After two months of recovery, Canberra home values have gone backwards again with a slight decline in July.
Canberra was the only capital city to record a monthly decline in property values, down 0.1 per cent, the latest CoreLogic home value index shows.
The fall was driven by a 0.3 per cent drop in house values, to a median of $958,950.
Meanwhile, Canberra unit values were up 0.6 per cent for July to a median of $600,828.
CoreLogic research director Tim Lawless said the July figures were more of a stabilisation in values following two months of mild growth, rather than a declining trend.
"In trend terms, the ACT housing market looks to be holding relatively firm," he said.
Mr Lawless said there was no doubt high interest rates and cost-of-living pressures had played a part in the July decline, while property listings also had an impact.
The volume of new property listings added to the ACT market in July was down by 8 per cent on last year but up 6.3 per cent compared to the previous five-year average.
"A lift in the number of new listings coming onto the market helps to explain the levelling out," Mr Lawless said.
Canberra rents were also trending lower, down 3 per cent over the past year.
"The weakening in rental conditions could be taking some of the pressure off housing values as renters felt less pressure to move into home ownership," he said.
Gross yields held steady across Canberra houses at 3.7 per cent, and increased slightly to 5.1 per cent for units.
Pace of national growth eases
The July index found the rate of home value growth had eased across most regions.
CoreLogic's national home value index rose 0.7 per cent in July.
It was the fifth consecutive month of home value recovery, however, the pace of growth had slowed from 1.2 per cent recorded in May.
The most substantial reduction in growth was seen in Sydney, which halved from a recent high of 1.8 per cent growth in May to 0.9 per cent growth in July.
Meanwhile, the pace of growth accelerated in Brisbane and Adelaide, which both recorded monthly gains of 1.4 per cent.
The slowdown in most markets could be put down to easing growth in the premium part of the sector, Mr Lawless said.
"Some resilience in growth across the middle and more affordable end of the market aligns with housing finance data which has shown a stronger bounce back in the value of lending to first home buyers and investors over recent months," he said.
"These segments tend to be more active across the middle to lower end of the pricing range where competition to purchase a home may be more intense."
In the monthly index, Mr Lawless said the national housing market appears to be resilient against another downturn given values continued to trend higher across most regions.
With the Reserve Bank due to hand down its decision on the cash rate on Tuesday, it was looking "increasingly likely" the interest rate cycle was at or near its peak, Mr Lawless said.
Inflation - while still high - fell over the June quarter, which he said should help to lift consumer spirits, and spending on housing.
"However, we don't expect to see a material lift in purchasing activity until interest rates start to reduce, which isn't likely until 2024," the home value index stated.
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