Where homes are selling fastest across Australia

With property prices edging higher nationally and buyer demand remaining resilient, new data has revealed homes are selling faster than they were pre-pandemic.

Nationally, houses took an average of 44 days to sell over the 12 months to April, nine days longer than the previous year, but down from 64 days over 2019, as the market returns to more typical conditions.

Despite a steep rise in interest rates since this time last year, analysis by PropTrack has revealed houses and units in Adelaide and Perth are selling faster now than they did a year ago, while units in Brisbane are also being snapped up quicker.

PropTrack economist Angus Moore said the fact that properties are taking longer to sell now than they did across 2021 and 2022 was due to the impact of interest rate rises on buyer demand, and the increase of properties on the market over the past 12 months.

“Market conditions are less competitive,” he said.

In March, there were around 8% more properties for sale around the country than in March 2022.

It’s also little surprise that homes are selling faster than they were pre-pandemic in 2019, Mr Moore added.

“There was more stock back then, particularly in some regional areas, but 2019 was a fairly weak year for property markets.

“By contrast, spring 2021 through to autumn 2022 saw very, very hot periods for selling conditions and for prices. It’s unsurprising we haven’t maintained that pace.”

Cities where homes are selling the fastest

Houses and units in Hobart are currently selling faster than in any other capital city, according to PropTrack days on market figures, which measure the time a property is on realestate.com.au before it’s declared as sold.

Houses in Hobart took a median of 29 days to sell over the 12 months to April, though this was 19 days longer than the previous year. Units took 31 days to sell, 23 more.

Melbourne’s houses shifted the second fastest, taking 36 days to sell, 11 more than a year ago. Brisbane houses took 39 days to sell, 16 days longer.

Similarly, it took houses In Sydney an extra 16 days to change hands in April when compared to the same time in 2022, at a median pace of 42 days.

Adelaide houses found a new owner in 43 days, two days less than a year ago, while houses in Perth took 45 days to sell, four days faster than the year prior.

Canberra houses took 55 days, up 19, while houses in Darwin took 71 days to sell, up 17.

In terms of units, those in Brisbane traded the second fastest in a median of 37 days, four days fewer than the previous year.

Canberra units sold in 41 days, an additional four when compared to the same period in 2022, while seven days were wiped off the time it took for units in Adelaide to be snapped up, selling in just 44 days.

Units in the large apartment markets of Melbourne and Sydney took three and 11 days longer to find buyers, respectively, in April.

Perth units sold in 62 days, down one; and Darwin units sold in 78 days, up eight from a year ago.

The latest PropTrack Home Price Index shows properties in Adelaide and Perth are currently at peak, a contrast to the price dips experienced in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

“Adelaide and Perth have bucked the trend in many ways,” Mr Moore explained. “Unlike other parts of the country, they haven’t seen an increase in the total number of properties available for sale; the number of properties for sale in Perth is at historic lows.

“And in Brisbane, units are selling a little bit quicker than they were a year ago.”

Buyer demand robust in Hobart, especially for mid-tier homes

Hobart has been a fast-selling market for some time, due to its relative affordability, proximity to the east coast and attractive lifestyle, Mr Moore said.

“Even pre-pandemic, homes in Hobart were selling in 25 days, then in the pandemic they were selling in 10, which was extraordinarily quick.

“It’s certainly cooled from what it was and we’ve seen prices come off in Hobart a bit, but it’s still fairly quick. We’ve also seen a pretty substantial increase in the number of homes available for sale in Hobart since the pandemic, when stock was extremely limited, which explains why they’re taking longer to sell.”

Jasmine Rankin at Hobart Buyers Agents said demand has remained robust in the Tasmanian capital.

“We’re a little city that still represents exceptional value. Many expats and mainland families originating from Tasmania are looking to return, trading interstate mid-ring suburban properties for charming city central homes that offer a beautiful lifestyle.”

But she added that buyers had become “more cautious and price-sensitive” than they were during the pandemic. The mid to upper range of $900,000 to $2 million is the strongest, she said, where buyers are relatively sheltered from interest rate shocks.

“People in this sector are willing to meet the market when a wonderful home in the right location becomes available.

“Entry-level homes tend to sit on the market a little longer and often require a price adjustment.”

Fiery days of pandemic have changed Adelaide market

While activity has slowed down in most places over the last year, Adelaide’s larger homes and relative affordability have remained a strong drawcard for buyers.

Katherine Skinner, director of National Property Buyers in Adelaide, said stock levels are much lower than they were 12 months ago, with locals holding onto their homes simply because there aren’t many properties to buy, and this was keeping the market competitive.

