Reserve Bank chief Michele Bullock admits she was 'surprised' that house prices ... trends now
Reserve Bank Governor Michele Bullock has admitted she didn't realise house prices would surge so soon as interest rates kept on rising.
'We were surprised when they started rising again quite frankly and I think everyone was,' she told a media conference on Tuesday afternoon.
But Ms Bullock said she preferred not to speculate on property prices.
'I wouldn't like to predict housing prices, frankly. Every time we try, we seem to get it wrong,' she said.
The most aggressive interest rises since 1989 had initially caused property values to fall in 2022 but in 2023, they soared again, last month reaching record highs in Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.
Reserve Bank Governor Michele Bullock has admitted she didn't realise house prices would surge as interest rates kept on rising
Sydney's median house price surged by 11.7 per cent in the year to February to an even more unaffordable $1.396million in a city which gets a larger share of overseas migration, CoreLogic data showed.
This put prices in the city only 1.9 per cent below the January 2022 peak, with Sydney's high reached four months before the RBA hiked rates for the first time since 2010.
But in Brisbane, mid-point house prices have soared by 15.7 per cent during the past year to $899,474 while in Perth, they climbed by 18.6 per cent to $718,560.
Both cities attract an influx of new residents moving from interstate.
The house price increases have occurred as immigration levels hit a record-high of 518,000 during the last financial year, with the annual level only moderating to 481,620 in January.
Strong population growth meant demand for property climbed, despite high interest rates reducing what banks can lend.
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