The Canberra suburbs where the median house price bucked the decline

Canberra’s property market isn’t quite what it used to be during the pandemic, but the median house and unit prices in a number of suburbs have bucked the decline, new figures show.

Taylor, in the Gungahlin region, leads the charge for price growth, up 36.8 per cent year-on-year to $1.11 million for a house, according to the Domain House Price Report for the March quarter. This is the first time the suburb has cracked the seven-figure mark.

Its neighbouring suburbs of Bonner and Ngunnawal also recorded strong price growths in its house prices, up 22.3 per cent year-on-year to $993,000 and 10.8 per cent to $841,000, respectively.

Those Gungahlin suburbs were the only suburbs in the top 10 for price growth, while the remaining seven spots were taken up by units across suburbs in the Inner North, Weston Creek and Woden Valley.

Kostya Logvinov of Town Residential says the Gungahlin region, in general, was becoming very sought after. 

“The region has a lot of things going for it – there are good school options and it’s quite a pretty place. Taylor in particular is in an elevated position with houses sitting on the reserve,” he says. 

“I know a lot of people will disagree, but I believe your quality of life in Gungahlin is comparable to other expensive suburbs in Canberra, without the traffic that you might get living in outer suburbs in Sydney and Melbourne.”

While Canberra’s overall median house price recorded a quarterly decline of 2.5 per cent to $1,047,112, Sydney experienced the biggest quarterly growth at 1.3 per cent to $1,594,192. 

Perth was close behind that quarterly growth figure at 1.2 per cent, however, the median house price was much lower – $633,762. 

“The other thing about Gungahlin is that people don’t want old houses anymore and Taylor is a brand new suburb,” Logvinov says.  

“The average build cost is quite high, so it’s really good quality and people have invested a fair bit of money in builds with double-glazed windows and really nice fit-outs.”

Mathew Kocic of Canberry Properties says that while he can see the allure of buying into Gungahlin, the current figures also have a lot to do with the recent rise in interest rates. 

“When interest rates were low, we were seeing larger competition in more central suburbs because affordability was higher,” he says. 

“With interest changes, buyers who might have been spending $1.1 or $1.2 million, are now looking at a borrowing capacity closer to $900,000, so it’s pushing them out to those regions.”

While Taylor’s median is sitting at $1.11 million, houses in the likes of Bonner and Ngunnawal are sitting at a lower $993,000 and $841,000, respectively. 

Canberra professional Jessie Layton bought into the Gungahlin region last month, settling on a townhouse in Moncrieff in early April. 

A rare success story in the Canberra market, she settled in just one weekend of looking for a house, but she knew how much she wanted to spend, and where she wanted to buy. 

“I have to admit I was open to buying anywhere in Canberra and was more focused on the house, however, I have been renting in Gungahlin and most of my friends live there, so I did have a preference for the area,” she says. 

“I was interested in a townhouse, and I felt like I had a broader choice within the Gungahlin region. 

“I love this home with its big open downstairs area that will open up to the courtyard in the summer for indoor and outdoor living.”

Despite a short stint in the southside in her 20s, Jessie has been a Canberra northsider for her whole life and said she was a bit biased towards the area. 

“I grew up here so it’s a bit nostalgic for me. They are doing so much work in the Gungahlin centre now, I remember when I was in Amaroo and there was just a Woolworths; it has come so far.”