Canberra house price growth rate tops other capital cities, according to ABS

Canberra’s property market continues to recover, achieving stronger growth than all other capital cities, new Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show.

The latest residential property price indices, which were published by the bureau on Tuesday, provide an estimate of quarterly home price changes in Australia’s eight capital cities.

Dwelling prices in the nation’s capital rose 2.8 per cent in the December quarter, well above the 0.2 per cent national average.

ABS director of the residential property price index Robin Ashburn said there was strength throughout the Canberra market in the December quarter.

Canberra house prices recorded a 3.2 per cent rise, while attached dwelling prices increased 1.3 per cent.

However, the national figures show growth across the country has eased.

Sydney recorded a fall in house prices for the first time in three years.

However, Canberra bucked the national trend with a growth rate higher than the previous two quarters. Prices in the September and June quarters rose 1.3 per cent and 0.8 per cent, respectively.

However, the capital fell short in the year-on-year figures, recording 6 per cent growth, compared with the 8.7 per cent national average. It trailed Sydney and Melbourne throughout 2015, with the bigger cities recording 13.9 per cent and 9.6 per cent growth, respectively.

Despite strong year-on-year growth, Sydney recorded a 1.6 per cent fall in December growth, while Melbourne’s growth rate eased to 1.6 per cent .

Housing Industry Association senior economist Shane Garrett said the deceleration of Sydney’s growth rate had a major impact on the national figures.

“The final quarter of 2015 also saw a narrowing of the gap between the capital cities in terms of price growth,” Mr Garrett said.

“In previous quarters, the divergence in the pace of price growth from city to city was very large.”

The mean price of Australian residential dwellings was $612,100, just short of the ACT average. The territory’s mean price was the third highest in the country at $623,900.

NSW topped the list with a mean price of $771,900 and Victorian homes were the second most expensive with a mean price of $627,600.