Canberra’s real estate market slowed during the first quarter of 2014, when 7.1 per cent of homes in the territory sold for less than their owner originally bought them for, according to new data from RP Data.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The survey recorded 64,518 residential property sales across Australia and found 9.8 per cent of homes sold for less than their initial price during the March quarter, a trend that cost a total $381.1 million.
While the national percentage fell from 12.4 per cent in the March quarter of 2013, the latest ACT figures are an increase on the 6.3 per cent recorded in 2013. They total a gross loss of $3.07 million with a median loss of $30,000 per property.
The RP Data research found ACT "homes purchased between 1 years and 3 years ago were the most likely to sell at a loss over the quarter".
But despite this increase, Canberra retained one of the lowest proportions of homes selling for a loss when compared with 23.2 per cent of homes in regional Queensland and 14.8 per cent and 11.5 per cent of homes in Hobart and Adelaide respectively.
Only 3 per cent of homes in Sydney sold for less than their initial price and 5.4 per cent sold for between the 5 and 10 per cent profit - the lowest on both accounts nationwide.
The median profit of home re-sales in Canberra was $153,000, which contributed to a total profit of $144.6 million during the first three months of 2014.
More than 32 per cent of properties in the ACT sold for a 100 per cent profit or greater, which is a higher percentage than Sydney, Brisbane and Adelaide.
RP Data research analyst Cameron Kusher said homes for sale in regional or lifestyle locations experienced the worst results during the March quarter.
"These areas continue to show the largest proportion of loss making re-sales, particularly within the unit markets as opposed to detached housing markets," he said.
Mr Kusher said the likelihood of making a profit or loss from a sale depended on the length of time a property had been owned.
"As a stark example, homes purchased prior to 1st January, 2007 (pre GFC) and then sold during the June quarter of this particular year, only 7.2 per cent of resales made at a gross loss," he said.
"However, for homes purchased on or after this date, the propensity to make a loss on the sale climbed substantially."
