House prices in one Australian city surged by 37 per cent last year but it wasn't Sydney, Brisbane or Hobart.
Canberra had a record increase in 2021 with the median house price climbing to $1.178 million, new data from real estate sales group Domain showed.
The landlocked national capital was Australia's strongest performing capital city market, with mid-point house prices rising by 11.3 per cent in the three months to December alone.
House prices in one Australian city surged by 37 per cent last year but it wasn't Sydney, Brisbane or Hobart (pictured is Old Parliament House in front of Parliament House before an arson attack)
Canberra had a record increase in 2021 with the median house price climbing to $1.178 million, new data from real estate sales group Domain showed. The landlocked national capital was Australia's strongest performing capital city market, with mid-point house prices rising by 11.3 per cent in the three months to December alone (pictured is a home at Curtin)
Over the year, prices went up by 36.6 per cent and if that wasn't bad enough for potential buyers, Canberra is also Australia's most expensive capital city rental market.
Outside the capital cities, only Byron Bay had stronger house price growth than Canberra, while upmarket pockets of Sydney's Northern Beaches, North Shore and the Central Coast had nation-leading annual increases.
In the December quarter, however, Canberra was the only capital city where apartment prices went backwards with values down by 1.6 per cent to $555,644.
Over the year, though, apartment values went up by 9.7 per cent.
Domain's chief of research Nicola Powell said a 52 per cent increase in Australian capital city house prices since the start of the pandemic would make units a more attractive alternative in 2022.
'The rapid escalation in house prices will be a financial barrier for entry buyers and upgraders against a backdrop of low wages growth,' she said.
'The disparity between property performance and associated affordability constraints is expected to drive demand to units.'
One-bedroom and studio apartments have largely missed out on the property market boom.
BIGGEST MISTAKE
Michael Yardney, the founder and chief executive of buyers' agent Metropole, said properties in less upmarket areas that didn't appeal to owner-occupiers were less likely to get capital growth.
'Buying the wrong property, of course, this is one of the biggest investment blunders of all,' he said.
In the December quarter, however, Canberra was the only capital city where apartment prices went backwards with values down by 1.6 per cent to $555,644. Over the year, though, apartment values went up by 9.7 per cent (pictured are apartments at Belconnen in the city's north)
'You'll need to choose the right investment location, one that will outperform the averages because it is going through gentrification, or because it is where affluent owner-occupiers want to buy.'
When it came to gentrification, Hobart has benefited from an influx of higher-income residents pricing out locals, with median house values up 34.6 per cent
