A real estate agent's sign outside a house shows that it has recently been sold in Sydney
A real estate agent's sign outside a house shows that it has recently been sold in Sydney October 13, 2014. Reuters/David Gray

The real estate market in Australia may be off to a slow start, but investors in China will reportedly start the year with a drop in property prices. Here is a look at the property market in some of the popular cities in Australia and how they compare to the markets in China.

According to a press release report by Core Logic RP, one of the largest providers of property information and analytics in Australia, Sydney has once again emerged as the fastest growing real estate market. Canberra was the only city in the country to post an annual fall in the prices of home values.

Property prices reportedly grew at an annual rate of 12.4 percent in Sydney, while they declined by a marginal 0.6 percent in Canberra. The annual growth in Melbourne was reported to be 7.6 percent. The average capital city home values are said to have grown at 7.9 percent in 2014.

The 2013 average capital city home values growth reportedly stood at 9.8 percent. The decline in growth to 7.9 percent in 2014 is reportedly an indication that the real estate market in Australia is "losing steam." The moderation in growth rate has reportedly been ongoing since April 2014.

But one country may be facing more difficulties in the real estate market, compared to Australia. According to a report by FinancialTimes, property prices in China reportedly fell by 4.3 percent in December 2014. The large debts in China and the slowdown in the property market will reportedly impact international commodity markets.

The Chinese real estate market will reportedly continued to face a slowdown in 2015, given that the country still has substantial inventories from last year. The report however notes that December 2015 witnessed an increase in housing sales volumes, giving hope to the developers that there may be a turnaround. The government cut key interest rates in November and loosened the regulatory policy to support the property market.

The rate of growth in the real estate market of Australia is also reported to continue be slow in 2015. Investment in the sector is said to be slowing down because of affordability issues in cities like Sydney and Melbourne and the lower rental income from these investments.

For questions/comments regarding the article, you may email the writer at s.trivedi@ibtimes.com.au