prowest 
Forty-five per cent of Perth suburbs with statistically sufficiently great activity* saw stable or increased median house price movement during 2019, according to the latest reiwa.com data.
REIWA President D Collins said although CoreLogic’s latest home value index shows Perth dwelling values declined 0.4 per cent in March, there were numerous suburbs that had held up well or improved during the month.
“While dwelling values declined again in March, the rate of decline has slowed to the lowest level recorded since June 2018, which is a positive indication that prices in Perth may be approaching the bottom.
“reiwa.com data shows there were numerous suburbs that saw their median house price buck the declining trends, with 30 per cent of those statistically significant suburbs experiencing an increase in price and 15 per cent remaining stable, which is a positive trend in the current real estate environment,” Mr Collins said.
The 10 best performing suburbs for median house price growth in March were Mullaloo, Wannanup, Lesmurdie, Alkimos, Karrinyup, Yanchep, Rivervale, Mount Pleasant, The Vines and Warnbro.
“Although the Perth residential sales market remains subdued, the data for March shows some signs that price values may be starting to strengthen in some areas after a prolonged period of declines,” Mr Collins said.
Rental market
Perth’s rental market continues to gain momentum, with 82 per cent of Perth suburbs recording either stable or increased median rent prices, where there were enough statistically significant transactions during the period.
“While Perth’s overall median rent price remains at $350, we are seeing an increasing number of suburbs record upward movement in prices, which is a welcome development for Perth landlords and suggests it’s only a matter of time before Perth’s overall median rent starts to climb,” Mr Collins said.
The 10 suburbs to record the biggest increase in median rent price during the month were North Perth, East Perth, Perth, Dudley Park, Cloverdale, Meadow Springs, Padbury, Kardinya, Lakelands and Port Kennedy.
“Of those 10 suburbs, North Perth, East Perth and Perth saw the most notable improvement in price, with their medians lifting by $20, $20 and $18 respectively, a substantial increase on February and a testament to the increasing demand from tenants,” Mr Collins said.
“Perth’s vacancy rate is currently the lowest it’s been in six years at 2.3 per cent, with declining stock levels and increased tenant demand pushing the market in favour of landlords. This shows no signs of abating any time soon, and we’re confident that it’s simply a matter of ‘when’ not ‘if’ Perth’s overall median rent price will increase this year.”
