Leading property expert Harley Dale, who is chief economist at the Housing Industry Association in Australia, has declared talk of the country’s so-called property boom, and the likelihood of an imminent price crash, “rubbish”.
“There are literally thousands of property markets around Australia,” says Dale. “Many will grow in inflation-adjusted terms over the next 12 months and many won’t. In aggregate, Sydney looks to be well out in front, Melbourne is kind of in the race, Brisbane is accelerating from effectively last place, and the rest have some training to do. National housing price boom – rubbish!”
Dale says prices across the combined eight state capital cities rose by 7.9% in the February-April quarter of 2015 compared to the same period in 2014 and that regional growth was much “softer” at 2.9%.
The Sydney property market enjoyed “a standout” year in 2014, says Dale, rising 14.5% in the same period, followed by Melbourne at 6.9%. Other capital cities were lucky to break even for the year.
