Lumbering Perth giving out some concrete revival signals

REIWA president, Hayden Groves, is optimistic of the city’s turnaround.

“With the worst of the market downturn appearing over, the improvement in house and unit prices this quarter suggests buyer confidence is returning which should bode well for sellers as we move into spring,” he said.

“In addition, Perth’s median unit price is expected to lift by 4.9 per cent to $419,500 for the June 2018 quarter, which is 2.3 per cent higher than the same time last year.”

Mr Groves also said the data indicates that Perth’s median house price would settle at around $520,000 for the June 2018 quarter, up 1 per cent against the March 2018 quarter and two per cent against the June 2017 quarter.

Volume

Despite his earlier optimism, Mr Groves said sales volumes had declined during the June quarter, with the onset of winter having likely contributed to subdued activity levels.

“It’s not uncommon for activity to drop off this time of year,” he added.

“Traditionally, activity tends to slow during the winter months before picking up again in spring.”

The data shows there were 6,900 sales recorded during the June 2018 quarter.

But he said despite the overall decline, numerous suburbs recorded increases in sales in the quarter.

“The suburbs with the biggest improvement in house sales were North Perth, Queens Park, Singleton, Camillo and Beldon, while West Perth, Balcatta, Rockingham,

Claremont and Mount Lawley had the biggest improvement in unit sales.”

The data also shows a shift in the composition of the quarter’s sales, with an increase in house sales in the $800,000 and above price range.

Supply

Mr Groves said stock levels across the metro area had declined 1.1 per cent during the quarter. There were 14,382 properties for sale in Perth at the end of June 2018.

“We certainly appear to have hit the ceiling as far as listing stock is concerned. Despite fewer sales being recorded this quarter, it is encouraging to see stock levels have continued to be absorbed,” Mr Groves said.

Average days on market rounded out at 67, and vendor discounting fell by 5 per cent during the June quarter.

“This quarter’s average selling day figure is one day faster than both the March 2018 and June 2017 quarters,” Mr Groves said.

“With reductions observed in average selling days and discounting, this is a good indicator sellers are pricing their property in line with market expectations,” Mr Groves said.