Researching the property market is not as complicated as you might think, but it does involve some diving into data. We show you the best ways to get started.
Real estate research comes down to identifying areas or suburbs which strong growth potential. This is essential for property investors concerned with long-term capital growth.
Home buyers have different research needs based on lifestyle factors and location. But they should also keep an eye on growth potential too. Your home is likely the biggest asset you'll ever own.
There is no one Australian property market
You can divide the Australian property market many ways:
City vs regional
Unit vs house
Inner city vs outer suburbs
State by state
Sydney vs everywhere else
You may see prices shooting up in one state while slowing in another (especially in cities affected by single industries like mining or tourism). The gap in prices between units and houses in a single suburb can be massive.
Regional cities are cheaper than state capitals, but can often see much faster growth too.
7 ways to research the property market
1. Figure out your real estate goal
Before you do anything else, work out what you want.
Investors usually want cheap properties that are likely to grow in value quickly. Or properties that generate high rental yield relative to the cost of the mortgage. Some investors
If you're looking to buy a home to live, in your goals will be much more unique. Work out how many bedrooms you need, consider areas you wish to live in and work out the factors in a property tha matters most to you like:
Kitchen size
Backyard
Proximity to schools and shops
How walkable the area is
How quiet the area is
Public transport options
2. Get a sense of prices in your area
You can start to get a good sense of average prices in areas you're interested in by looking at listings. Look at current listings but also recently sold properties.
Make sure you look at what real estate agents call comparable sales. If you want to buy a 2-bedroom unit in a large apartment complex, compare the sales price to other 2-bedroom units of a similar size that sold in large apartment complexes. A 2-bedroom house won't be a fair comparison.
The more properties you look at and the longer you watch the market, the better your understanding will be.
3. Hit the streets
Online listings are great to start with, but there's no substitute for on the ground research. Go to inspections, talk to real estate agents (but don't always take them at their word) and attend auctions.
This will help you get a feel for the areas you're looking at. And it will help you see through the heavily edited online photos of listed properties.
You can also see the other people looking to buy properties and get a sense for the types of buyers different areas and properties attract.
4. Figure out supply and demand
This essential economic concept applies to property as much as anything else. Investors are looking for properties in areas where demand is high (people really want to buy homes or rent here) but supply is low (there aren't enough properties available).
But this is complicated. Some popular suburbs have had high demand and low supply for years, and prices reflect this. It's harder to snap up a bargain and you may end up paying a premium. Identifying future growth areas (if that's your goal) means anticipating a future supply and demand imbalance.
This is tricky to do, but you can look at data (more on that in the next section) and also research future infrastructure, demographic or economic changes that could make an area more desirable.
5. Dive into the data
Some statistics or market trends you may want to check include the following:
Demand to supply ratio (DSR). Websites like DSR Data offer a scoring system based on supply and demand factors.
Days on market (DOM). If houses stay on the market for 80 days in one suburb but sell in less than 30 in nearby areas this is a sign demand is low. You can see this kind of data in suburb profiles in Domain and realestate.com.au, often broken down by property type and number of bedrooms.
Ripple effect potential. This one is tricky to measure, but the idea is that if one suburb has seen really strong demand and rising prices, neighbouring suburbs will likely see a similar benefit as demand spills over.
Vacancy rates. High rental vacancy rates suggest an oversupply of rental properties, while a low vacancy rate suggest high demand. But keep an eye on this trend over time, because it can be affected by things like new apartments being completed, which can cause numbers to jump quickly.
Auction clearance rates. Auction clearance rates can give you a sense of how "hot" a property market is. If many properties sell at auction each weekend it suggests strong demand. But this metric can fluctuate quite a lot.
Suburb-level data: clearance rates, median prices and average days on market
Here's an example of the simple suburb level data you can see on sites like Domain.
6. Look at upcoming infrastructure and economic changes
If you can figure out what kind of infrastructure and economic development is coming to an area you can get a better sense of how the area is going to grow.
The simple, obvious example is a suburb becoming more desirable if a new high school and train station are being built in the area. A new hospital opening up could bring in more jobs and more demand for homes nearby.
If you're looking to buy an apartment as an investment, you might rethink your approach if you discover that multiple new high-rise projects have been approved nearby (it might add too much supply).
7. Think about the market cycle
Although it's not as important as you might think, you should consider the market cycle or "property clock" when buying in real estate.
Basically, markets go through cycles of high growth and then downturns. You can't really time the market, but being aware of what kind of market you're in (is it a buyer's market with lots of listing or a seller's market with high demand) can help you craft your strategy.
How do I know when there is strong demand in a market?
The following could be indicators of a market where demand exceeds supply:
Low DOM: If properties are on the market for a shorter amount of time compared to other markets, this may indicate that properties are selling quickly and that there is strong demand in the suburb.
