News live: capital city house prices fall below $1m; Penny Wong has ‘grave concerns’ for missing Australians in Nepal

Sydney and Brisbane are back to being the only capitals with median prices above $1m. Follow updates live The median price in the capitals surpassed $1m for the first time back in October but has steadily fallen this year with demand suppressed by rising interest rates and weak confidence in the economy. By the end of August, it fell to $990,394, Cotality found. The typical home price in Perth passed $1m in March, but slipped to $999,987 by the end of August. Longer selling times, larger vendor discounting and persistently low auction clearance rates all point to a buyer’s market, yet buyers are lacking the confidence to transact at the moment.