House price index in Australia dropped by 1.5 percent quarter-on-quarter in the three months to September of 2018, further down from -0.7 percent in the previous quarter and matching market expectations. It marked the third straight quarter of fall in the index, as prices continued to decline in Sydney (-1.9 percent vs -1.2 percent in Q2); Melbourne (-2.6 percent vs -0.8 percent); Perth (-0.6 percent vs -0.1 percent); and Darwin (-0.9 percent, the same as in Q2). Also, prices rose at a softer pace in Canberra (0.5 percent vs 0.6 percent), and Brisbane (0.6 percent vs 0.7 percent). On the other hand, prices increased further in Adelaide (0.6 percent vs 0.3 percent). Through the year to the second quarter, residential property prices decreased by 1.9 percent (vs -0.6 percent in Q2), the second annual fall since the June quarter 2012. Housing Index in Australia averaged 1.55 percent from 2002 until 2018, reaching an all time high of 6.10 percent in the second quarter of 2002 and a record low of -2.20 percent in the third quarter of 2008.
Housing Index in Australia is expected to be -1.50 percent by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. Looking forward, we estimate Housing Index in Australia to stand at -0.54 in 12 months time. In the long-term, the Australia House Price Index is projected to trend around 2.10 percent in 2020, according to our econometric models.