PHOTO: Capital city house prices declined nationally in May, but only by 0.5 per cent.(ABC News: James Carmody)
Australian house prices are so far holding up amidst the economic downturn caused by coronavirus, but analysts warn the real test will come once bank mortgage holidays end later this year.
Key points:
- CoreLogic’s index showed a 0.4pc fall in national home prices over May
- Melbourne had the steepest monthly decline, with a 0.9pc slide
- CoreLogic Australia’s head of research Eliza Owen warns that end of bank mortgage repayment holidays may see bigger falls in spring
CoreLogic’s monthly index shows, nationally, prices fell an average of 0.4 per cent, but there was a significant variation across regions.
“There are different fundamentals around the nature of employment and how dependent those markets are on international migration,” CoreLogic Australia’s head of research Eliza Owen told ABC News.
“Melbourne, for example, is so far leading declines with property values down by 0.9 per cent over the month.
“We’re also seeing differentials between the metropolitan areas and regional Australia, where the combined capitals saw value declines of 0.5 per cent over the month while the combined regional areas held steady.”
Darwin was the weakest capital city, despite being the first to substantially lift coronavirus-related social distancing restrictions, with prices down 1.6 per cent last month.
Hobart had the strongest monthly price gains of 0.8 per cent, despite seeing one of the steepest falls in rents over the past two months.
CBA economist Kristina Clifton also observed a substantial difference between price moves at the top and bottom end of the property market.
“Prices are falling the most for the most expensive homes,” she noted.
READ MORE VIA ABC
