The Western Australian property market is set for another pivotal year, with experts predicting that affordability, accessibility, and the availability of homes will be the dominant forces shaping outcomes in 2026. According to Real Estate Institute of WA (REIWA) President Suzanne Brown, these three factors will interact to determine price growth and market activity across the state.
Affordability Pressures Intensify After Strong Growth
The market enters 2026 on the back of several years of remarkable price increases. In Perth, the median house sale price surged by 25 per cent in 2024, followed by a further 12 per cent rise over 2025. The unit market saw even sharper growth, with median prices climbing 21.7 per cent in 2024 and 18 per cent last year.
This sustained growth has created significant hurdles for those trying to enter the market. First home buyers now face the dual challenge of saving a much larger deposit and securing a bigger loan. Similarly, existing homeowners looking to upgrade are forced to take on substantially larger mortgages. Typically, such affordability constraints would dampen demand and slow price growth, but other powerful factors are currently at play.
Government Schemes Boost Accessibility and Demand
A range of state and federal government initiatives aim to ease the path to home ownership, directly impacting market accessibility. These include the $10,000 First Home Owner Grant (FHOG), the First Home Super Saver Scheme, and the Australian Government's 5% Deposit Scheme. The state's Keystart program offers low-deposit loans and shared equity options, while stamp duty concessions are also available for eligible first-time buyers.
"These schemes make home ownership more accessible, for example by reducing purchase costs or the need to spend years saving a large deposit," noted Suzanne Brown. However, she highlighted a critical side effect: by improving accessibility, these measures also bring demand forward. This can create or maintain upward pressure on prices, which in the current climate is supporting existing strong price growth.
Brown also pointed out the checks and balances within many schemes, such as price caps and eligibility rules tied to new builds, which temper their overall impact on demand.
Critical Shortage of Available Listings
The third and perhaps most immediate driver for 2026 is the stark lack of properties available for purchase. While homes sold rapidly in recent years, keeping stock levels low, the last six months have seen a more severe downturn. New listings in the established homes market have fallen significantly below long-term averages.
Demand, by contrast, has remained exceptionally high. A resurgence of 'fear-of-missing-out' (FOMO) sentiment in late 2025 led to fierce competition for available stock. This imbalance caused active listings to plummet to below 2000 by the end of December.
"This lack of supply is also driving price growth, and unless conditions change, we can expect this to continue into 2026," Brown stated. The combination of strong demand fueled by accessibility measures and a critically tight supply pipeline suggests that affordability challenges are likely to persist as the defining feature of the WA property market in the year ahead.
