House prices fell almost 5 per cent in September quarter: Domain Price Report

The latest report on house prices indicates the cost of buying a home has fallen slightly across the country. But, the latest figures are of little comfort to those who rent or who are homeless.

Australians struggling to break into the property market are set to benefit from a $350 million affordable housing scheme included in the federal budget. Source: AAP / DAN HIMBRECHTS/AAPIMAGE

The digital property portal Domain has just published its latest report on home prices in Australia.

It shows the cost of buying a house fell 4-point-9 per cent in the last quarter - which works out to be around $53,000.

But, chief of Research and Economics at Domain, Doctor Nicola Powell, says prices are still significant higher than they were before COVID-19 came along, with the median house price still around $1.02 million.

The director of economic research at PropTrack, Cameron Kusher, says while house prices are falling, rents are not going down as well.

He says that is because there have been fewer investors in the market, and more landlords turning to short term rentals, such as Airbnb.

The federal government's new budget includes 30,000 new social and affordable dwellings, as part of a $10-billion Housing Australia Future Fund.

The Australian Alliance to End Homelessness says it's looking forward to working on the plan.