Brisbane Joins Sydney as Australia’s Second Million-Dollar Housing Market

Brisbane’s median house price has surged past the A$1 million mark for the first time on record, positioning it as Australia’s only other capital city alongside Sydney to reach this milestone. This landmark reflects broader national housing shifts driven by population flows, constrained supply, and rising demand.

According to recent data from CoreLogic, Brisbane’s median house price was A$1,006,000 in May 2025, up from A$996,000 in April and A$942,000 a year earlier. It continued to rise to A$1,011,000 in June 2025. This achievement places Brisbane firmly in the “million-dollar club,” joining Sydney and now reflecting a two-city national milestone.

Brisbane had already been Australia’s second most expensive property market for nine consecutive months—trailing only Sydney—and ahead of both Melbourne and Canberra since mid‑2024. While Sydney still leads by a significant margin—Brisbane’s median remains A$549,000 below Sydney’s median, though this gap has narrowed slightly—Brisbane also surpasses Melbourne by A$63,000 and Canberra by A$30,000.

Cotality attributes much of Brisbane’s property surge to robust interstate migration. The city’s population grew by 9.2% (approximately 235,000 people) from June 2020 to June 2024—well above the national average of 6%. This influx—which is driven by Brisbane’s appealing lifestyle and relatively lower cost of living—has significantly boosted housing demand.

Over the past five years (June 2020 to June 2025), Brisbane home values have increased by 76.1%, one of the strongest rates nationally. Nonetheless, growth is moderating; prices rose 1.9% in the latest quarter, down from 3.5% in the same quarter a year earlier, and far from the peak 10.2% seen in late 2021.

The broader national context confirms that multiple capital cities now have median house prices above A$1 million. As of March 2025, Domain data shows Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Canberra all sitting above that level. This trend reflects a nationwide expansion of high-value housing markets.

What this means: With Brisbane hitting this significant threshold, affordability pressure is expanding beyond Sydney. Homeownership is now an increasingly expensive pursuit across multiple capitals, not just the traditional hotspots.

Policymakers and potential homeowners must reckon with a new national housing reality—one in which strategic planning, targeted supply measures, and affordability safeguards are urgently needed to match a shifting property landscape shaped by migration, demand, and rising valuations.