It is a case of wait and see as real estate market analysts look at the impact of flooding on house sales in the region.
Property Data analysts CoreLogic report in the past three months the number of houses on the market dropped considerably, making it difficult to determine the true impact of the flood on prices.
CoreLogic Research Analyst, Kaytlin Ezzy, said: "Of the 45 properties sold in March, 20 were in the elevated suburb of Goonellabah, which was largely unaffected from the flood, while no sales were recorded in North and South Lismore, and only one sale was recorded in both Lismore CBD and Girards Hills, all of which were flood affected".
In March this year, only 45 homes were sold in the Lismore LGA, well down on the number last March when 111 homes sold.
"The volume of sales across the Lismore LGA fell dramatically after recent flooding events, with just 45 sales recorded in March, down -35.7% from the 70 sales recorded in February, and down -48.2% compared to the previous five-year average."
Ms Ezzy said "early estimates for April and May volumes suggest a similar fall", but that may not continue.
"As the recovery effort continues, the number of sales across the flood affected suburbs will likely pick up, providing a more reliable indication of how housing values have been impacted by the floods," Ms Ezzy said.
CoreLogic reports the value of houses in the Local Government Area in the month prior to the flood had changed by 2.9%, a continuation of a trend that saw the 12-month house price change reach 36.2% in February.
Ms Ezzy said changes in Lismore LGA dwelling values were diverse since the floods, rising 1.4% in March, 1.5% in April and falling -1.9% in May, resulting in a total change of 1.0% since the end of February.
In individual suburbs and villages, value changes over the three months to May were: Lismore 0.9%, Girards Hill 1.8%, East Lismore 1.5%, South Lismore 2.4%, Lismore Heights 0.6%, Goonellabah -0.1%, Clunes -0.7%,and Nimbin 4.1%.
North Lismore did not record enough sales in that period to generate statistics.
CoreLogic reported Australia's housing downturn had gathered pace in June, with continued value falls in Sydney and Melbourne driving this month's steeper drop of -0.6% in dwelling values nationally.
Growth rates stated are based on CoreLogic's home value index, which take into account value changes across the market.