“Everyone is trying to stay put unless they find the needle in a haystack they’ve been looking for. This lack of quality stock, along with buyer demand that’s still there — albeit less than there was due to interest rate rises — means prices are sitting steady.”

She added that the heated days of 2021 and 2022 had left the Adelaide property market forever changed.

“We’ve become accustomed to acting swiftly to secure properties, and because agents are selling within the first week, purchasers know they have to be prepared. I don’t anticipate this to change until supply catches up with the demand here in Adelaide.

“And while Adelaide is traditionally not an auction state, the 2021/2022 market saw such a huge increase in this way of selling property.”

FOMO driving intense competition among Perth buyers

Among the 10 Australian suburbs where houses were selling the fastest in April, five of them were in Greater Perth.

In Leda, houses took just 12 days to sell, while Greenfields, Haynes, Seville Grove and Merriwa saw houses snapped up in 15 days or less.

Trevor Dunkley, buyers agent and director of Perth-based Property Wizards, said there is intense competition among buyers for the “small stock of property that trickles onto the market”.

“During the pandemic, buyer demand increased and listings declined, driving prices up. At present, we have seen demand increase even further, while stock levels have fallen. It’s not unusual to have more than 30 people at an open, multiple offers and properties sold within days.

“People are worried that if they don’t buy now, they’ll miss out and prices will continue to rise.

“And it’s not just locals competing for properties. Expats, interstate buyers, and even overseas buyers are all getting in on the action.”

Demand in Queensland shows no sign of slowing, especially for units

Queensland is home to some of the fastest selling suburbs in the nation.

Like Leda in Perth, houses in the Bundaberg suburb of Thabeban sold in just 12 days in April, while the suburbs of Meringandan West, Darling Heights and Rockville, all in Toowoomba, saw houses shift in 15 days or less.

The southern Queensland town, which agent Jacqui Walker at RE/MAX Success Toowoomba describes as a “hotspot”, is Australia’s second-most-populous inland city after Canberra.

“It doesn’t rely on any industry to prop it up, it’s a wonderful place to live and it has steady growth. The demand is as high now as it was in pandemic times; our selling figures and timeframes have not reflected a downturn at all.”

In terms of units, the 10 national suburbs trading them the fastest in April were all in Queensland, with Brisbane and Cairns showing particular speed.

Cairns agent Tim Lyon, an apartment specialist at Twomey Schriber Property Group, said stock is low and demand is high, which he doesn’t expect to change any time soon.

“Of seven units I have under contract right now, five of them had multiple offers and five of them sold in the first two weeks,” he said.

“The unit market in 2021 and 2022 was absolutely phenomenal. There are less buyers now but the actual stock available is significantly reduced, with less investors offloading their properties, so that’s keeping us in a very high-demand market.”

Where homes are selling at lightning speed compared to a year ago

Meanwhile, some regional Western Australian suburbs have seen a significant decrease in days on market over the past year, suggesting buyer demand is growing.

Houses in the wheatbelt town of Narrogin were selling 71 days faster in April than they were a year ago, the biggest change of anywhere in the country, while houses in Donnybrook, south of Perth, were selling 54 days quicker.

Houses in Mission Beach, meanwhile, sold 62 days quicker than they did a year ago, while those in the central Queensland town of Moura sold 53 days faster.

The suburbs around the country seeing the largest year-on-year decrease in days on market for units were also in Queensland, with apartments in Toowoomba, Brisbane and Airlie Beach particularly popular.

Where homes are selling slower than a year ago

The suburbs around Australia showing the largest increase in days on market over the past year were largely in regional areas, suggesting the appetite among seachangers and treechangers for the country’s quieter pockets during COVID has dampened.

Houses in the rural Queensland town of Blackwater took 87 days longer to sell in April than a year ago, followed by Gerringong on the NSW South Coast, where houses took 61 days longer to sell.

Houses in Queenstown in western Tasmania, Healy in Mount Isa and Burradoo in the NSW Southern Highlands all took more than 50 days longer to sell this year than last.

Meanwhile, units in Nelly Bay on Magnetic Island took 81 days longer to shift than a year ago, those in Noosa Heads 54 days longer, units in Wantirna South in outer Melbourne 54 days longer, and those in Ballina on the NSW South Coast 42 days longer.

The future ‘a significant unknown’

Mr Moore expects Adelaide and Perth to remain popular among buyers this year and likely to outperform the larger capitals.

Looking at Australia as a whole, he expects more stock to return to the market.

“That suggests we might continue to see the time it takes to sell a home get a little bit longer, but that’s also going to depend on what happens with buyers and to no small extent that’s going to depend on what happens to interest rates.

“And that’s a fairly significant unknown at the moment.”