MNI:CoreLogic: Australia House Value Down On Sydney, Melbourne

     SYDNEY (MNI) - Australian dwelling values fell in December, contributing to

the first quarterly drop in values since early 2016 and raising worries about

the prospects for household consumption, a  key condition for the Reserve Bank

of Australia to meet its growth and inflation forecasts for the economy.

     Data published by CoreLogic Tuesday showed dwelling values fell 0.3% m/m in

December, leading to a 0.3% q/q fall in the fourth quarter, the first quarterly

fall since the three-month period to April 2016.

     The monthly fall was mainly due to faster rate of decline in Sydney housing

prices, which dropped for the fourth straight month, and also due to fall in

Melbourne prices. The annual price growth of 3.1% in Sydney is a stark contrast

to annual rise of 17.1% only seven months ago.

     Melbourne recorded the first m/m fall since February 2016, with the annual

growth of 8.9% falling below double digits for the first time in eleven months.

     According to CoreLogic's head of research Tim Lawless, "In 2018, the

housing market performance is likely to be significantly different relative to

previous years. We're likely to see lower to negative growth rates across

previously strong markets, more cautious buyers, and ongoing regulator vigilance

of credit standards and investor activity."

     National dwelling values from CoreLogic Hedonic Home Value Index for

December published Tuesday:

                       December      December      December

-----------------------------------------------------------

                   % change m/m  % change q/q  % change y/y

National                   -0.3          -0.3          +4.2

Combined Capitals          -0.4          -0.5          +4.3

Sydney                     -0.9          -2.1          +3.1

Melbourne                  -0.2          +0.9          +8.9

Brisbane                    0.0          +0.3          +2.4

Adelaide                   +0.2          +0.3          +3.0

Perth                      -0.1          +0.1          -2.3

Hobart                     +1.5          +3.1         +12.3

Darwin                     -0.9          -2.9          -6.5

Canberra                   +0.2          +1.0          +4.9

--MNI Sydney Bureau; tel: +61 2-9716-5467; email: sophia.rodrigues@marketnews.com

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