Perth homes sell at record speed as listings plunge and prices rise

Perth’s housing market continued to tighten in September 2025, with homes selling faster than almost anywhere else in the country, as a low number of listings and high demand fuelled competition among buyers.

The strong demand has seen dwelling price growth re-accelerate in the last three months, with Cotality reporting the median home added 4% in value - or $33,000 - just between the 1st of July and the end of September.

The renewed momentum in the WA capital again calls into question the claim made by a number of so-called property experts that Perth is “cooked” in terms of an investment destination that offers little further price growth.

The details

According to the latest data from the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia, the median time to sell a house in Perth fell to just eight days in September 2025. 

That’s two days faster than in August and three days faster than a year ago. 

Units were only slightly slower to move, taking a median of just nine days to sell.

The Institute’s President, Suzanne Brown, says a combination of fewer homes for sale, strong buyer demand and sellers holding off until they can secure their next property has created a rapid-paced market.

“If you are wanting to secure a new home in Greater Perth in the present market, whether a house or a unit, it is important you have the ability to make a quick decision,” she says.

“That means consistently looking, potentially widening your search criteria to include other suburb options, and having your finances organised.”

Ms Brown says the speed of sales was especially evident in more affordable suburbs, with five of Perth’s ten fastest-selling suburbs sitting below the city’s median house price, which REIWA calculates as $810,000.

“Of our 10 fastest-selling suburbs, five are priced below the median house sale price and another three are priced just above.

“These suburbs are selling in four or five days,” she says.

“Buyers need to be ready to act when they find a property they like.

“This means having your finances in order and gaining pre-approval so you can make a confident offer.”

REIWA says the fastest-selling suburbs in September 2025 were Girrawheen (four days), followed by Langford, Kewdale, Quinns Rocks, Huntingdale, Cooloongup and Bassendean (five days). 

Prices continue to climb

REIWA says tight supply and brisk sales activity pushed Perth’s median house price to a new high of $810,000, up 1.3% over the month and 13.3% higher than a year earlier.

Unit prices also gained ground, rising 1.4% to a new record median price of $560,000 - a jump of nearly 18% year-on-year.

At the end of September 2025, REIWA says there were 2,801 active property listings in Perth - 6% lower than in August and almost 30% down on the same time last year.

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Perth’s rental market remains tight

While the median dwelling rent held steady at $680 per week in September, REIWA figures show rents remain 4.6% higher than a year ago.

Houses recorded a median rent of $695, down slightly over the month but still nearly 7% higher than in 2024. 

Units rose to $663 per week, up 1.9% in September and an astonishing 10.4% year-on-year.

Rents climbed fastest in the suburbs of Claremont (up 6.2% to $850), Rivervale and South Perth (both up 4.3% to $730), Forrestfield (up 3% to $690) and Dianella (up 2.9% to $700).

Rental listings fell 6.3% over the month to 2,093 properties, though they remain slightly higher than a year ago.

“The decrease in rental listings from August to September is in line with a tightening in rental conditions we tend to see at the end of each year,” Ms Brown says.

Leasing times were unchanged at 16 days.

SQM Research says Perth’s vacancy rate was only 0.7% in August, indicating a rental market heavily weighted in favour of landlords.

A figure of 3% is unusually indicative of a “balanced” market, where prospective tenants have a decent range of properties to choose from, with landlords still able to charge market rents without heavy discounting. 

Cotality figures indicate the median gross rental yield in Perth remains solid at 4.2%.

Among the capital cities, only Hobart and Darwin offer better yields - a function of their cheaper median dwelling prices. 

The outlook

CommSec’s latest quarterly “State of the States” report saw Western Australia top the rankings again for the fourth straight quarter.

Australia's largest online stockbroker says WA is Australia’s best-performing economy, faring particularly strongly on retail spending and equipment investment.

The state is also experiencing the highest absolute rate of population growth in the country at a time of chronic housing undersupply. 

Real Estate Institute of Western Australia President Suzanne Brown says the coming months could see more price movement as first-home buyers in the state respond to changes in government incentives.

“We see October being an active month in the market, with the arrival of sunny weekends, and changes to the first-home buyer guarantee coming into play,” she says.

“It’s too soon to say if this is going to be a typical Spring.

“New listings are rising a little, but we are not yet seeing a big uplift in the number of homes offered for sale.”

The signs are clear.

The renewed momentum in Perth’s housing market looks set to continue.

The WA capital is anything but “cooked”.