Australian home sellers are achieving profitable outcomes at the highest rate seen in nearly twenty years, according to new analysis from Investor Partner Group. While the national picture reflects strong gains, the data also highlights ongoing underperformance in select high-density apartment markets.
Investor Partner Group’s review of September-quarter resale data shows that 95.5 per cent of homes sold for more than their previous purchase price, up from 94.9 per cent in the June quarter. This marks the strongest profitability result since mid-2005.
The improvement was also reflected in dollar terms, with the median resale gain rising to $335,000, compared with $315,000 in the prior quarter.
📊 Median Gain on Resold Homes ($)
Median resale profits rose quarter-on-quarter, reaching the highest level seen in nearly two decades.
Moxin Reza of Investor Partner Group said rising property values through 2025 continued to underpin resale outcomes.
“As prices move higher, the likelihood of sellers achieving a gain naturally increases,” Reza said. “That relationship is especially clear in markets where supply has remained tight.”
Houses Continue to Outperform Units
The data shows a widening gap between detached houses and apartments. About 97.9 per cent of house resales delivered a profit, compared with 90.6 per cent of unit resales, reinforcing the stronger performance of low-density housing.
Profitability also varied by city. Brisbane house sellers recorded the strongest results, with almost all resales making a gain. Perth and Sydney followed closely, while Melbourne lagged slightly but still recorded a high success rate for houses.
The contrast was sharper in unit markets.
📊 Profit-Making Unit Resales by City (%)
Brisbane remains the strongest unit market, while Melbourne records the weakest profit outcomes among major capitals.
Only 80.5 per cent of Melbourne unit sellers made a profit, the weakest result of any capital city apart from Darwin. Sydney unit sellers fared better, with 88.1 per cent recording gains, while Brisbane’s unit market remained the strongest nationally.
Perth’s Recovery Highlights Market Shifts
Reza said Perth stood out for the scale and speed of its recovery.
“Five years ago, barely half of resales in Perth were profitable,” he said. “Today it is close to universal, which reflects how quickly conditions can change when demand strengthens and stock is absorbed.”
He added that Melbourne’s unit market had also improved modestly after a prolonged period of weakness, easing the share of loss-making sales from peaks seen earlier in 2025.
Losses Concentrated in High-Density Areas
Despite the strong national picture, losses remain heavily concentrated in inner-city and high-density neighbourhoods.
In the Melbourne City Council area, 45.5 per cent of homes sold in the September quarter were resold at a loss, the highest share in the city. Stonnington and Port Phillip followed.
📊 Share of Loss-Making Resales in Selected LGAs (%)
Loss-making resales remain concentrated in inner-city, high-density local government areas.
Reza said Melbourne unit values have risen about 2.7 per cent so far this year, supported by lower interest rates and renewed investor interest, particularly where rental yields are approaching 7 per cent.
In Sydney, Parramatta recorded the highest share of loss-making sales at 24.1 per cent, followed by Strathfield and Ryde. Reza said these markets had largely moved sideways after a period of heavy apartment construction.
Legacy of the Apartment Boom
Investor Partner Group’s analysis found that unit losses were concentrated in five local government areas: Melbourne, Parramatta, Port Phillip, Sydney and Stonnington. Together, they accounted for more than one-third of all loss-making unit resales, despite recent improvement.
Reza said the pattern reflects the legacy of the off-the-plan apartment boom of the 2010s, which added significant supply just as investor demand was constrained by tighter lending standards and reduced foreign buying.
Outlook: A Divided Market
Looking ahead, Reza expects the market to remain split between long-term owners and more recent buyers.
“With prices at record levels, future growth is likely to be more restrained,” he said. “Recent buyers are carrying more risk if they need to sell in the short term, while many of the strongest gains have already been realised by long-term owners.”
PRD chief economist Diaswati Mardiasmo said apartments continue to face a fundamentally different supply dynamic than houses.
“The supply of new houses is very limited,” she said. “Apartments, by contrast, can be approved and delivered in large volumes.”
She added that losses were more common in areas dominated by one- and two-bedroom units.
“When most of the stock is smaller apartments, sellers face more pressure on price,” she said. “Larger units tend to be scarcer and hold their value better.”