through different phases,” Ms Creagh said.
“Home prices fell as interest rates quickly climbed.
“However, as net migration hit record levels, insufficient housing supply coupled with strong demand offset the higher interest rate environment and deterioration in affordability.
“As a result, home prices took off again in January 2023 and that remains the case three months into 2024.”
In Sydney, gains have totalled 34.7 per cent, while Melbourne has been one of the slowest-growing markets since the pandemic and prices are up just 17.2 per cent since March 2020.
Ms Creagh said the city suffered population losses during the pandemic and softer growth relative to other parts of the country.
In contrast, home prices in Brisbane have risen 63.1 per cent since March 2020 and those gains are matched only by Adelaide (64 per cent).
Darwin home prices have risen 25.1 per cent since March 2020, while Canberra prices have climbed 37.4 per cent.
Hobart was one of the top performing markets during the pandemic, but is now the weakest capital city market when comparing annual price growth (down 1.65 per cent), as well as the change from peak (down 7.9 per cent).
Despite this, home prices in Hobart are still up 36.1 per cent since March 2020.
