Victorian tradie prices up on back of strong housing market

Please note that price information in this article was based on data from 2016, and may now be outdated. 

(October 26, 2016) The Victorian renovation sector has started the new financial year strongly with tradie prices up 2.4 per cent year-on-year.

While still the cheapest state to fulfil your renovation dreams, it was one of only two states to record an upward trend. While the NSW market dipped 2.1 per cent in an early sign the property market there has peaked, the Victorian housing market is continuing to grow.

The tradie increase has surpassed the general cost of living with the Consumer Price Index released today showing a smaller 1.3 per cent growth.

ServiceSeeking.com.au CEO Jeremy Levitt says, “The Victorian market, particularly Melbourne, has been recording great gains. And homeowners are making the most of a steadily-increasing market by adding value to their homes with the extra equity they now have, or fixing them up to capitalise on strong sales.

“We’ve seen a seven per cent increase in jobs posted across the state, so it’s great news for the state’s tradies as there’s plenty of work coming in to keep them busy and profitable.”

The biggest increases were in the electrical and tiling fields, which both recorded a year-on-year increase of nearly 10 per cent. But landscapers took a big hit, reducing their average hourly rate by 18 per cent – they are now 55 per cent cheaper than their counterparts in Queensland who charge $79.49 an hour average.

The state average for all trade services in the quarterly ServiceSeeking.com.au Tradie Price Index is $56.38, 5.6 per cent below the national average of $59.56.

The prices were derived by comparing a sample of 52,000 quotes submitted during the FY17 Q1 through ServiceSeeking.com.au, the website for getting any job done from tradies to professional services.