PEXA report reveals the latest
Australia’s property sale settlements scored a notable increase towards the latter part of 2023, indicating a resurgence in the nation’s property market, according to PEXA’s 2023 Property Insights Report.
The study showed that over 670,000 properties changed hands throughout the year, amassing a total value exceeding $613 billion.
Despite a 9.1% reduction in the overall value of property transactions in 2023 compared to the previous year, sale settlements saw an upturn in the December quarter, with 188,000 national transactions, marking the highest quarterly volume for the year.
The PEXA report detailed a significant rise in residential property settlements across various price ranges in the latter half of 2023, particularly in December, when nearly $50 billion worth of residential properties were settled.
The high-end market, especially properties priced above $1 million in the eastern states, led this growth. New South Wales and Victoria experienced notable increases in settlements for properties within the $1.5 million to $2 million and over $2 million price brackets.
The more affordable segment of the market also showed positive movement, with settlements for properties under $500,000 rising by 11.2% in New South Wales and 17% in Victoria during the second half of 2023.
New South Wales led in residential property spending at over $192 billion, while Queensland recorded the highest number of residential sale settlements for the third year in a row. Victoria saw the most significant drop in total value, whereas Western Australia’s market remained stable, demonstrating resilience.
Commercial property transactions in New South Wales and Victoria, however, faced downturns due to a softened market in a high-interest rate environment, with them witnessing 17.5% and 16.4% decreases in settlement volumes, respectively.
“Compared to the pandemic-related property boom of 2021 and 2022, the property sector experienced a decline in total settlement volumes last year,” said Mike Gill (pictured), head of research at PEXA. “However, the recovery in settlement volumes in the latter months of 2023 suggest the market may have reached a turning point and buyer confidence is returning.
“Sales volumes are likely to recover further during 2024. Particularly if inflation decelerates, we could expect the RBA to keep interest rates on hold, and eventually cut them.”
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