Adelaide’s property market may have cooled off from the double-digit growth of recent years, but short supply and a healthy appetite from first-home buyers mean price growth remains robust this spring.
Home prices in the South Australian capital increased by 9% in the year to August, taking the city’s median to $853,000, PropTrack data showed.
Though Darwin, Brisbane and Perth saw slightly stronger year-on-year increases, Adelaide was a very close fourth, while Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra and Hobart recorded much smaller increases of between 1.4% and 3.7%.
Noakes Nickolas associate director Zac Watts said though the number of buyers looking for high-priced properties had somewhat decreased, the more affordable and first-home buyer markets were still running hot.
“What I'm noticing at the moment is that properties that are sort of sub-$1.2 million – those more affordable points and even a little bit out in the city-fringe suburbs are performing,” Mr Watts said.
“You're probably competing with a lot more buyers in that lower price point.”
Adelaide suburbs with the fastest growing house prices
| Suburb | Median price | Annual price growth |
| Norwood | $1,600,000 | 85% |
| Semaphore | $1,185,000 | 39% |
| Marden | $1,355,000 | 39% |
| Somerton Park | $2,130,000 | 37% |
| Hectorville | $1,100,000 | 31% |
| Blair Athol | $902,000 | 29% |
| Elizabeth Vale | $635,400 | 27% |
| Aldgate | $1,631,000 | 26% |
| Elizabeth Grove | $523,500 | 25% |
| Port Noarlunga South | $943,000 | 25% |
| Seaford Heights | $808,000 | 24% |
| Elizabeth North | $515,000 | 23% |
| St Clair | $720,000 | 23% |
| Warradale | $1,095,000 | 23% |
| Elizabeth Downs | $550,000 | 22% |
| Evanston | $600,000 | 22% |
| Evanston Gardens | $630,000 | 22% |
| Blackwood | $1,067,500 | 22% |
| Mile End | $1,100,000 | 22% |
| Enfield | $865,000 | 22% |
He said conversely, the next price-point up was “a little bit more sensitive” at the moment.
“That sort of $2 million-plus is almost quite good value as a buyer right now because it's a little bit tighter in that market, with the depth of the buyer pool.”
Harris Real Estate head of sales Tim Vine said new listings were about 17% down in past 30 days, meaning more competition between buyers.
The five-bedroom house at 1 Rokeby Avenue, Norwood sold for $1.75 million last month. Norwood, located four kilometres east of the Adelaide CBD, recorded the city's strongest annual house and unit price growth in August. Picture: realestate.com.au/sold
“We've also had less auctions, so generally we're seeing about 150 or so auctions go to market on a Saturday here in Adelaide,” Mr Vine said.
“At the moment we're seeing under 100, so there's definitely a decrease in the numbers, but what that is probably saying is that properties are selling more effectively.”
That could all change though, if spring does indeed entice more sellers to list.
Adelaide suburbs with the fastest growing unit prices
| Suburb | Median price | Annual price growth |
| Norwood | $850,000 | 48% |
| Camden Park | $604,000 | 42% |
| Campbelltown | $650,000 | 30% |
| Glenelg East | $675,000 | 27% |
| Brooklyn Park | $453,000 | 27% |
| Salisbury | $440,000 | 26% |
| Morphett Vale | $575,000 | 24% |
| Glenside | $663,888 | 21% |
| Glenelg | $700,000 | 20% |
| Plympton | $498,500 | 20% |
| North Adelaide | $650,000 | 18% |
| Somerton Park | $686,000 | 18% |
| New Port | $460,000 | 18% |
| Parkside | $705,000 | 17% |
| Klemzig | $489,750 | 16% |
| Ascot Park | $613,000 | 15% |
| Mitchell Park | $532,000 | 14% |
| Marden | $584,000 | 13% |
| Mawson Lakes | $491,875 | 12% |
| West Lakes | $744,750 | 11% |
“The real test for our market is going to be; if spring does provide more property, is the demand still going to outweigh the supply, or is there going to be a balance that's created here in Adelaide?”
For Toop + Toop owner and director Bronte Manuel, that balance has already begun.
“We’re back to normal real estate now, where owners are eclipsing what the market is typically prepared to pay, and what the market is prepared to pay is more than the property was worth six months ago,” Mr Manuel said.
A buyer paid $1.3225 million for the three-bedroom house at 49 Percy Street, Semaphore last month. Semaphore's median house price grew by 39% during the year to August. Picture: realestate.com.au/sold
He said post-2020, Adelaide experienced unprecedented demand, where buyers were happy to pay much more than what the owner wanted.
“The market is still going up, there is still strong buyer demand,” he said.
“But the only factor that does tend to plateau a market is affordability.”
The two-bedroom townhouse at 4/120 Beulah Road, Norwood fetched $880,000 this month. Norwood's median unit price grew by 48% during the year to August. Picture: realestate.com.au/sold
The Reserve Bank of Australia’s recent run of rate cuts has also been fuelling the market, again at the first-home buyer price point.
“Under $1 million or $1.2 million, these rate cuts can be pretty significant, where I don't think it's had a dramatic change up or down and in the upper end,” Mr Watts said.
First-home buyers were also taking advantage of the federal government’s shared equity scheme (Help to Buy), and though it was an initial help to those looking to buy, it would likely see prices push higher eventually, Mr Watts said.
The two-bedroom unit at 4/6-8 Clifton Street, Camden Park fetched $600,000 in July. Camden Park's median unit price grew by 42% during the year to August. Picture: realestate.com.au/sold
“You'll see really strong competition in that market or – it's already quite competitive so I think that the short term is quite beneficial but the long-term cost is that it will probably actually be outweighed by the fact that it'll become much more expensive within a year or two anyway,” he said.
Mr Vine said the Help to Buy scheme being extended to a purchase price of $900,000 for Adelaide first-home buyers could see more people keen to list their properties.
“We're hoping that combining interest rates coming back down and more incentives for the first homebuyers at a higher price point might encourage some people to put their property in the market now,” he said.
However, he said buyers would need to weigh up what was most important to them and prioritise, as competition was still strong.
“With the lack of availability for properties of that price point, buyers need to make compromises on certain things – so it may be moving further out from the CBD or it may be sacrificing the dream of a big block for a new style build.”
Mr Watts said buyers who had their “ducks in line” had the best chance of securing a home.
“Just being in the position where they are very much ready – and in the ideal scenario – being unconditional with your finance, because they're the offers that we’re seeing people are turning to,” he said.
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