Australian house prices hit record highs along the east coast, marking the steepest increase in four years and rounding out a year of unprecedented events and price predictions.
The median house value now sits at $852,940, up 4.1 per cent over the quarter and 5.8 per cent in the year according to Domain’s house price report.
Sydney, Hobart and Melbourne led the charge in the quarterly results while Brisbane made a modest improvement but was up 5.6 per cent in the year.
Domain senior research analyst Nicola Powell said the pessimistic outlook for property prices failed to materialise.
“House prices [in Sydney] finished the year 6.7 per cent higher than the previous year, although the pace of annual growth is roughly half that of earlier in the year,” Powell said.
“The rebound highlights the resilience of Sydney’s house values following a short-lived 2.2 per cent dip mid-year.
Powell said record low interest rates, the containment of Covid and stimulus packages all played a role in supporting market activity and prices.