More Australians are making money selling property, according to the latest data, with the housing market continuing to show strength despite the highest interest rates in a decade.

CoreLogic figures published on Tuesday revealed that about 94 per cent of the 90,000 property resales over the December quarter were profitable even as rates squeezed buyers.

And the median gross profit of the sales was a whopping $310,000, showing how thousands are cashing in on rising property prices over the past year across most major city markets.

CoreLogic’s head of research Eliza Owens said there have also been fewer short-term, loss-making sales, which is a good sign that mortgage stress isn’t driving a spike in stress sales.

“The improvement in the key metrics of this report really highlight the improving profitability in the housing market since the recovery trend began in early 2023,” Owen said.

“We’ve observed a decline in the number of loss-making sales, which fell to just 5500 during the December quarter, even as overall transaction volumes increased.”

Source: CoreLogic (click to enlarge).

Hottest areas

Across Australia, Adelaide was the most profitable capital city market, with more than 98 per cent of resales resulting in a nominal gain for the owner.

The hottest suburb was Campbelltown, where no loss-making sales were recorded and a median profit of $291,500 was posted.

Brisbane was the next strongest capital besides Adelaide, with 97.4 per cent of sales being profitable and the region of Somerset recording no loss-making sales on a median profit of $269,000.

About 96.4 per cent of sales in Canberra resulted in a profit for the owner, with a median profit higher than most other capital cities at a whopping $321,165.

Hobart saw 96.3 per cent of sales end in a nominal profit over the period, with the town of Sorell recording no loss-making sales on a median profit of $290,000.

Across the larger capitals, Sydney posted 91.9 per cent of sales as profitable, while Melbourne scored 91.1 per cent – demonstrating recent rises in property values.

The hottest areas in Sydney were the Blue Mountains, where 98.3 per cent of sales were in the black at a median profit of $439,500, and the Northern Beaches, where median profits were $500,000.

The Melbourne suburb of Nillumbik performed particularly strongly down south, with 98.1 per cent of sales ending in a profit (median: $540,000), while the Yarra Ranges recorded a median profit of $400,000 on 98.1 per cent of sales in the area over the December quarter.

Houses outpace units

Interestingly, the latest CoreLogic figures also show a marked difference in profitability between units and houses.

Almost all (97 per cent) of house sales were profitable during the quarter, but only 88.2 per cent of units recorded a nominal gain over the same period.

CoreLogic researchers said the reason comes down to different capital gains trends across both markets, with housing outpacing units over the recent market upswing over 2023.

Between July 2020 and April 2022 house values shot up 38.3 per cent, compared to a smaller 17.1 per cent lift in units, CoreLogic said.

“This may be put down to some pandemic-related factors, including higher demand for outer-suburban and regional housing which happens to have a higher portion of house stock, as well as an increase in remote work and hybrid work trends, necessitating more space,” CoreLogic said in its report.