Should You Sell or Hold Your Duncraig Investment Property in 2026?

If you own an investment property in Duncraig, you've probably watched its value climb steadily and wondered whether now's the time to cash in, or whether you're sitting on something worth holding onto for another decade. It's a fair question, and the honest answer is that Duncraig's numbers pull in two different directions at once.

The case for holding

Duncraig is, by almost every measure, a capital-growth suburb. House values have climbed around 10 to 14% over the past year alone, and closer to 51% over the past three years, a genuinely strong run for an established, built-out suburb rather than a growth corridor.[1] Vacancy sits at a remarkably tight 0.5 to 0.7%, and stock on the market is scarce, with the average Duncraig owner holding their property for over 11 years before selling.[1] That's not a suburb people leave in a hurry.

Duncraig's socio-economic profile backs this up. It's a high-SES, owner-occupier dominated suburb, with around 86% of homes owner-occupied rather than rented, which keeps competition for the properties that do come up tight, both for buyers and tenants.[2] Add proximity to Hillarys Boat Harbour, Sorrento Beach, Westfield Whitford City, and Karrinyup Shopping Centre, along with well-regarded schools like Duncraig Senior High, Duncraig Primary, and Poynter Primary, and you've got a suburb families choose deliberately, not by default.[4] If your investment thesis is long-term capital growth backed by scarcity and genuine owner-occupier demand, Duncraig has consistently delivered on that.

The case for selling

Here's the honest counterweight. Rental yield in Duncraig is low, generally sitting between 2.7% and 3.5% for houses, below the 3% benchmark most investors look for to comfortably cover holding costs.[1] With a typical house price now well above $1.3 million, that yield gap means many Duncraig landlords are funding a meaningful shortfall between rent received and the cost of holding the property, particularly on interest and maintenance. Affordability is stretched too, with the suburb sitting at roughly 56 years of median income required to buy the median home, a figure that can eventually compress the pool of future buyers and cool the pace of capital growth.[1]

There's also an opportunity cost worth genuinely considering. If you sold and redeployed that equity into a new build elsewhere in Perth's growth corridor, you'd retain full access to negative gearing against any income under the current federal rules, along with a choice between the existing CGT discount or the new indexation method at sale, benefits that are no longer available to investors purchasing established property going forward.[5] That doesn't make Duncraig a bad investment. It just means the property you already hold plays a different role in your portfolio than a new purchase would.

What actually matters is your own numbers, not the suburb's

If you already own established property in Duncraig, it's worth remembering your existing negative gearing arrangements are grandfathered under the recent federal changes, so nothing changes for you simply by continuing to hold.[5] The sell-or-hold decision really comes down to your own cash flow tolerance, your timeframe, and what else that equity could be doing for you. A landlord who can comfortably absorb a modest yield gap in exchange for strong, steady capital growth has a very different answer to a landlord who's stretched and would rather redeploy that capital somewhere with stronger cash flow today.

How I can help you decide

I don't have a vested interest in which way you land. What I can do is give you an honest, current appraisal of what your Duncraig property would actually achieve on its rental performance and growth trajectory if you hold. And I can have a trusted Sales rep that I work with in the area that can give you a gauge if you chose to sell.

That's the comparison that actually matters, not general suburb data, but your specific property against your specific goals.

Weighing up whether to sell or hold your Duncraig investment? Get in touch and I'll give you the honest numbers to help you decide.

This article is general information only and doesn't replace financial, tax, or legal advice specific to your circumstances. I'd always recommend speaking with an accountant or financial adviser before making a decision to sell or hold an investment property. If you need the contact of a trusted advisor or accountant please reach out and I can put you in touch.

Sources

[1] HtAG Analytics, Duncraig, WA 6023 Property Market and House Prices 2026 — https://www.htag.com.au/wa/wa371-city-of-joondalup/duncraig-wa-6023/

[2] PropRadar, Duncraig WA 6023 Investment Profile — https://www.propradar.com.au/suburbs/duncraig-wa-6023

[3] Your Investment Property Magazine, Duncraig, WA 6023: Suburb Profile & Property Report — https://www.yourinvestmentpropertymag.com.au/top-suburbs/wa/6023-duncraig

[4] Smart Property Investment, Duncraig WA Suburb Profile — https://www.smartpropertyinvestment.com.au/data/wa/6023/duncraig

[5] William Buck Australia, Federal Budget Analysis 2026: Negative Gearing — https://williambuck.com/tools/federal-budget-2026/negative-gearing/