1. Real Estate Institute of Australia
16 Thesiger Court I PO Box 234, Deakin ACT 2600
Phone 02 6282 4277 I Fax 02 6285 2444
www.reia.com.au I reia@reia.com.au
Media Release
18 March 2011
Property sales continue to decline
Real Estate Institute of Australia (REIA) President, Mr David Airey, says activity in the property market
continues to decline with residential sales falling 21.8% in the twelve months to December 2010.
“The number of sales fell 10,353 from 47,597 in the December quarter 2009 to 37,244 in the December
quarter 2010,” said Mr Airey.
The table below shows a breakdown of the number of sales between December 2009 and December 2010.
Quarter Canberra Sydney Brisbane Darwin Perth Adelaide Melbourne Hobart Australia
Dec 09 287 19,355 5,512 402 5,639 5,021 10,733 648 47,597
Mar 10 229 17,028 5,831 269 5,212 4,315 8,578 612 42,074
Jun 10 494 20,471 4,858 227 4,702 4,716 9,993 556 46,017
Sep 10 330 16,511 4,386 237 4,850 4,336 8,670 458 39,778
Dec 10 320 13,869 4,045 233 4,279 4,464 9,522 512 37,244
Mr Airey said that a relationship could be drawn between the decline in sales, the phasing out of the First
Home Owners Grant Boost (FHOG Boost) and higher interest rates.
“As noted in the Reserve Bank of Australia Board Meeting Minutes for March 2011, the Reserve Bank has
achieved their goal of stabilising property prices with successive increases in 2010. As well as interest
rates rises, we have seen the impact of the phasing out of the FHOG Boost at the end of 2009 and a
slowing in construction of new housing,” he said.
Mr Airey went on to say, “Without first home buyers, market activity will continue to decrease and new home
sales will continue to slow. This ultimately affects the established home sales market.”
A strong property market is essential to a strong economy and if the Government continues to rely on a
resource based economic environment, the economy will slow.
“Reduced consumer spending is evident in the retail market and borrowing is in decline. We urge the
Government to engage with us and related industry bodies to assist in addressing issues and initiatives
required to stimulate housing activity,” concluded Mr Airey.
The Real Estate Institute of Australia (REIA) is the national professional association for the real
estate sector in Australia. For further information or interview opportunities, please contact:
David Airey REIA President 0418 906 002
Rhiannon McClelland REIA Manager Communicationsn 0421 422 919