Sydney and melbourne lead rising australian property prices

The June RP Data Rismark Hedonic Home Value Index finished the financial year only slightly into double digit growth figures, with capital city dwelling values moving 1.4 per cent higher for the month after posting a 1.9 per cent decline in May.

Capital city dwelling values have shown a 1.4 per cent capital gain over the month of June 2014, with all cities apart from Adelaide and Darwin recording a rise in dwelling values. According to RP Data research director Tim Lawless, the strong result has partially reversed last month’s 1.9 per cent fall and provides a 0.2 per cent decline in dwelling values over the June quarter.

Over the 2013-2014 financial year the top performing cities for capital gains have been Sydney and Melbourne where dwelling values are up 15.4 per cent and 9.4 per cent respectively across each city. The Brisbane housing market, where conditions have generally remained relatively sedate, is now gathering some pace with dwelling values moving 7.0 per cent higher over the past twelve months, the third strongest result of any capital city. On the other hand, the index results show that the softest performances over the past year have been recorded in Hobart (2.5 per cent), Canberra (2.9 per cent) and Adelaide (2.9 per cent).

According to RP Data’s Tim Lawless, the recent volatility in the month-to-month Index reading is likely to be a seasonal factor. "The last time we saw a negative quarterly movement in our combined capital city index was May last year. The recent reduction in capital gains is likely a correction from the strong market conditions reported over the first quarter of the year."