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Median house prices across Perth will likely grow by an average of 10 per cent between January and December, new data has revealed, while unit prices will spike 15 per cent over the same period.
The Real Estate Institute WA’s 2025 property market quarterly update revealed that under current market conditions, people would continue to favour units, priced out of buying a home.
Units are set to outperform houses for price growth in 2025, according to REIWA’s property market quarterly update.Credit: Nathan Perri
Institute president Suzanne Brown said the median sale price in the unit market – including villas, townhouses, home units and apartments – had historically grown at a slower rate than houses, but that had changed over the past year.
“The strong rise in house prices has seen demand increase in the unit market, which offers more affordable alternatives to houses,” she said.
“When we break down the unit market, the highest median sale price growth has been seen for villas and home units, followed by townhouses.
“Based on price growth as an indicator, demand for apartments has not been as strong, despite the scarcity of new apartment products.”
Brown said this was because people “prefer to have their own courtyard and a garage next to their home”.
“What the data suggests is that when it comes to addressing Perth’s housing issues, policymakers should focus on medium density development where possible, as this appears to be what consumers prefer,” she said.
Brown said several factors could impact price growth over the remainder of the year, including economic uncertainty from tariffs, or whether there are any interest rate cuts.
The top Perth suburbs for price growth
House and unit median sale prices have both hit record highs for the financial year.
Brown said while there had been strong price growth across the Greater Perth region, conditions varied from suburb to suburb.
“For example, the Perth median house sale price rose 16.4 per cent over the year to June, but the top 10 performing suburbs all recorded annual growth over 28 per cent,” she said.
“In the unit market, the median sale price growth over the financial year was 20 per cent, while the top 10 performing suburbs saw growth over 32 per cent.
“There are also some suburbs that have seen their median house sale price decline.”
Meanwhile, for renters, Perth’s median weekly house rent price declined 2.2 per cent from $695 at the end of the March quarter to $680 at the end of the June quarter.
The median unit rent price rose 1.5 per cent from $650 to $660 per week.
Annually, the median house rent price increased 4.6 per cent, while the median unit rent price increased 10.0 per cent.
“The overall trend is still upwards, but a significant change over the past 12 months has been the rate of growth,” Brown said.
“The upward pressure on prices has been easing as a result of an increase in supply and a softening of demand.”
Brown said despite the changes, challenges remained in the rental market.
“Our members report demand is particularly strong close to the city, which drives prices up, but is often softer in outerlying suburbs,” she said.
“In these outer areas, some members report there is strong competition for modern, well-maintained homes, but they are seeing prices decline for older, dated properties.
“And in areas where a lot of new supply has become available, investors may have to lower their asking price to secure a tenant.”
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