Capital city auction numbers bounced back, and clearance rates were steady overall in a mixed response so far to the property tax changes announced in the recent Federal Budget. Weekly Auction Results to Saturday, May 23rd 2026 Capital City This Week Last Week Same Week Last Year Auctions Rate Auctions Rate Auctions Rate Sydney 1038…
![Perth housing market update [video] | May 2026](https://cdn.propertyupdate.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Perth-city-270x200.jpeg)
The Perth property market continues to outpace the rest of the nation, with Cotality’s latest index tracking a substantial dwelling value surge of 2.1% in April. This rapid growth injected approximately $21,280 into the local median home value over a single month. While eastern states face multi-layered headwinds and outright value declines, the Western Australian…
![Brisbane housing market update [video] | May 2026](https://cdn.propertyupdate.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/brisbane-270x200.jpg)
The Brisbane property market continues to exhibit notable strength, with the latest Cotality data revealing a dwelling value increase of 1.2% in April. This gain injected approximately $13,750 into the local median home value over the month. While the Queensland capital continues to comfortably outperform southern counterparts like Sydney and Melbourne, its broader expansion path…
Fresh data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics released today shows the unemployment rate climbed to 4.5% in April, up from 4.3% in March, with employment falling by around 19,000 people in the month. The unemployment rate is now at a level above Federal Treasury and the Reserve Bank’s forecasts, and that’s before the full…
The Australian property market in 2026 has entered genuinely new territory, with a another rate rise from the Reserve Bank and the most significant tax changes to property investment in nearly three decades landing within weeks of each other. The three RBA rate rises this year delivered the shortest and shallowest rate-cutting cycle since inflation…
![Sydney housing market update [video] | May 2026](https://cdn.propertyupdate.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/sydney4-270x200.jpg)
The Sydney property market is moving through a distinct structural transition, with Cotality’s latest figures showing a dwelling value contraction of 0.6% in April. This decline marks the fourth monthly downturn out of the last five for the harbor city, leaving the local market sitting 1.0% below the peak recorded in November last year. While…
Something happened over the last week that I’ve genuinely never seen in my five decades of property investing – the Federal Government reached into the pockets of every property investor in Australia and changed the rules of the game overnight. Negative gearing for new purchases, gone. The 50% capital gains tax discount, gone. Two of…
![Melbourne housing market update [video] | May 2026](https://cdn.propertyupdate.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/melbourne-1-270x200.jpg)
The Melbourne property market continues to face persistent downward pressure, with the latest Cotality data showing a dwelling value dip of 0.6% in April. This extended downturn represents the fifth consecutive monthly decline for the Victorian capital, pulling overall values down a cumulative 1.9% from the November cyclical high and leaving them 2.3% below the…
The national housing market is navigating a distinct cyclical turning point, with Cotality’s National Home Value Index rising by just 0.3% in April, taking the slowest monthly growth recorded since January 2025. While values continue to trend higher on a national level, the pace of appreciation is clearly losing momentum as the housing cycle moves…
The federal budget dropped last week and, if you believe the loudest voices in the room, property investment in Australia is finished. I don’t buy that for a second, but I do think this changes the game enough that investors need to think more carefully than they have for years. I’ve been watching governments tinker…
