Home Value Index Tracker
The Cotality (formerly CoreLogic) Home Value Index, tracked month by month — the latest national and capital-city dwelling values, rents and yields, Housing Chart Pack highlights, and what they mean for investors. Updated within days of every release.
What is the Cotality Home Value Index showing right now?
Australian home values fell 0.7% in July 2026 — the steepest monthly fall since December 2022 and the fourth consecutive decline since the market peaked in March 2026. The national median dwelling value sits at $928,421, roughly 1.4% below peak on our estimate. The downturn has broadened: Sydney (–1.4%), Melbourne (–1.2%), Brisbane (–0.6%), Adelaide (–0.2%) and the combined regionals (–0.2%, the first regional fall since January 2023) all declined, while only Perth (+0.1%), Hobart (+0.1%) and Darwin (+0.8%) held positive.
The Latest Numbers (July 2026 HVI)
National: −0.7% for the month · ~−1.4% from the March 2026 peak (our estimate) · median $928,421. The combined-capitals median sits at $1,010,814; combined regionals fell 0.2% for the month (median $769,867) — the first regional decline since January 2023, with regional NSW, Victoria and Queensland down while regional SA (+1.4%) and WA (+0.9%) still rose. By price tier, upper-quartile values fell 3.2% nationally over the three months to July while the lower quartile rose 0.3%.
Monthly Change in Dwelling Values by Capital — July 2026
The downturn broadened in July: Brisbane (–0.6%) and Adelaide (–0.2%) joined Sydney (–1.4%), Melbourne (–1.2%) and Canberra in decline, leaving Perth, Hobart and Darwin the only risers. National –0.7% took over from June as the steepest monthly fall since December 2022.
Source: Cotality (formerly CoreLogic) Home Value Index, July 2026 (released 3 August 2026).
| Capital | Monthly | Quarterly | Annual* | Median* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney | −1.4% | −4.0% | −2.0% | $1,244,617 |
| Melbourne | −1.2% | −3.4% | −2.8% | $797,354 |
| Brisbane | −0.6% | −0.6% | +14.8% | $1,104,094 |
| Adelaide | −0.2% | +0.1% | +10.5% | $944,909 |
| Perth | +0.1% | −0.3% | +20.5% | $1,029,797 |
| Hobart | +0.1% | +1.4% | +9.3% | $756,951 |
| Darwin | +0.8% | +2.4% | +16.3% | $642,175 |
| Canberra | −0.6% | −1.3% | +2.9% | $885,254 |
Source: Cotality Home Value Index, July 2026 (released 3 August 2026). *First prints are provisional and subject to revision — Cotality revised Perth's June reading from +0.7% to −0.5% in this release.
Rents and yields: gross rental yields reached 3.50% across the combined capitals in July, up from December's 3.34% low, with SQM's national vacancy rate at 1.3% in June — values falling while rents hold keeps expanding yields. Cross-check rental conditions on our Vacancy Rate Tracker.
Market activity: combined-capitals auction clearance was 53.6% for the week ending 2 August — firmer than late June's low-40s readings — but Sydney cleared below 50% with 90 auctions withdrawn, while Melbourne's 59.6% was its firmest week since April. The cash rate is held at 4.35%, and as at 3 August markets price only about a 4% chance of a cut at the 11 August RBA meeting.
The Trend
Where are we in the cycle?
Values peaked in March 2026 after annual growth crested at 10.0% in February. The path since: annual growth stepped down (9.9% March, 9.8% April) before outright monthly falls set in, deepening each month to July's –0.7% — the steepest since December 2022 for the second month running. The index is roughly 1.4% below peak nationally on our estimate — still shallow by historical standards (the 2022–23 downturn ran to –8.2% peak-to-trough), but no longer confined to Sydney and Melbourne.
This Downturn vs 2022–23
The current correction is still far shallower than the 2022–23 rate-shock downturn — the national index sits roughly 1.4% below its March 2026 peak vs the 8.2% peak-to-trough fall of 2022–23 — but it is accelerating: July's –0.7% is the largest monthly fall of the cycle. (2026 figures are the fall to date, not a completed cycle.)
