Revealed: The 25 suburbs leading the market rebound

The expert highlighted several key indicators, collectively suggesting a rebound in the property market. 

The combined capital city clearance rate, for instance, has held above the decade average for six of the past eight weeks. Furthermore, she noted that sales volumes had seen a 10.4 per cent increase in March, indicating a surge in market activity. 

Meanwhile, vendor discounting, which saw a low of -4.4 per cent in the December 2022 quarter, has improved to -4.2 per cent in the March 2023 quarter. 

“The result is that home values are starting to trend higher, as seen in CoreLogic’s national daily Home Value Index, which has lifted 0.9 per cent since early March,” Ms Owen said. 

With property values trending higher during the latest quarter, the expert noted that the uplift in prices has flowed through around 35 per cent of suburbs.

The figures marked a significant improvement from the 19 per cent recorded in the previous quarter, highlighting the continued growth of the property market at a “granular level”, according to Ms Owen. 

Notably, during the October quarter of last year, the portion of suburbs recording gains hit a record low, with only 16.2 per cent of suburbs showing an increase in prices. 

Of the top 25 performing suburbs in the latest quarter, CoreLogic’s data showed 20 are located in regional Australia. Spread across South Australia, Victoria, NSW, Western Australia and Queensland, the average median value of regional top-performing suburbs stood at $442,468. 

“It has been common for regional Australia to dominate growth charts through the pandemic period, but as the cycle has matured, it seems to be more rural regional markets with particularly low price points that have seen the strongest rates of growth,” Ms Owen remarked. 

The top 25 suburbs that posted the biggest growth in dwelling prices during the three-month period to March are listed below: 

1. Robe (Regional South Australia) - up 8.3 per cent to median value of $569,501
2. Dinner Plain (Regional Victoria) - up 8.0 per cent to median value of $1,052,121
3. Trangie (Regional NSW) - up 7.4 per cent to median value of $228,371
4. Werris Creek (Regional Western Australia) - up 7.1 per cent to median value of $275,274
5. Kalbarri (Regional Western Australia) - up 6.9 per cent to median value of $327,906
6. East Killara (Greater Sydney) - up 6.8 per cent to median value of $3,483,271
7. Cervantes (Regional Western Australia) - up 6.6 per cent to median value of $414,101
8. Port Douglas (Regional Queensland) - up 6.6 per cent to median value of $496,823
9. Middle Cove (Greater Sydney) - up 6.4 per cent to median value of$3,353,226
10. Warrawee (Greater Sydney) - up 6.4 per cent to median value of $2,439,941
11. South Turramurra (Greater Sydney)- up 6.2 per cent to median value of $2,309,828
12. Riverglades (Regional South Australia) - up 6.1 per cent to median value of $449, 129
13. Gordon (Greater Sydney)- up 6.0 per cent to median value of $1,494,820
14. Streaky Bay (Regional South Australia) - up 5.7 per cent to median value of $367,573
15. Armstrong Beach (Regional Queensland)- up 5.7 per cent to median value of $419,357
16. Normanville (Regional South Australia) -up 5.6 per cent to median value of $593,213
17. Maffra (Regional Victoria)- up 5.5 per cent to median value of $385,880
18. Tailem Bend (Regional South Australia) - up 5.5 per cent to median value of $267,744
19. Kurrimine Beach (Regional Queensland)- up 5.4 per cent to median value of $366,327
20. Tathra (Regional NSW) - up 5.4 per cent to median value of $752,245
21. Hay Point (Regional Queensland)- up 5.4 per cent to median value of $443,262
22. Waroona (Regional Western Australia) - up 5.4 per cent to median value of $363,177
23. Blackwater (Regional Queensland) -up 5.4 per cent to median value of $184,326
24. Euroa (Regional Victoria) - up 5.3 per cent to median value of $480,172
25. Sunset Beach (Regional Western Australia)- up 5.3 per cent to median value of $412,858

Looking ahead, Ms Owen forecasted that the proportion of suburbs recording a rise in values could start to trend higher.

“If this cycle mirrors historic ones, the higher-tier markets of Sydney and Melbourne are likely to show more suburbs in an upswing over the coming months,” she said. 

However, the expert noted the prevalence of highly affordable regional markets in the top-performing suburb list is “quite different” from the trend observed during previous upswings. 

“In late 2019, when the market was showing signs of moving into an upswing, Sydney suburbs were topping capital growth charts.

“In mid-2012, when the market was moving into an upswing, resource-based markets across WA and Darwin dominated,” she said. 

On that note, she said the current upswing could “reflect a hangover of the pandemic and the interest rate environment”, where affordable, regional property continues to be attractive for buyers.