Australia is officially a nation of $1m homes after a “scary” $70,000 jump in the lucky country’s typical house price over the past financial year.

New figures from the Real Estate Institute of Australia that aggregate the median price across the eight capital cities reached $1.049m at the end of June.

REIA is the first major data provider to indicate a national median above $1m. PropTrack’s Home Price Index valued the median house across the Australian capitals at $974,000 in August, and CoreLogic has the combined capitals at $997,352.

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But industry experts say while it’s great news for those who own, it’s a grim milestone for those still hoping to purchase.

The REIA Market Facts Report released Friday recorded a more than $68,000 (7 per cent) increase in the Australia-wide median house price over the past financial year, taking it past the $1m mark from $980,500 in June 2023.

The figure has long been by ultra-high prices in Sydney, where a typical stand-alone home now costs $1,662,500 — up 7.8 per cent from $1,542,200 over the past financial year.

But the biggest driver of the national increase was in once-affordable cities including Brisbane, up 14.1 per cent to $880,000, Perth, up a whopping 26.7 per cent to $735,000, and Adelaide, up 13.2 per cent to $787,000.

Sydney is the nation’s priciest housing market and has played a significant role in Australia reaching a $1m median house price.

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There was a more modest uptick in Hobart, where there was a 0.7 per cent lift to $735,000, and a similarly small growth of 0.4 per cent in Darwin to $567,000.

Melbourne’s median house price fell 3.5 per cent over the timeline to $911,500, while the nation’s capital and second-priciest property market, Canberra, recorded a 3.1 per cent decline to $945,000.

REIA president Leanne Pilkington said the national figure topping $1m was not a good thing from an affordability perspective.

“We need 48 per cent of family income for an average mortgage across the country, but in Sydney that is 58 per cent,” Ms Pilkington said.

She warned that there was only one solution to the rising median: building more homes.

“The government do understand that, but they need targets that they can actually achieve,” Ms Pilkington said.

Real Estate Institute of Australia president Leanne Pilkington.

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With the nation’s population increasing significantly after the pandemic, the current supply under construction and the number being approved has raised concerns from developers and real estate professionals.

Real Estate Buyers Agents Association of Australia president Melinda Jennison said the more than $1m figure was no surprise after years of strong home price growth, even with Melbourne in decline, the numbers were still concerning.

“It’s a scary thought for anyone who is wanting to buy into the market,” Ms Jennison said.

“And we need to be aware that property is a lot more expensive and incomes have not moved as significantly.”

While seven-figure prices are not as common at the macro-level within cities, Ms Jennison said the broad increase in house prices came with a major pitfall for those yet to buy a home.

Australia’s typical house price has hit $1m.

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“It’s going to take people much longer to save a deposit,” she said.

“And it reinforces the requirement for a lot of people to start with an entry-level home that’s more likely a unit or townhouse.”

She added that for many buyers the increasing price meant they were having to compromise on either size or location.

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