BUSSELTON, Port Hedland and Bunbury were the only regional centres to record median house price growth in the December quarter 2018 according to REIWA.
President Damian Collins said while regional WA’s overall median house price had performed well in the final quarter of 2018 (up 5.5 per cent to $335,000), it was important to assess each individual area on its own merit.
Busselton, Port Hedland and Bunbury saw their medians increase by 11.2 per cent, 5 per cent and 1.5 per cent respectively during the quarter.
Get in front of tomorrow's news for FREE
Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion.
READ NOWMr Collins said they were three of the larger regional centres in the state and their increases were a big driver behind the improvement in regional WA’s overall median house price.
Kalgoorlie-Boulder was the only regional centre to record no change in median house price, with prices in the area having stabilised on both a quarterly and annual basis.
Broome and Esperance saw the biggest decline in price during the quarter, with their medians coming in at $430,000 and $325,000 respectively, down 8.5 per cent and 4.4 per cent.
Over the past 12 months, reiwa.com data showed the regional centres with the biggest increase in median house price were Karratha (up 8 per cent) Busselton (up 5.7 per cent) and Albany (up 3.3 per cent).
Broome and Esperance recorded the largest falls annually.
Overall sales volumes declined in regional WA in the December quarter, but, two regional centres recorded increases in activity.
“It’s not uncommon for sales to drop off this time of year, as people are generally less inclined to purchase property in the lead up to the Christmas and New Year holiday season,” Mr Collins said.
“Despite these seasonal influences, the Geraldton and Kalgoorlie-Boulder regional centres saw an increase in activity on both a quarterly and annual basis, with sales in Geraldton up 36 per cent compared to the September 2018 quarter and 10 per cent compared to the December 2017 quarter.
“Kalgoorlie-Boulder saw sales increase 10 per cent during the quarter and 17 per cent compared to the same time last year.”
Mr Collins said Broome and Port Hedland also experienced an increase in activity when compared to the December quarter, with sales up 12 per cent and 7 per cent respectively.
“The local resurgence in mining projects has had a positive impact on sales in these regions, especially in Kalgoorlie-Boulder and Port Hedland, where renewed support in mining has created more local jobs and helped to boost population growth,” he said.
“With mining projects in these regions expected to continue to grow, this should have a positive impact on the regions’ property markets and aid in their recovery.”