CoreLogicdatarevealed thatPerthshome value indexlifted1.6per cent in January and3.8per cent compared to three months ago,currentlymaking it thefastestgrowingmajormarket in Australia.
REIWA President Damian Collins saidreiwa.com data supported these findings, withPerthsmedian house price increasing to$490,000in January.
Residential sales market
The improvement experiencedin the latter half of 2020 has continued into 2021, which is pleasingto see.With the pandemic continuing to impact traveland our local economybouncing back after a challenging year, more and moreWest Australiansare recognising thatnow is the time to buy, Mr Collins said.
Sales listingsandmedianselling days
In January, there were8,287properties for salein Perthonreiwa.com.
This is up1.2per centon December,howeverdown33.3per centwhen compared to the same time last year,which indicates we aresignificantly belowlevels seen a year ago,howeverwe expectmoresellerswill seethe benefits of listing their properties now rather than later, Mr Collins said.
Propertiescontinue tosell at a faster rate than they did last year, with themedian daysto sell sitting atjust 21 days, down from 43daysin January 2020.There is littledoubtnowthat thePerthmarket has swung into the sellers favourand buyers are needing to act a lot faster to securea property.
Salesactivity
House and unit saleswere slightly down in January, following the unprecedented sales spike recorded in December.
The spike in sales Perth experienced during Decemberwas quite unusual, typically we see activitydrop offin December and January, before lifting again as we get further into the New Year, Mr Collins said.
Despite sales activity trending lowerin January,numeroussuburbsstillsawhousesales improve, with thetop five selling suburbsincludingMeadow Springs (up75 per cent),Yangebup(up67per cent),Mandurah(up67per cent),Alkimos(up64per cent)and Heathridge(up44per cent).
Perth rentalmarket
January marked the fifth consecutive month there were fewer than 3,000 properties listed for rent in Perth.
Rental listings
There were just2,826properties for rent in January2021,compared to5,784in 2020, whichis a drastic reduction in stockandwe currently have a serverental shortage, Mr Collins said.
While in the short termthese conditions will entice investors back to the market, it isimperative the WA Government keep their promise toend the rental moratoriumon 28 March2021to ensure the situation does not worsen.
Median rent
According to CoreLogicsQuarterly Rental Review(December 2020 quarter), Perth was the fastest growing rental market in 2020, which is a trendthat is continuing into 2021withreiwa.com data revealingPerthsmedian house rentincreasedby$5to $400 per week in January.
The suburbs to experience the most notable increase in rent pricesin JanuarywereSubiaco, which saw its median rent lift by$20 per week,as well asThornlie,Alkimos,Morley and Halls Headwhich allexperienced$10weeklyincreasesintheirmedian rents, Mr Collins said.
With the rental stock levels remaining low and expected to do so in the coming months, combined with low interest rates and expected gross yield growth,wewillexpect investor numbers to increase in the latter end of the year, particularly when the moratorium ends in March.
COVID-19impact
With the announcement of the first case of community transmission of COVID-19, there will be a restriction on home opens for five days, but it will have a minimal short-term impact on the market, unless we see a sustained lockdown and a significant economic impact, the property market is likely to continue its strong recovery.