Source: Cotality (formerly CoreLogic) Home Value Index, July 2026 (released 3 August 2026). 2022–23 figures from CoreLogic/Cotality December 2022 Home Value Index.
Sydney's index peaked in January 2026 and has fallen 4.0% over just the three months to July; Melbourne's most recent peak was November 2025, and it has never retaken its March 2022 all-time high. Both are now in outright annual decline (Sydney –2.0%, Melbourne –2.8%), joined in July by monthly falls in Brisbane, Adelaide, Canberra and the combined regionals.
Cross-Check: Cotality vs PropTrack
The two providers agreed on July's national direction (Cotality –0.7%, PropTrack –0.3%) and on its breadth — PropTrack has every capital falling except Darwin — but disagree on Perth's sign again: Cotality +0.1%, PropTrack –0.2%. Per-city monthly magnitudes routinely differ 20–40 basis points on methodology; a sign disagreement is rarer, and means treat that market's print as unconfirmed — especially after Cotality revised its own June Perth reading from +0.7% to –0.5%. See our PropTrack Home Price Index Tracker for the other side of the pair.
Cotality vs PropTrack — July 2026 Monthly Change
For the first time in this downturn the two major indices agree on direction almost everywhere — both have every eastern capital falling. The one remaining sign disagreement is Perth (Cotality +0.1%, PropTrack –0.2%), and Cotality revised its own June Perth read down 120bp, so treat Perth as flat-at-best until the next prints.
Source: Cotality (formerly CoreLogic) Home Value Index, July 2026 (released 3 August 2026). PropTrack Home Price Index, June 2026.
Housing Chart Pack Highlights (May 2026 Edition, April Data)
Cotality's monthly Chart Pack puts the HVI price series in context — market size, listings, credit and rentals. The headline figures from the latest pack:
- Total residential market value $12.6 trillion across 11.5 million dwellings; housing holds 55.8% of household wealth against $2.6 trillion in mortgage debt.
- Capital-city divergence hit 24 percentage points — the widest in Cotality's modern dataset: Perth +26.0% annually vs Melbourne +2.0%.
- National gross rental yield 3.59%, up from the 3.55% cycle low — the first cyclical yield expansion, confirmed before prices even turned.
- Investor share of new lending 39.7% vs a 33.5% decade average, with APRA's high-DTI benchmark (20% cap on ≥6× DTI lending) live since 1 February 2026.
- New listings +22.4% year-on-year in the four weeks to 3 May — vendors arriving as clearances fall.
Annual Growth by Capital — the 24-Point Divergence
Annual dwelling-value growth to April 2026, from the May Housing Chart Pack: Perth (+26.0%) to Melbourne (+2.0%) is the widest capital-city spread in Cotality's modern dataset. These are rear-view annual numbers — the monthly chart above shows the momentum turn.
Source: Cotality Monthly Housing Chart Pack, May 2026 edition (April 2026 data).
What This Means for Investors — Our Analysis
- This is a genuine turning point, and it has broadened. Four straight monthly falls with widening breadth is a trend; an index roughly 1.4% below peak with no forced-selling signal is still not a crash. The base case remains a grind of negative monthly prints while rates stay at 4.35%.
- Buyer leverage now extends well beyond Sydney and Melbourne. With Brisbane, Adelaide and the east-coast regions falling too — and upper-quartile values down 3.2% in a quarter — anchor offers to recent comparable sales, not asking prices or annual growth figures.
- Yields keep expanding. Combined-capital gross yields reached 3.50% in July, up from December's 3.34% low. For yield-led and SMSF buyers, falling values against firm rents is a materially better entry than the growth-at-any-yield market of 2024–25. Model a specific property with our rental yield calculator.
- The boom capitals have turned. Brisbane and Adelaide posted second consecutive monthly falls in July, and Perth is flat at best after its June reading was revised negative. Their double-digit annual figures describe growth that has already happened — an offer priced off the annual column pays for momentum that no longer exists.
