Total Value of Dwellings

The preliminary estimate of the total value of residential dwellings in Australia in the March quarter 2023 was $9,874.7 billion, up $140.0 billion from $9,734.7 billion in the December quarter 2022. 

Of the total value of residential dwellings, $9,487.2 billion was owned by households.

In the March quarter 2023, the total value of residential dwellings rose in all states and territories except Tasmania, Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory. 

The number of residential dwellings in Australia rose by 52,000 to 11,020,300, and the mean price of residential dwellings rose by $8,500 to $896,000, this quarter.

The mean price of residential dwellings in NSW ($1,150,400) remains the highest in the country, followed by the ACT ($951,800) and Victoria ($898,300). The lowest mean price is in the Northern Territory ($502,100).

The Total Value of Dwelling Stock (TVDS) is compiled using dwelling count and dwelling type data from the Census of Population and Housing.

The further the reference period is from the date of the Census (benchmark) period, the higher proportion of the estimate (of the number of dwellings) is accounted-for by modelling rather than the real world data. This can increase the variability of the estimate so it is highly desirable to recalculate the benchmarks when updated data are available.

The release of data from the 2021 Census has allowed the ABS to update the following key inputs (benchmarks) used in the compilation of the TVDS:

• stratification of the dwelling stock, by location (based on Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2) from the ASGS) and dwelling type (established houses and attached dwellings);
• the number of dwellings in the dwelling stock;
• the long term realisation rate, which is used to produce an estimate of net additions to the dwelling stock;
• sector of ownership (Household/Non Household) proportions, which are used in the Australian System of National Accounts (ASNA) to compile the non-financial assets component of the Household Balance Sheet; and
• an adjustment factor for the Other Territories.

The implementation of updated benchmarks has resulted in some changes to the previously published TVDS estimates. These changes have been smoothed in over a one year window (from September quarter 2020) for both the Household and Non-Household series. This approach is in line with standard ABS practice for introducing changes and does not impact the interpretation of the data.

Additionally, revisions to previously published TVDS estimates have been influenced by:

• the usual practice of including additional sales records received from CoreLogic within the current revision window;
• the method used to calculate the price component of TVDS in the P2 and Final estimates; and
• the incorporation of records inadvertently excluded from previous quarters (between June Quarter 21 and September quarter 2022) due to inconsistencies in geography coding of some SA2s.

Further detail on the methodology used to compile TVDS and a history of the data series can be found in Total Value of Dwellings methodology, March Quarter 2022 | Australian Bureau of Statistics (abs.gov.au)

The data in Table 1 and Table 2 were previously published under catalogue number 6416.0 'Residential Property Price Indexes: Eight Capital Cities'. The Residential Property Price Indexes: Eight Capital Cities publication ceased with the December quarter 2021 issue. Please see the ABS media release 'Update on the Australian Bureau of Statistics work program' for further information.