Now more than ever before, the issue that drives the decision-making of most real estate consumers is affordability.

Over the past 12-18 months when some markets across Australia have been struggling, the ones that have remained buoyant have been the ones where home buyers and investors can find properties at attainable prices – with rising interest rates making this even more of an imperative.

It’s not a coincidence that the capital cities which have remained busy and competitive recently are the cheapest ones – Perth, Adelaide and Darwin.

Equally, the cities where markets have dropped the most through this period are the most expensive ones – Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne. Regional Australia – generally speaking – has performed better than capital city Australia because there are much more affordable options for buyers of all kinds outside of the big cities.