Hunter Valley Property Market Update 1st Half of 2022

In Q4 2021, Hunter Valley recorded a median house price of $660,500, and a median unit price of $462,500. This represents annual (Q4 2020 – Q4 2021) median price growth of 28.3% for houses and 15.6% for units. Between Q4 2020 – Q4 2021 total sales for houses picked up, by 6.6% (to 323 sales), and slowed for units, by -28.9% (to 32 sales). There are real returns on capital investment in the house market and an undersupply in the unit market; all due to increased demand in Hunter Valley. Now is an ideal time for owners to capitalise and transact, and for developers to enter the market.

Average vendor discounts between Q4 2020 and Q4 2021 have swung to premiums of 1.2% for houses and 2.5% for units. House and unit market conditions in Hunter Valley have now shifted to favour vendors, as buyers are willing to offer above the initial listing price. For the first time since 2015 we are seeing average vendor premiums in the Hunter Valley.

In December 2021, house rental yields in the Hunter Region were recorded at 3.7%. In the 12 months to Q4 2021, the median house rental price increased by 11.1% to reach $500 per week, while average days to let on the market increased by 1 day to 17 days. A strong increase in median house rental price and a house rental yield on par with the surrounding LGA suggests the Hunter Region remains a resilient rental market.

3 bedroom houses have provided investors with +12.5% rental growth annually, with a median rent of $450 per week.

Also in December 2021, the Hunter Region recorded a vacancy rate of 0.7%, slightly above that of Maitland LGA (0.5%) but well below Sydney Metro (2.6%). Vacancy rates in the Hunter Region remain well below the Real Estate Institute of Australia’s healthy benchmark of 3.0%. Low vacancy rates remains a feature for the Hunter Region, thus confirming there is a healthy level of rental demand and investors can be confident of a conducive investment environment.