Hunter House Prices Stabilise, Affordability Crisis Continues

BY OLIVIA DILLON

New figures indicate house prices in some parts of the Hunter increased during March for the first time in 10 months. 

The median house price in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie is now $822,693, up 0.6% between February and March.

CoreLogic's Research Director Tim Lawless, says the figures are sure to field mixed reactions across the region. 

"For current homeowners, they'll probably see this as good news; the fact that they're no longer seeing housing values fall or removing some of their wealth from their home," he said.

"For those people looking to buy into the marketplace, they're probably looking for values to fall further. We know affordability is still quite a challenge in the region, despite the fact that housing values have come down."

Mr Lawless said there are a number of things contributing to the shift, naming low stock, the state's rental crisis, and overseas migration as just a few. 

"One of the major factors at play is simply that there's not much stock in the marketplace; listing numbers across region remain well below average," he said. 

"We're also starting to see some spill-over coming out of the rental market as well; rental vacancy rates are still around 1% if not lower that that."

"Of course with migration from overseas really ramping up, arguably, a lot of overseas migrants simply can't find rental accommodation and may be moving into a purchasing decision a lot more quickly than typical migration trends would flow into housing demand."

There are concerns the rental crisis could worsen, with a new report predicting Australia will be short of more than 100,000 homes over the next 5 years.

 

New Hunter Rental Figures Suggest an Ease in Pressure

BY OLIVIA DILLON

The latest figures out of PropTrack indicate the rental pressures in Newcastle and The Hunter may be easing. 

Newcastle rental prices fell by 3.6% over the three months to December 2022, and in The Hunter they fell by 5.1%. 

PropTrack Director of Economic Research Cameron Kusher, says while there's still ways to go, it's a step in the right direction. 

"They're still higher than they were 12 months ago. Newcastle rents are up 6% and Hunter rents are up by 4.4%, but we are seeing some other signs, some of the rental pressures which have been really prevalent in the market are starting to alleviate," he said.  

"In terms of Newcastle, the number of new listings in December last year compared to the previous December was up 13.5%, and total rental listings were up 17%. In the Hunter, we saw a 16.9% increase in new listings and a 7.5% increase in total listings."  

The figures also indicate, while rental vacancy rates in the region have increased, the number of property inquiries has declined. 

Mr Kusher said this is good news for locals. 

"You've got more stock, but fewer people competing for that stock which is obviously a desperately needed thing, given how much competition and how little stock there has been in the region over the past few years."

Calls for Former Stockton Centre to House the Homeless

BY OLIVIA DILLON

The State Government is facing calls from the Hunter, for the former Stockton Centre to be temporarily repurposed as emergency accommodation for the homeless. 

State member for Newcastle, Tim Crakanthorp MP was joined by the Shadow Minister for Housing and Homelessness, Rose Jackson MLC this morning, in launching the call. 

The appeal is also being supported by a number of local support services, including Specialist Homelessness Services (SHS), Nova for Women and Children, Jenny's Place, and the Hunter Tenants Advice and Advocacy Service. 

The call comes as recent data indicates homelessness services turned away 114,000 Australians seeking help between 2020 and 2021, citing a lack of resources. 

Data out of Hume Community Housing backs up these figures, indicating the need for community housing in the Hunter rose by 24% between 2020 and 2021. 

The former Stockton Centre has eight renovated houses and two units on the site which are said be suitable for emergency accommodation.

Newcastle MP Tim Crakanthorp, said the building is owned by the Department of Communities and Justice, and should therefore be used to serve those in the community who need it most. 

"This asset belongs to the community, not some Minister in Sydney who says it’s all too hard. We need less talk and more action when it comes to addressing the housing crisis," Mr Crakanthorp said. 

"We've got a perfect storm. We've got an inflation rate going through the roof, we've got hardly any rentals available, and we've got people moving up here from Sydney and other places which is pushing up prices, making it even less affordable to even buy, let alone rent." 

The vacant site has sat dormant for almost two years, and Mr Crakanthorp says it's about time the government did something with it. 

"Every week I am dealing with people experiencing homelessness who are struggling to find accommodation. Whilst this is only a temporary solution, it's one that is desperately needed right now to get us through this crisis," he said.  

The need for community housing in the Hunter rose by 24% last year.