- The RBA is the master variable. This is a borrowing-capacity squeeze at a held-restrictive 4.35%, and every major recovery forecast keys off the first cut (widely expected 2027). The hike tail risk has largely been priced out since the June-quarter CPI; the grind scenario is the one to plan around.
Monthly Editions — Full Analysis Archive
National −0.7%, the largest monthly fall since December 2022; Brisbane, Adelaide and the regions join the decline while the upper quartile drops 3.2% in a quarter.
National −0.4%, then the biggest monthly fall since December 2022; Sydney and Melbourne lead down.
Perth +26.0% vs Melbourne +2.0%; all eight capitals easing; yields expanding for the first time this cycle.
Fastest annual pace since June 2022 — but clearances at their lowest since July 2022.
National +0.8% at the boom's crest — the last strong print before the March peak.
Related: Buy vs rent — the Cotality data that surprises everyone.
Methodology
How the Cotality Home Value Index works: a daily-updated hedonic index of Australian dwelling values — it controls for the attributes of what actually sold (land size, bedrooms, location), so a change in the mix of sales doesn't masquerade as a change in values, which is why it can diverge from raw medians. It captures roughly the full universe of transactions and is the earliest broad read on price direction, turning ahead of the ABS quarterly index. Release timing: the monthly HVI lands on the first business day of each month covering the prior month; the Housing Chart Pack follows mid-month.
Rebrand note: Cotality is the company formerly known as CoreLogic — same index, same methodology, same history under a new name. vs PropTrack: PropTrack (REA Group) runs a monthly hedonically adjusted automated-valuation model on the realestate.com.au listings ecosystem; Cotality's practical strength is the longest like-for-like history and daily granularity, PropTrack's is listings depth and buyer-behaviour signal.
Sources
- Cotality, Home Value Index — July 2026 (released 3 August 2026) — cotality.com.au
- Cotality, Home Value Index — June 2026: “Housing market downturn deepens as demand headwinds build” (released ~1 July 2026)
- Cotality, Monthly Housing Chart Pack, May 2026 edition (April 2026 data, Daily HVI to 8 May 2026)
- Cotality, Home Value Index, February 2026 (archive context)
- PropTrack, Home Price Index, July 2026 — cross-check figures via our PropTrack HPI Tracker
- RBA cash rate decisions, 2026 (held at 4.35%); SQM Research national vacancy, June 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes — CoreLogic rebranded to Cotality. The Home Value Index, its methodology and its full history are unchanged; it's the dataset investors, lenders and the RBA still reflexively call "CoreLogic".
The first business day of each month, covering the prior month — the August 2026 HVI is expected around 1 September 2026. The Housing Chart Pack follows mid-month. This tracker is updated within days of each release.
On the July 2026 HVI, yes — nationally −0.7%, the steepest monthly fall since December 2022 and the fourth consecutive decline since the March 2026 peak. The fall has broadened: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Canberra and the combined regionals all fell in July; only Perth, Hobart and Darwin held positive.
The HVI is the price index itself. The Chart Pack is the monthly compendium around it — market size, listings, days on market, credit mix, rents, yields and a thematic chart of the month. Prices, versus prices in context.
They are independent indices: Cotality runs a daily hedonic index on a near-universal sales and valuation database; PropTrack (REA Group) runs a monthly hedonically adjusted automated-valuation model on the realestate.com.au listings ecosystem. They usually agree on direction but differ on magnitude by 20–40 basis points per city per month.
The Bottom Line
The Cotality index confirms Australia's housing market peaked in March 2026 and the decline is now broad rather than two-city — July's –0.7% was the sharpest monthly fall since December 2022, with Brisbane, Adelaide and the regions joining Sydney and Melbourne while upper-quartile values fell 3.2% in a quarter. Yet the index remains only modestly below peak and yields keep expanding, so this is a cycle phase that rewards patience and segment selection: negotiating leverage in most capitals, the affordable tier holding, and the best income arithmetic since 2023. The 11 August RBA decision sets the near-term tone; the next HVI (~1 September) shows whether July's breadth holds up to revision.
Disclaimer
This page is general information only and does not constitute financial or tax advice. Consider your circumstances and seek professional advice before acting.
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