Canberra's $365,000 house-unit price gap squeezes first-home buyers

The gap between Canberra’s median house price and the median unit price has hit a record $368,000, the widest spread in the capital’s history, as soaring land values and chronic undersupply push detached homes beyond the reach of many buyers.

ACT government data released on Wednesday shows the median house price finished the June quarter at $835,000, while units sat at $467,000. That’s a divergence of 44 per cent, up from 38 per cent a year ago and well above the long-run average of 30 per cent.

The trend matters because it’s reshaping who can buy what, and where. First-home buyers who once targeted suburbs like Gungahlin or Belconnen are now being priced out of houses entirely, with many turning to apartments as their only way into the market.

“The gap is not just about price, it’s about access to land,” said a domain economist who analyses the Canberra market. “When the premium on a house over a unit is this high, it changes the whole incentive structure for developers and buyers alike.”

Where the divergence is most acute

The split is sharpest in established inner suburbs. In Braddon, the median house price has climbed to $1.12 million, while units sit at $490,000, a $630,000 gap. In Kingston, the delta is even bigger: houses at $1.3 million vs units at $465,000.

Even in newer growth corridors the pattern holds. In Gungahlin’s Palmerston, the median house is $755,000; the median unit is $402,000. In Belconnen’s Macquarie, houses fetch $810,000 while units are $420,000.

The ACT’s supply targets aren’t helping. The government’s Indicative Land Release Program for 2025-26 slated 3,000 new dwellings, but only 2,100 were actually released, and of those, just 300 were for detached houses. The rest were multi-unit blocks, mainly in town centres like Gungahlin and Woden.

“We are building more apartments than ever, but they are not substitutes for houses for families who want a backyard,” said the chief executive of the ACT branch of the Property Council, who cited the gap as a key reason why the city’s auction clearance rate has hovered around 65 per cent for the past four months.

What it means for buyers and sellers

For sellers, the divergence is a double-edged sword. House owners can command strong premiums, but they often find themselves competing for a shrinking pool of buyers who can still afford a detached home. Unit owners, meanwhile, are seeing slower price growth, Canberra’s median unit price has risen just 3.1 per cent in the past year, compared with 7.2 per cent for houses.

For buyers, the message is clear: if you want a house, you will need to stretch further or look further out. Suburbs like Banks, Gordon and Conder in Tuggeranong still offer houses under $700,000, but commute times to Civic push past 30 minutes.

The ACT government’s new Housing Strategy, released in April 2026, aims to lift supply across all typologies. It includes a target to release 5,000 dwellings annually by 2028, with a focus on medium-density projects along the light rail corridor. But critics say it lacks specifics on how to narrow the house-unit gap.

One practical lever is the stamp duty concession, which for first-home buyers on properties under $577,500 means they can avoid the tax entirely. That threshold was lifted in February 2026, and it’s why apartments in places like Belconnen’s Emu Bank precinct are now selling faster than any other product type.

Real Estate Institute of Australia data shows that in the June quarter, the median time on market for units was 34 days, 11 days faster than for houses. That’s a sign the market is adjusting, even if prices aren’t.

“The divergence is the single biggest structural challenge for Canberra’s housing market right now,” the ACT Property Council chief said. “Until we unlock more land for detached housing, the price gap will only get wider.”

For now, the path ahead looks set: more apartments, fewer houses, and a market where the word ‘affordable’ increasingly refers to a unit, not a home with a yard.