Australia's top performing property market continues to impress with the latest data from Residex showing median values surging pass the psychologically important $500,000 mark for the first time.

During the month of December, Darwin house values jumped by 5.47%, lifting the median to $505,500. Over the year, house values surged by 14.92%.
It's not just values that are soaring in Darwin. According to the Residex figures, rental rates are also rising. Over the year, house rents have increased by 10.42%.

Units have performed strongly as well. During December, median unit price climbed by 5.97% to $393,000. During the 12 months to December, median unit values rose by 17.61%. Rental rates also recorded strong gains during the same period, adding 18.42% to $450 a week.

"Darwin has achieved an Australian first in that its median value has passed the $500,000 value mark and its rental return is in excess of 5%," said John Edwards, CEO of Residex. "It is this latter point that makes it unique. Never before have we seen a city achieve this level of rental yield with such an increase in capital growth."

Collections: