Australia’s Property Market Enters a New Phase: Oct 2025

Based on the latest Cotality October data, the Australian property market is showing renewed momentum across most capitals — led by Darwin, with standout performances in affordable and regional areas.
Below is Foresight Property’s in-depth analysis of the data and its implications for investors.

National Overview: Fastest Monthly Growth Since June 2023
In October, Australian dwelling values rose 1.1%, marking the strongest monthly gain in over a year.
The annual growth rate has now reached 6.1%, with prices up 5.8% year-to-date since February’s brief decline.
This highlights how resilient buyer demand remains despite higher rates and affordability constraints.

Capital City Performance: Clear Divergence Across Markets
– Perth continues to lead with a 1.9% monthly gain, maintaining its dominance.
– Brisbane followed at 1.8%, and Adelaide recorded 1.4% growth, both showing steady strength.
– Sydney (0.7%) and Melbourne (0.9%) saw softer growth, while Canberra edged up just 0.3%, indicating slower momentum.

On an annual basis
– Darwin stands out with a remarkable 15.4% YoY increase, the highest nationwide.
– Brisbane rose 10.8%, and Adelaide 9.4%, both showing robust momentum.
– In contrast, Sydney (2.0%) and Melbourne (3.3%) remain laggards, suggesting a slower recovery path for the larger capitals.

Mid-Tier Properties Leading the Market
– In most capitals, mid-tier properties rose 1.4%, outperforming the high-end segment (+0.7%).
– This pattern reflects: Borrowing constraints limiting high-end buyer activity.
– Rising investor participation, with loans to investors now 38% of all new lending. First home buyers entering through the 5% deposit guarantee scheme.

Regional Markets Shine Again
Regional areas rose 1.0% in October, the strongest monthly performance since 2022.
– Western Australia’s regional markets led with 1.8% growth, followed by Queensland regional (1.1%) and NSW regional (1.0%). 

– The annual growth rate for regional markets reached 7.5%, surpassing capital city growth of 5.6% — signalling strong relative demand outside metropolitan areas.

Rental Yields Under Pressure
With price growth outpacing rent increases, gross rental yields have slipped to 3.6% nationally — the lowest level since early 2022.
– Darwin remains highest at 6.4%, followed by Perth (5.0%) and Melbourne (3.6%).
– Investors seeking strong cash flow will need to focus on select growth corridors where yields remain above average.

Foresight Insight
October’s data clearly signals renewed strength led by affordable and regional markets.

For investors, this reinforces the importance of targeting suburbs with sustainable fundamentals — strong population inflows, diverse employment, and rental demand resilience.

At Foresight Property, our data-driven suburb models and 12-step investment framework help clients identify such areas early — before the broader market catches up.

📩 To explore tailored investment opportunities or receive suburb-level reports, contact us at Info@Foresightproperty.com.au