Australia’s equity surge: Record profits highlight unprecedented property wealth
Nicola Powell
Domain, a CoStar Group (NASDAQ: CSGP) leading online residential marketplace, has revealed Australian homeowners are in their strongest financial position to date, as national median resale profits reach new record highs.
For the first time in 15 years, over 90% of house resales in every capital city have turned a profit, according to Domain’s latest Profit and Loss Report. These persistent and widespread gains are driving a wave of upgrades and intergenerational wealth transfers, in turn sustaining strong demand and price growth in the property market.
This accumulated wealth is acting as a financial shield for a significant proportion of the population, while first-home buyers and recent entrants to the market continue to face affordability hurdles and interest rate uncertainty.
Key findings:
-
Record gains are widespread:
-
In the second half of 2025, 97.5% of house resales and 88.3% of unit resales across Australia delivered a profit.
-
Record median profits were seen for Sydney houses ($750,000); Brisbane houses ($580,000) and units ($325,000); Adelaide houses ($539,500) and units ($290,000); Perth houses ($528,000) and units ($226,050) (Tables 1 and 2).
-
-
The rising middle market:
-
Profitability is not confined to prestige areas; many established, family-oriented suburban middle-ring markets recorded near-universal gains, demonstrating the market’s strong growth at every price point.
-
-
Sydney leads in equity levels:
-
-
Sydney’s annual median profits rose by 11.1%, and the city holds the largest levels of housing equity due to higher price points and longer holding periods. In high-value markets like the Eastern Suburbs, the median house resale profit reached a massive $2.77 million.
-
-
Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide lead in wealth expansion:
-
-
Brisbane and Perth recorded the highest proportion of profit-making house resales (99.5%). The annual change in median profits was also up by 22.9% in Brisbane and 25.7% in Perth, the highest changes nationally (Table 1).
-
Adelaide followed closely, with 98.2% of house resales making a profit and median profits up 15.5% annually.
-
The record high profits across Adelaide, Brisbane and Perth reflect the steady growth and equity accumulation seen in these cities since 2021, supported by strong migration flows and constrained supply.
-
-
Melbourne, Canberra, Hobart and Darwin cool:
-
-
While still recording high levels of profitable resales, Melbourne, Canberra, Hobart and Darwin’s profit shares were lower compared to other capitals, and median profits in these cities were lower relative to four years ago.
-
Canberra was the only capital city to record an annual decline in the share of profit-making resales, reflecting softer price growth.
-
Domain’s Chief of Research and Economics, Dr Nicola Powell, said: “The extraordinary capital growth in Australia’s property market is moving into homeowners’ pockets at unprecedented levels as more households turn a profit.
“As homeowners stay put for longer, they are seeing their equity build up over multiple price cycles. This widespread profitability has given many Australians a strong financial safety net and access to continue to ‘climb the ladder’, while providing a buffer against pressures such as rising interest rates and inflation.
“However, the sheer size of these profits is creating a wider gap between established owners and those attempting to enter the market, making it increasingly difficult for younger Australians to buy property without the support of intergenerational wealth. With record median profits in many of our cities and regions, the barrier to entry is increasingly defined by existing family equity, rather than individual savings alone.”
