Australian House Prices Retreat for First Time in Nearly Two Years

SYDNEY—Australian house prices recorded their first monthly decline in almost two years in December, but relief for the market appears close amid growing speculation that the Reserve Bank of Australia will start cutting interest rates from February.

House prices rose 4.9% in 2024, but December registered a 0.1% drop, the first since January 2023, according to property research group, CoreLogic.

The month saw deepening price falls in Melbourne and Sydney, the country’s two biggest property markets, while other state capitals also showed signs of weakening.

A national housing shortage and falling unemployment are lending some support to house prices, but elevated interest rates, poor affordability levels and low confidence are now taking a toll on the market.

“The decline in values is no surprise,” said CoreLogic’s research director, Tim Lawless. “This result represents the housing market catching up with the reality of market dynamics.”

“Growth in housing values has been consistently weakening through the second half of the year, as affordability constraints weighed on buyer demand and advertised supply levels trended higher,” he added.

There is widening evidence of weakness in the property market, with auction activity cooling from their highs, particularly in Sydney where successful sales at auctions have fallen to just above 50% of properties listed.

Still, the tide could turn again for house prices, after the RBA indicated in December it is growing more confident that inflation will soon return to target, paving the way for the start of interest rate cuts.

Economists are forecasting another year of modest gains for house prices, with the pace of increase largely dictated by the timing and extent of RBA rate cuts.

The RBA kept the official cash rate steady at 4.35% through 2024, putting it at odds with many of the world’s major central banks that have cut aggressively.

A shortfall in housing supply is also expected to remain significant for a long while yet, with the accumulated shortfall now estimated at around 200,000 homes, said Shane Oliver , chief economist at AMP.

A perfectly-positioned harbourside residence, formerly the home of a late Melbourne Cup-winning horse owner, has come to market with $14 million price expectations for its February 22 auction.

Sitting in one of Sydney’s most coveted enclaves on Waiwera St in Lavender Bay, the duplex with never-to-be-built-out gunbarrell views of both the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House was home to championship thoroughbred owner Michael Fergus Doyle. The Irish-born entrepreneur was part owner of Protectionist, the 2014 Melbourne Cup winner.

Bought by Doyle in April 2020, in an off-market deal totalling $11 million according to CoreLogic data, the two-storey Lavender Bay property is being sold by the racing legend’s family through Atlas Sydney & East Coast. Doyle, a prominent character in Sydney’s Irish community for more than 50 years after arriving down under in the 1960s with a 10 pound boat ticket, sadly passed away in November 2023 at the age of 77.

Doyle built his fortune by building a construction company from the ground up that eventually employed more than 300 people and had a contract with Sydney Water worth A$100 million a year. By 2009, Doyle sold the business to a company owned by the Singapore Government and breeding horses through Doyles Breeding & Racing became his next passion.

The contemporary four-bedroom three-bathroom property features 304sq m of internal living space with additional outdoor entertaining areas on both levels.

Beyond the impressive grand entrance foyer with a personalised floor medallion, the layout opens up to reveal a large everyday living level with a formal lounge room and casual sitting space featuring walls of windows to frame the Harbour City’s top icons. Thanks to a central skylight tower, this main living zone is also flooded with natural light.

A spacious chef-grade kitchen anchored by a long island bench is equipped with Gaggenau appliances, gas burners, dual ovens, and a grill plate. The adjoining dining area spills out onto a terrace with an integrated bar table plus a Luna Park and bridge backdrop. The entry level also houses a home office or guest bedroom with a Juliette balcony and integrated desks opposite a full bathroom.

In the main bedroom suite upstairs there is a deep full-width balcony with more landmark views, a vast walk-in wardrobe, plus a spa ensuite complete with twin vanities, heated floors and warming towel racks. Two more bedrooms on the upper level each have access via French doors to a shared street-facing terrace and built-ins with a common family-friendly bathroom.

Added extras include automatic awnings and privacy screens to the outdoor areas, marble floor tiles, and a double lock up garage with storage.

The designer duplex is located close to harbourside dining venues, foreshore parks such as Bob Gordon Reserve and Wendy Whiteley’s Secret Gardens, Kirribilli Markets and North Sydney’s bustling CBD.

Property 2 at 9-11 Waiwera St is on the market with Adrian Bridges and Daniel Chester of Atlas Sydney & East Coast with a price guide of $14 million. It is set to go under the hammer on February 22.

Australian House Prices Retreat for First Time in Nearly Two Years

House prices rose 4.9% in 2024, but December registered a 0.1% drop

His stallion once won the Melbourne Cup, now this late legendary horse owner’s thoroughbred harbourside home is on the market.