House prices nationally in Australia rose for the second consecutive month in November with more growth forecast if the county can stay on top of its COVID battle.
Property prices went up by 0.8 per cent for the month and have risen 3.1 per cent for the year.
After values fell by 2.1 per cent between April and September when lockdowns were in place, Eliza Owen from CoreLogic says the latest prices are new recovery trend.
“The results suggest continued momentum in the housing market,” she told the ABC.
“Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane have risen by less than 1 per cent over the month, while all the smaller capital cities have risen by more than 1 per cent.”
“People who still have a job and are in a position to buy property find that they have access to more money and debt is cheaper.”
Earlier in the year the situation looked so dire CoreLogic, among others, forecast the possibility of price falls between 10-20 per cent, but now say 2021 is likely to see more improvement if the country can keep the spread of coronavirus under control.
“Were likely to see increases over 2021 — I don’t know exactly what the number is going to be,” Ms Owen said.
“It will be tempered by things like whether there’s another spike in COVID-19 cases, how quickly we see the distribution of a vaccine, how trade relations play out in China, and how quickly we can get people back to work.”
NAB home ownership executive Andy Kerr said November demand for home loans was stronger than he had seen for more than two years.
“Applications over the past six weeks are up more than 25 per cent against the prior six weeks,” he told ABC.
“We’re currently forecasting property price growth of upwards of 5 per cent in each of the next two years, with apartment prices likely to lag house price growth.”
