Which WA regional markets are gaining steam?

Five of Western Australia's nine regional centres recorded stellar gains in sales activity during the September quarter, according to recent figures from the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia (REIWA).

Recording an 85% quarterly growth in sales activity was Karratha, which also witnessed a 1.3% gain in median house price to $350,000.

"This can be attributed to an increase of jobs in the area, with existing companies expanding their workforce and new companies needing accommodation for their workers in the area. It is pleasing to see the Karratha region starting to strengthen and hopefully, we will continue to see an upward trend," said REIWA Deputy President Lisa Joyce.

From a rental perspective, Karratha properties remained in demand — leasing activity went down by 27% while weekly median rents jumped by $68.

Port Hedland and Broome also posted robust increases in sales volume during the quarter, with the former hitting the highest growth in median house prices to $236,500.

The last two regional areas to report double-digit gains in sales activity were Geraldton and Kalgoorlie-Boulder. However, the sales growth in these two regional markets did not translate to an increase in median house prices.

Of the regional centres, Albany, Bunbury, Busselton and Esperance recorded a decline in sales activity.

"Although Albany and Bunbury's median price were down for the quarter, the average discount on original price and number of days to sell has improved which suggests sellers are listening to the advice from their agents by pricing their properties in-line with market expectations," Joyce said.

The table below shows the changes in median house price and sales activity in Western Australia's regional centres: