Established house prices stagnate in March quarter, but with good gains in Perth and Darwin: ABS

Established house prices, including those in Sydney, stagnated over the first three months of the year with just a 0.1% gain across the eight capital cities, according to preliminary estimates of the latest ABS house price indexes. 

The results show that established capital city housing markets are operating at different speeds with the strongest performers over the March quarter being Perth (+1.2%) and Darwin (+1.9%). 

"Clusters with median prices below $800,000 contributed most to the rise in the March quarter 2013," says the ABS of the Perth increase with the Darwin increase attributed to clusters with median prices below $600,000.

Sydney recorded no change in its established house price index, with small gains in Melbourne (+0.2%) and Canberra (+0.2%) over the quarter and small corrections in Brisbane (-0.3%), Adelaide (-0.1%) and Hobart (-0.3%). 

The ABS said clusters with median prices between $680,000 and $1,100,000 contributed most to the small rise in Melbourne house prices.

While of a preliminary nature and subject to revisions, the quarterly results may be factored into the RBA's decision on the cash rate, due to be announced at 2.30pm today.

Annually, house prices rose in Darwin (+8.0%), Perth (+6.1%), Sydney (+3.6%), Canberra (+1.5%), Brisbane (+1.4%), Melbourne (+1.1%) and Adelaide (+0.9%) and fell in Hobart (-1.9%).

The stagnation in house prices in the first three months of the year follow the ABS recording a revised 2% gain in its established house price index over the December quarter having previously reported a 1.6% gain in preliminary figures.

The positive movement in the December quarter 2012 was the result of rises in Sydney (+2.3%, unchanged), Melbourne (+1.8%, revised from +0.7%), Perth (+3.1%, revised from +2.9%), Brisbane (+1.0%, revised from +0.7%), Adelaide (+1.1%, revised from +0.8%), Canberra (+2.8%, revised from +2.1%) and Darwin (+3.0%, revised from +2.6%). This was partially offset by a fall in Hobart (-0.5%, revised from -1.4%).

The ABS figures contrast sharply with RP Data-Rismark figures, which recorded a 2.9% rise in detached house values across the combined capital cities over the March quater with Hobart the best performing capital city with a 6% gain and Adelaide the worst, falling 0.8%. 

RP Data had a cumulative capital gain in dwelling values in the year to March at 2.4% and up 4.7% since the market bottomed out in May last year.