Adelaide Property Prices Remain Resilient

The story of the Adelaide property market continues to be one of resilience. Against a backdrop of falling prices across the country, Adelaide property prices have held strong.

This is highlighted by the fact that since the peak, prices are off only -1.5% according to the latest data from Corelogic.  The South Australian capital has performed very favourably in comparison to other markets such as Sydney, Melbourne and even Perth who have all seen double-digit falls.

Notably,  Adelaide has presented the third strongest property market in the country, behind only Hobart and Canberra over the past 12 months.  The strength has remained throughout a period when many investors were nervous about the state of the housing market after the local auto-market shut down in 2017 taking a number of jobs with it.  

According to Corelogic, the month of August saw a small -0.2% change in property prices, but overall the trend appears to be headed upwards. The median house price in Adelaide is $461,651, while units are currently $321,506.

Some of this strength can be attributed to a low vacancy rate that is sitting at 1.1%.   At the same time, the most recent auction results out of Adelaide and South Australia continue to be pleasing for vendors, with the clearance rate sitting around 62.5% for a number of weeks.

The latest figures from the Valuer-General for the 2019 June quarter, showed the same type of strength in the housing market with an increase of 2.38% over the past year.

The top-performing suburbs over the last year were Unley, Rosewater and Torrensville while Brighton, Stonyfell and Aldgate all showed good growth according to the Valuer-General.

REISA Vice President Mr. Robin Turner said that the latest results showed that all was well in the South Australian real estate market and that confidence had returned to both vendors and buyers with realistically priced properties selling readily.

“The latest figures show a significant growth in median price over the last 12 months and a substantial increase in the number of sales over the last quarter. It is also encouraging that the median price has remained around the record-breaking median posted last quarter. Adelaide is still a most affordable city and these results clearly indicate that South Australia is appealing to both home buyers and investors alike,” said the Vice President.

“There was an increase of almost 10% in the number of sales since the last quarter across metropolitan Adelaide and about 6% across South Australia. Capital growth is one thing but when this is combined with increases in numbers of sales, it shows great confidence in South Australia”.

“Location and affordability will always be the key drivers of a purchaser’s decision to either buy or invest in property. Affordability particularly when coupled with existing or exciting new infrastructure will always deliver suburbs that do well for first home buyers.

""Likewise, these suburbs will be seen as very attractive opportunities for investment. Location, in particular, proximity to the beach will always prove popular in offering lifestyle changes or recreational activities,” said Mr. Turner.

Katherine Skinner, director of National Property Buyers believes that buyers are changing tact as we head into spring and August is looking like a real turning point.

“The month of August saw a stark contrast in activity between the first half of the month and the last, as well as general feel in the market. Early August we felt the desperation of investors wanting to jump into poor investment choices just to make a purchase, whereas now, there is an air of calm and calculation felt among investors we are seeing some solid options,” said Mrs. Skinner.

“While investor sentiment has remained strong, the previously low stock levels which we saw over the winter months made purchasing high-performance investment properties difficult for many investors.”

“By the end of August, the market has seen a steady increase in quality investment grade stock ready to be snapped up by savvy investors, and they are being sold within days of hitting the market.”

“We are expecting to see significant growth with this continued momentum over the spring quarter in certain pockets within the metropolitan area, especially within the North-Eastern Suburbs and Inner West.”

Adelaide in Numbers - August 2019