Perth’s median house price has broken through the $1 million mark, with prices jumping almost 10 per cent in the final three months of 2025.
Real estate listing company Domain has found the cost to buy a home in the city increased by 9.9 per cent in the last quarter of 2025, to an average price of $1,087,762.
Its report found Perth households now spend 39.5 per cent of their income on a median mortgage, up from 22.3 per cent in 2019.
Domain’s chief of research and economics, Dr Nicola Powell said a shortage of homes was contributing to the lack of affordability.
House prices in more than 50 Perth suburbs doubled over the past five years. (ABC News: Ian Cutmore)
“Rapid price growth has pushed home ownership further out of reach for many buyers, forcing tougher trade-offs and longer saving times,” Dr Powell said.
“While price growth is expected to moderate, affordability challenges will persist unless housing supply improves.”
House prices in more than 50 Perth suburbs doubled over the past five years, with the southern suburb of Orelia recording the highest growth, up 154 per cent.
Dr Powell said other Australian capitals were even less affordable.
“Despite reaching the $1 million milestone, Perth continues to offer relative value compared to other capitals, supported by higher-than-average wages and shorter saving time-frames for first-home buyers,” she said.
City price gap narrows
Perth housing prices are rapidly catching up to larger cities such as Melbourne.
In 2019, a home in Perth cost 41.5 per cent less than Melbourne, but the latest data shows that gap has narrowed to just 2.1 per cent.
Inside Melbourne’s anomalous housing market
The Domain report found first home buyers were struggling to get into the market, with the price of an entry-level home rising 74.3 per cent since 2019, adding around $275,000 to the purchase price.
Home ownership has also fallen, and Domain says the number of home-owners is expected to decline further as property prices increase.
Dr Powell said there were still some affordable properties to be found on the market.
“Flexibility will be key, whether that means buying further from the CBD, choosing smaller homes, or considering units and townhouses.”
Market volatility blamed for housing price guide discrepancies
Domain president Jason Pellegrino said Perth was an attractive place to live, adding that this is contributing to the rise in property prices.
“Perth’s entry into the million-dollar club highlights the scale of change underway in Australia’s housing market”
“The city’s strong appeal as a place to live, work and invest, combined with the state’s economic strength and livability, has attracted new residents at record pace, making Western Australia the nation’s fastest-growing state,” he said.
The Domain data differs from the Real Estate Institute of WA’s (REIWA) numbers, due to different methodology.
REIWA reported Perth’s median house sale price was $840,000 in December, the highest it had ever recorded.
Listings for sale across Perth fell to a record low of 1,881 at the end of December, according to its data.
Boom not uniform
Property analyst and valuer Gavin Hegney said there were still some reasonably priced properties to be found, but they are becoming harder to find.
“There’s fewer and fewer properties looking like they’re really good value for money, but they do exist because a boom doesn’t happen in unison right across all suburbs,” he told ABC Radio Perth
“You’ve just got to look a bit harder now. So if you went back five years, everything looked really cheap. Today, it’s pretty hard to find. We’ve got less than 2,000 properties in the market.”
WA Premier Roger Cook said the government was working to increase supply to put downward pressure on house prices.
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