James and Jenny McCahon recently moved to Port Noarlunga South after selling their family home. Picture: Dean Martin
Home prices are starting to tumble across South Australia, with new figures revealing the state’s property boom has come to a screeching halt.
Exclusive PropTrack valuation data shows prices have fallen in more than 100 suburbs and towns over the past three months – offering a glimpse of the early impacts of federal budget tax reforms.
Almost 90 of Adelaide’s 330 house suburbs and 36 of its 128 unit suburbs recorded price declines in the June quarter.
Regional SA was holding stronger, with drops recorded in just 6 of its 62 locations for houses and one of its five for units.
The most significant decline was recorded in Gilberton, where the median house price dipped 9 per cent to $1,493,771.
REA Group senior economist Anne Flaherty. Picture: Supplied.
It was followed by houses in Rosewater, Somerton Park and Semaphore Park, and units in Hove and North Haven, which all fell 5 per cent.
The figures are determined by PropTrack’s automated valuation model, which offers a statistically derived estimate of a property’s value.
The values are estimated by analysing a range of data points, including sales history.
REA Group senior economist Anne Flaherty said while price declines weren’t unexpected, they were confronting following years of staggering growth in SA.
She said there were “quite a few headwinds” impacting property prices at the moment, including changes to capital gains tax and negative gearing that were impacting investor demand, reduced borrowing capacity following interest rates rises, and other economic factors.
“We have affordability challenges just more generally too,” Ms Flaherty said.
“I think that there’s a lot going on in people’s minds at the moment, that’s lead to a slowdown in price growth, and in Adelaide that’s quite noticeable.”
Ms Flaherty said homes in locations that were more affordable, like regional areas, or had lifestyle appeal had held up best so far.
“With interest rates having increased, that’s reducing borrowing capacity, that drives more people to those affordable areas,” she said.
It would take a while for the “dust to settle”, Ms Flaherty said, with home values likely to continue falling.
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“I think we’re likely to see prices move lower over the second half of 2026,” she said.
While bad news for some homeowners, the figures offered good news for others, with many suburbs and towns recording solid growth.
Waikerie in the state’s Riverland recorded the strongest growth over the quarter, with its median climbing 9 per cent to $454,388, followed by Port Pirie South and St Morris (both 8 per cent).
Morphett Vale and Port Noarlunga South are among the suburbs that also recorded growth over the past three months – 3 per cent and 5 per cent respectively – which was good news for downsizers James and Jenny McCahon.
The self-funded retirees recently sold their Morphett Vale family home to move into a completed new house in Liberty Home’s Port Noarlunga South community, Sunset.
“We do count ourselves as very lucky with the way things panned out,” Mr McCahon said.
“We got a really good price for our family home at Morphett Vale and perhaps, if we had waited another year or so to downsize, that may not have been the case.
“We are certainly pleased to see the value of Port Noarlunga South has gone up in the past quarter and perhaps that’s due to the growing new communities down here,” Ms McCahon said.
“We’ll stay here for as long as we can but of course it is good to know the suburb is a desirable area to live and that’s reflected in house prices, which continue to increase,” Mr McCahon said.
They made the most of the state government’s stamp duty relief for people over 60 years downsizing to new homes up to $2m, saving themselves about $50,000, and only had to put down a $10,000 deposit.
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