Hunter Valley Property Factsheet 1st Half of 2019

The Hunter Valley recorded median prices of $460,000 for houses and $348,000 for units in Q4 2018. This represented annual (Q4 2017 – Q4 2018) price shifts of +2.8% for houses and -0.6% for units. Compared to the 2^nd Half 2018 Hunter Valley Property Factsheet, which reported price growth of 4.7% (house) and 13.1% (unit), properties in the Hunter Valley have become slightly more affordable after a period of strong growth. This is good news for first time buyers seeking to enter the market.

The Maitland City Council Local Government Area (LGA) has seen median price changes of +4.4% to $475,000 for houses and -3.5% to $342,500 for units between Q4 2017 and Q4 2018. This positions the Hunter Valley as a more affordable market than the Maitland City Council LGA. At the same time Hunter Valley offers a more stable median price in the unit market and comparable growth in the house market.

Median rental prices in Hunter Valley* were $410 per week for houses and $350 per week for units in Q4 2018. This represents annual median rent price growth of 2.5% for houses and 20.7% for units. Hunter Valley average rental yields for houses of 4.1% and 4.9% for units were largely similar to the LGA’s. A similar pattern is found in vacancy rates, with Hunter Valley recording a rate of 1.1% in December 2018 and the LGA recording 1.2%. Hunter Valley’s rental yields were healthier than Sydney Metro’s of 2.9% (house) and 3.8% (unit), and lower than the vacancy rate of 3.6%. This presents the Hunter Valley* as a superior regional area for property investment.