FOR players interested in buying or selling within the residential market, a similar environment to 2018 has been forecast for 2019.
Across the State the residential property market has remained slow over the past year, with house prices being unchanged, according to the Real Estate Institute of WA (REIWA).
Data from REIWA's report on the December quarter showed some regional areas had more growth in sales activity and median house sale prices than the Perth market.
The subdued market, particularly for the Perth, Bunbury, Busselton, Albany and Esperance regions, has been due to limited demand in the residential property landscape matched with plentiful supply, extinguishing any pressure for prices to increase, which has created favourable conditions for buyers.
Minimal population growth (just 0.8 per cent compared to the national average of 3pc) and cautious sentiment have constrained owner-occupier demand.
Tighter access to housing finance has further halted interest from both owner-occupiers and investors.
Owners of rental properties also benefitted as there were early signs of WA rents rising to $360 per week in 2018, with the number of overall listings declining by 27pc and the vacancy rate dropping to 2.8pc.
The significant decrease in vacancies, which is below the 10-year average, has been due a lower new supply entering the rental market, providing existing supply to be absorbed.
Perth
It was a rather volatile market in 2018 for Perth, with the median house sale price falling to $485,000 in September and finishing on a high in December at $510,000.
Data trends have shown that Perth house prices tend to reach a low point between June and September each calendar year, presenting good opportunities for buyers.
Although sales activity decreased by 16pc in the Perth region during the December quarter, the median house price increased by 5.2pc, leaving prices about $510,000 for the calendar year.
This reduction in sales activity is attributed to 11pc less house sales, 19pc decline of unit sales and a 42pc reduction in vacant land sales.
On an annual basis, the Perth median house sale price has remained stable, while unit prices dropped 0.3pc from the September quarter and 5.1pc annually, to sit at $389,000.
The bulk of house sales settled this quarter were spread across the $350,000-$499,000 range (about 33pc), followed by $349,000 or less (about 19pc).
The top end of the market of properties that sold for more than $2 million represented about 2pc of sales activity.
Leasing activity fell by 6pc during the December quarter and 9pc on an annual basis.
The overall median rent was steady at $350/week during the quarter.
About 62pc of Perth's rental market consists of houses with 38pc being units.
Regional WA
Despite the broader WA residential property market being relatively quiet in 2018 and in the December quarter, some areas of the regional market did experience some interesting activity, both highs and lows.
Median house sale prices rose considerably (12pc) in the Busselton region, bringing values to $555,000 - the highest in the State, even topping Perth.
This substantial growth is likely due to the recent developments in the region, including the airport.
Increased sales activity was seen throughout the Broome (34.8pc), Geraldton (34.7pc) and Port Hedland (25.8pc) regions, yet these areas either saw a decrease or small increase in median house sale prices (-8.5pc, -0.9pc and 3.8pc respectively).
For landlords the Karratha, Broome and Esperance regions had high growth rates in rents, also beating the Perth market.
Markets that took a hit during the December quarter included Esperance due to a decline of 36.7pc sales activity, which is the greatest drop across the State, but only a 1.5pc fall in median sale prices ($330,000); Bunbury with 28.3pc less sales activity but no change in median sale prices ($341,500); and Broome median sale prices had the highest drop of 8.5pc, leaving values at $430,000, which is still the third highest in the State.
Rents in Karratha increased by $45 to $445/week; Broome up by $33 to $483; and Esperance rose by $20 to $300.