According to CoreLogic’s national Home Value Index for February, published yesterday, Adelaide recorded a 1.5 per cent growth in dwelling values for the month, 6.4 per cent for the quarter and 25.8 per cent for the past year.

Adelaide’s median dwelling value reached $593,883, still well below the national combined capitals median of $808,792.

Brisbane (up 1.8 per cent for February) and Adelaide continued to set the pace while the larger capitals of Sydney and Melbourne were flat as fixed-term interest rates began to rise.

CoreLogic’s director of research Tim Lawless said every capital city was now recording a slowing trend in value growth, albeit with significant diversity.

Graphic courtesy CoreLogic

“Sydney and Melbourne have shown the sharpest slowdown, with Sydney (-0.1 per cent) posting the first decline in housing values since September 2020, while Melbourne housing values (0.0 per cent) were unchanged over the month, following similar results in December (-0.1 er cent) and January (+0.2 per cent),” he said.

“Conditions are easing less noticeably across the smaller capitals, especially Brisbane, Adelaide and Hobart, where housing values rose by more than 1 per cent in February.”

The continued price rises in Adelaide and Brisbane can be linked to a lack of supply.

Nationally, the total number of properties advertised for sale over the four weeks ending February 27 was 13.3 per cent lower than the same period a year ago, demonstrating an ongoing shortage of available housing stock.

However, this supply shortage was much worse in South Australia and Queensland.

Graphic courtesy CoreLogic

“The cities where housing values are rising more rapidly continue to show a clear lack of available properties to purchase,” Lawless said.

“Total listings across Brisbane and Adelaide remain more than 20 per cent lower than a year ago and more than 40 per cent below the previous five-year average.”

There were 3384 homes taken to auction across the combined capital cities in the week ending February 27, which CoreLogic says makes it the busiest February auction week since its records commenced in 2008.

In Adelaide, there were 208 auctions for the week with a preliminary clearance rate of 85.4 per cent compared with 92 auctions at a clearance rate of 80.4 per cent in the same week last year.

Last month the Real Estate Institute of South Australia released its December quarter report, which showed there were 7822 house sales statewide for the quarter with a median price of $515,000.

Using figures from the Valuer-General, the report found that 5319 of the sales were in the Adelaide metropolitan area where about a dozen suburbs achieved annual growth rates of more than 50 per cent.

Graphic courtesy Real Estate Institute South Australia.

REISA chief executive officer Barry Money said 302 of Greater Adelaide’s 334 suburbs had experienced double-digit growth in terms of percentage across the 12 months.

“In metro Adelaide, we have experienced an unprecedented 17.58 per cent increase in the median house price year on year, with one suburb recording an increase of over 100,” he said in the report.

“And volume-wise we have seen over 1100 more houses sold in South Australia in the quarter ending in December 2021 compared to the same quarter in 2020.”

REISA will release its March quarter report in April.

“2022 is going to be a really interesting year,” Money said.

“As the banks’ short-term fixed interest rates increase and as inflation edges up, we will keep a watching brief on movements in the property market.”