Early signs are emerging that the Townsville housing market could be trending upward, following a prolonged period of subdued buyer activity, according to Andrew Wilson, chief economist at The Domain Group.
“The median asking price for houses listed for private treaty increased sharply by 2.6 per cent over the three winter months ending August to $359,000 compared to the previous three month period,” Wilson said. “Townsville house prices were also 2.6 per cent higher than recorded over winter last year but remained 5.5 per cent below the $380,000 median reported over winter 2012 – five years ago.”
The median asking price for Townsville units listed for private treaty increased by a mere 0.4% over the August quarter to $260,000, compared to the previous quarter. Although unit prices rose marginally over the quarter, they remained 1.9% lower than prices recorded over winter 2016, and 13.3% below the $300,000 median reported over the winter of 2012.
Meanwhile, the average days on market for private treaty listed houses fell sharply over winter, from 133 over autumn to 123, the lowest result since winter of last year. “Average days on market for private treaty listed Townsville units also fell over the August quarter from 296 over autumn to 243 and again the lowest result since winter last year,” Wilson said.
Following years of underperformance, signs are emerging of improved market conditions. This will help restore buyers’ and sellers’ confidence in the Townsville housing market, according to Wilson.
“The local economy, however, remains the key to a sustained revival, with the ABS reporting strong jobs growth of nearly 13,000 over the year ending July in the Townsville region with a July jobless rate of 6.0 per cent, well down on the 9.7 per cent recorded over July last year,” he added.
Collections: Mortgage News
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