RP Data's most recent Weekly Property Pulse shows that capital city home values have increased at an average annual rate of 1.9 per cent over the past five years.
While Darwin recorded the strongest price growth of approximately 4.1 per cent over the five-year period, Hobart, Brisbane, and Perth experienced annual average declines of -1.9 per cent, -0.8 per cent and -0.4 per cent respectively.
RP Data's figures show that in the five-year period preceding 2007, the overall property market was averaging an annual growth rate of 8.4 per cent, almost 4.5 times the growth rate that the market experienced over the past five years.
Commenting on the figures, RP Data's Senior Research Analyst Cameron Kusher said "the global financial crisis, and the subsequent changes in consumer attitudes that it has led to, has largely impacted the results of the most recent five years."
According to the report, Sydney was the only market to record superior levels of average annual growth over the past five years, compared to the five years prior.
"Sydney's housing market performance has actually been stronger over the most recent five years than it was between 2002 and 2007," Mr Kusher said.
Mr Kusher went on to compare the annual growth in values of detached houses with units, revealing that over the 15 years to December 2012, capital city house values increased at an average annual rate of 7.6 per cent, compared with 6.0 per cent for units. He noted – however, that while units had, on average, experienced less value growth than detached houses over the longer term, unit values had risen at a faster pace over the past five years.
Mr Kusher concluded that "it seems unlikely that capital gains in housing will return to the levels enjoyed between 1997 and 2002. The market will be more reflective of conditions over the most recent five years."
For more information on market conditions in your area, please contact your local Century 21 Real Estate Agents, for clear and expert advice.