Buying a typical house will now cost you almost 30% more than buying the typical unit.
CoreLogic has reported that, at the end of February, Australia’s median house price was 29.8% higher than its median unit price – a record gap.
To put it in dollar terms, median prices are $791,400 for houses and $609,800 for units, which means the gap is almost $182,000.
That gap has significantly widened in the past two years:
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February 2020 gap = 8.3% / $43,000
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February 2021 gap = 16.2% / $87,000
It’s possible the house-unit price gap will further widen, because now that so many Australians are working from home, more people want a dedicated home office, which could lead to increased demand for houses.
On the other hand, it’s also possible the gap will narrow, because with houses looking relatively dear and units relatively cheap, demand might shift from the former to the latter.