Australian property sellers continued to see strong gains in the June quarter, although the rate of profit-making resales eased slightly from the start of the year.
Cotality's Q2 2025 Pain & Gain report analysed approximately 97,000 resales over the period, revealing 94.8% of transactions recorded a nominal gain in the three months to June.
While still above the decade average of 91.5%, this marks a slight decline from 95.0% of resales in the March quarter.
Cotality’s Head of Research Eliza Owen said despite the slight dip in profitability, the median nominal gain from resales rose to a new record high, while median losses shrank.
“Across all profit-making resales nationally, we saw a median nominal gain of $315,000 for sellers recorded in the June quarter. This was a record high, up from $305,000 in the previous quarter, and the decade average of $250,000.
“Meanwhile, the national median loss fell to $42,000, down from $44,000 in the March quarter and a high of $45,000 in the December quarter of last year.”
More sellers incurred losses despite stronger selling conditions
The proportion of loss-making sales increased to 5.2% in the June quarter, up from 5.0% in March quarter.
Almost 60% of that increase came from resales of Sydney and Melbourne units, which totalled about 2,500 transactions sold at a loss.
Ms Owen said the rise in loss-making activity in these areas reflects a combination of factors.
“Many of these losses are concentrated in markets that still haven’t returned to their peak values. The top ten markets for loss-making resales accounted for a third of all losses in the quarter, compared to one quarter over the decade average.
“Some owners may also be cutting their losses as conditions improve, choosing to sell after holding for long periods.”
Ms Owen, however, also noted the trend may already be shifting.
“Between June and August of this year, the likelihood of a loss-making resale has broadly reduced as national home values rose 1.3%, and fewer markets at the suburb-level recorded quarterly falls across Australia,” she said.
NSW dominates list of most profitable markets
Over the June quarter, New South Wales (NSW) accounted for six of the top ten most profitable Local Government Areas (LGAs) in the country by median gains.
In Kiama, on the NSW South Coast, vendors recorded a median nominal gain of $758,000, with sellers holding on for a period of almost 12 years. Over that time, the median dwelling value in the Kiama LGA has increased by 120%.
Woollahra Council in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs also ranked among the top ten, recording a median nominal gain of $575,000. The council area spans from Paddington to Watsons Bay in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs, with pockets containing some of the most prestigious housing markets in the country.
Regional markets maintain edge but gap narrows
Regional Australia has continued to outperform capital cities in terms of profitability, a trend now sustained for more than five years. In the June quarter, 96.4% of regional resales made a nominal gain, compared with 93.9% in capital cities.
Of the regional LGA markets analysed, 62 recorded a 100% rate of profit-making resales led by regional South Australia. Only nine capital city LGA markets saw 100% profitability, six of which were in Adelaide.
Ms Owen said the gap in profitability between capital cities and regions continued to narrow in the June quarter.
“The difference in the rate of profit-making sales between capital cities and regions fell 250 basis points in the June quarter, down from 270 basis points in March and a high of 340 basis points in early 2023.
“In the three months to August, capital city values rose 1.9%, overtaking the 1.6% rise in regional Australia, pointing to a further narrowing ahead.”
Across the capital cities, Brisbane had the highest rate of profit-making sales at 99.7%, as well as the highest nominal gain from resale at $400,000. This was followed by a 99.1% rate of profit in Adelaide and 98.0% across Perth.
At the other end of the spectrum, Darwin had the highest rate of loss-making sales (20.6%) but had the biggest improvement in the rate of profitability amid recent capital gains. Melbourne had the next-highest rate of loss-making sales at 10.6%, followed by Sydney (7.7%), Hobart (7.2%) and the ACT (6.7%).
Key findings for Pain & Gain, June Quarter 2025
- Profitability fell quarter-on-quarter: The portion of profit-making resales eased from 95.0% of resales in the March quarter to 94.8% in the three months to June, but remains above the decade average of 91.5%.
- Despite the rate of profitability declining, the median nominal gain from resales rose to a record $315,000, and the median loss declined to $42,000.
- The highest nominal gain of LGA markets across Australia was in the sea-change region of Kiama along the south coast of NSW, with a median gross resale profit of $758,000.
- The combined value of gains in the June quarter was $36.6 billion, up from $33.3 billion in the March quarter and $33.8 billion a year ago. However, in line with the lift in loss-making resales, the combined loss for sellers deepened to $292 million, from $265 million in the previous quarter.
- Brisbane was the most profitable of the capital cities for the third consecutive financial quarter, with 99.7% of resales making a nominal gain. Brisbane sellers also saw the highest median nominal gain of $400,000.
- Houses continued to outperform units in the June 2025 quarter, with 97.2% of house resales delivering a profit, compared to 89.8% of unit sales.
- The rate of nominal gains in regional Australia continued to outpace the capitals, but the difference is narrowing. Of the regional resales, 96.4% made a nominal gain, down from 96.6% in the previous quarter. The combined capitals had a steady rate of profitability over the quarter at 93.9%.
- Hold periods fell slightly for resales in June, to 8.7 years. Two-to-four year hold periods were the most common at 15.3% of resales, incurring higher-than average loss, but still decent nominal resales gains of $175,000.
