Brisbane and Adelaide post half-million-dollar median gains 

Brisbane recorded the highest share of profitable resales among the capital cities at 99.8%, with a median gain of $525,190. Adelaide followed closely with a profitability rate of 99.3% and a median gain of $477,000. Perth also performed strongly, with 98.9% of resales returning a profit and a median gain of $475,000.

“Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide have all benefited from strong population growth, tight housing supply and sustained buyer demand,” said Burg. “Many owners who bought before the recent upswing, during a period of affordability and low interest rates, are now selling into a market where values have risen substantially, translating into some very significant resale gains.”




Median hold period of resales at a loss/gain, houses vs. units, March quarter 2026 (in years)


Region
Pain
Gain


Houses
Units
Houses
Units


Sydney
5.7
8.6
10.8
9.4


Regional NSW
4.1
4.3
9.0
7.9


Melbourne
4.0
10.0
10.6
9.4


Regional Vic
3.7
3.6
8.4
8.0


Brisbane
1.8
–
8.5
6.4


Regional Qld
13.6
13.8
7.3
6.1


Adelaide
1.7
–
9.6
7.3


Regional SA
16.0
–
8.3
5.6


Perth
8.4
11.2
8.5
7.3


Regional WA
14.8
16.4
7.5
5.1


Hobart
4.2
–
9.3
8.0


Regional Tas
2.9
–
7.8
6.9


Darwin
11.4
12.1
10.0
10.3


Regional NT
10.3
9.5
13.1
9.4


Canberra
3.8
3.7
10.8
8.5


Capital city
4.2
9.0
9.8
8.8


Regional
4.4
11.4
8.2
7.0


National
4.3
9.0
9.1
8.4


Source: Cotality

Houses outperform units

The gap between houses and units remained wide in the March quarter. Nationally, 98.1% of house resales were profitable compared with 91.9% of unit resales. The median gain for houses was $440,000, against $256,000 for units.

Melbourne’s unit market was among the weakest in the country, with only 81% of resales generating a profit.

“In a number of established apartment markets, particularly in Melbourne and parts of Sydney, additional supply has limited capital growth and increased the incidence of loss-making resales,” Burg said. “That has created a much wider performance gap between houses and units than we’ve typically seen in previous cycles.”