Australian home price gains ease as Sydney cools, Melbourne falls

Australian property prices have generally defied the Reserve Bank of Australia’s restrictive monetary policy. — Reuters

SYDNEY: Australian house-price growth slowed in July as elevated borrowing costs and stubbornly sticky inflation weighed on demand, with Melbourne declining for a fourth consecutive month.

Market bellwether Sydney advanced 0.3%, taking its median home value to a record high A$1.17mil or about US$780,000, property consultancy CoreLogic Inc said yesterday.