Prices for house and other dwellings across much of Australia are moving upwards, according to September quarter price data released today by the Real Estate Institute of Australia.

A legal battle between Metricon Homes, Australia’s third biggest builder, and Porter Davis Homes, the eleventh biggest – is set to get even more heated.

The Property Council of Australia Portfolio Weighting Survey is a six monthly survey of institutional property funds, which looks at trends in the institutional ownership by sector and geographic region.

The survey tracks the following investments: CBD Office, Non CBD Office, Retail, Industrial, Agriculture, Residential, Listed Property Trusts, International Property, Cash and **Other (including investments in development site, car parks, petrol stations, or units in unlisted trusts).

‘Housing affordability, now at critically low levels right across Australia, must be on the election agenda as a priority,’ says Graham Joyce, President of the Real Estate Institute of Australia (REIA).

‘The Government recognised the significant socio-economic problems which arise as a result of declining home loan affordability and convened a Productivity Commission inquiry into first home ownership in 2004. Since then, things have only got worse.