Little change in asking price: If sellers don't need to reduce their asking price to lock in a sale, this may suggest that buyers are competing against one another and are willing to pay a higher price.
Properties are selling: If the majority of properties that go to auction sell, this suggests a positive buyer sentiment in the area. Also, if properties are advertised with "open inspection" times rather than private appointments, this means a high number of interested buyers.
Limited available property: This suggests that buyers are snapping up properties quickly and that demand exceeds supply.
Finder survey: What features matter most to Australians when choosing a home loan?
Source: Finder survey by Pure Profile of 1112 Australians, December 2023
Where to research the property market
Domain and realestate.com.au are the major listing sites. This is where you see properties for sale. They also offer useful suburb-level market data. You can use recently sold properties to help you estimate current price trends in a neighbourhood.
Companies such as CoreLogic, SQM Research and PropertyUpdate are popular options for researching the property market. These sites offer data, articles and analysis.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) also has information about figures on building approvals, leading indicators and population. These may give you an idea of how areas are developing.
Rebecca Pike is Finder's senior writer for money. She joined Finder after almost four years writing for business publications in the mortgage and finance industry, including three years as editor of Mortgage Professional Australia. She regularly appears as a money expert on programs like Sunrise and Today, as well as across radio and newspapers. She also holds ASIC-recognised certifications in Tier 1 Generic Knowledge and Tier 2 General Advice Deposit Products. See full bio
Rebecca's expertise
Rebecca has written 208 Finder guides across topics including:
Great information you have up on here i had a quick look through but am wandering if i an looking to buy a house to live/invest in a certain area what is the best way to check the crime report as everything else i can easily access but cant seem to find the best crime report page.
If you're looking to invest in property, a line of credit loan could be a great way to leverage the equity in your existing property for a deposit. A home equity loan is a loan in which you put your property up as security to borrow against the equity of your home.
When you sell a rental investment property and make a profit, you will generally need to pay Capital Gains Tax. Some exemptions and discounts apply: here's how to work out how much CGT could cost you.
Property investors often face the dilemma of whether to buy new or old. We take a look at the major considerations for both new and established dwellings.
Buying an investment property been on your wish list for a while? If you’re wondering ‘how much do i need to buy an investment property’ our guide has the answers.
How likely would you be to recommend Finder to a friend or colleague?
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Very UnlikelyExtremely Likely
Required
Thank you for your feedback.
Our goal is to create the best possible product, and your thoughts, ideas and suggestions play a major role in helping us identify opportunities to improve.
Important information about this website
Finder makes money from featured partners, but editorial opinions are our own.
Finder is one of Australia's leading comparison websites. We are committed to our readers and stand by our editorial principles.
We try to take an open and transparent approach and provide a broad-based comparison service. However, you should be aware that while we are an independently owned service, our comparison service does not include all providers or all products available in the market.
Some product issuers may provide products or offer services through multiple brands, associated companies or different labeling arrangements. This can make it difficult for consumers to compare alternatives or identify the companies behind the products. However, we aim to provide information to enable consumers to understand these issues.
We make money by featuring products on our site. Compensation received from the providers featured on our site can influence which products we write about as well as where and how products appear on our page, but the order or placement of these products does not influence our assessment or opinions of them, nor is it an endorsement or recommendation for them.
Products marked as 'Top Pick', 'Promoted' or 'Advertisement' are prominently displayed either as a result of a commercial advertising arrangement or to highlight a particular product, provider or feature. Finder may receive remuneration from the Provider if you click on the related link, purchase or enquire about the product. Finder's decision to show a 'promoted' product is neither a recommendation that the product is appropriate for you nor an indication that the product is the best in its category. We encourage you to use the tools and information we provide to compare your options.
Where our site links to particular products or displays 'Go to site' buttons, we may receive a commission, referral fee or payment when you click on those buttons or apply for a product.
When products are grouped in a table or list, the order in which they are initially sorted may be influenced by a range of factors including price, fees and discounts; commercial partnerships; product features; and brand popularity. We provide tools so you can sort and filter these lists to highlight features that matter to you.
Please read our website terms of use and privacy policy for more information about our services and our approach to privacy.
We update our data regularly, but information can change between updates. Confirm details with the provider you're interested in before making a decision.
Hey there,
Great information you have up on here i had a quick look through but am wandering if i an looking to buy a house to live/invest in a certain area what is the best way to check the crime report as everything else i can easily access but cant seem to find the best crime report page.
Cheers
Hi Michael,
Thank you for getting in touch with Finder.
You may head to Crime Statistics Australia to check a crime report.
I hope this helps.
Have a great day!
Cheers,
Jeni