MEDIA RELEASE
18 June 2019	Embargo: 11.30 am (Canberra time)

Residential property prices fell 3.0 per cent in the March quarter 2019, according to figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

All capital cities recorded falls in property prices in the March quarter 2019, with the larger property markets of Sydney (-3.9 per cent) and Melbourne (-3.8 per cent) continuing to observe the largest falls.

In the March quarter 2019, property prices in Adelaide (-0.2 per cent) and Hobart (-0.4 per cent) recorded their first falls since March quarter 2013 and September quarter 2012 respectively. Falls were also recorded in Brisbane (-1.5 per cent), Perth (-1.1 per cent), Canberra (-0.9 per cent) and Darwin (-1.8 per cent).

ABS Chief Economist, Bruce Hockman said: "These results are in line with soft housing market indicators, with sales transactions and auction clearance rates lower than one year ago, and days on market trending higher."

"A continuation of tight credit supply and reduced demand from investors and owner occupiers has contributed to weakness in property prices in all capital cities this quarter," he said.

Through the year growth in property prices fell 10.3 per cent in Sydney and 9.4 per cent in Melbourne. Adelaide (0.8 per cent) and Hobart (4.6 per cent) are the only capital cities recording positive through the year growth.

The total value of Australia's 10.3 million residential dwellings fell by $172.7 billion to $6.6 trillion in the March quarter 2019. The mean price of dwellings in Australia is now $636,900. The total value of residential dwellings has fallen for four consecutive quarters, down from $6,957.2 billion in the March quarter 2018. The mean price of residential dwellings has now fallen for five consecutive quarters, down from $689,700 in the December quarter 2017.

Further details can be found in Residential Property Price Indexes: Eight Capital Cities (cat. no. 6416.0), available for free download from the ABS website: https://www.abs.gov.au.


Media notes:

• Established houses are detached residential dwellings on their own block of land, regardless of age.
• The term 'attached dwellings' includes flats, units and apartments plus semi-detached, row and terrace houses.
• The value and mean price of residential dwellings includes any land.
• When reporting ABS data, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (or ABS) must be attributed as the source.
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