Senior economist for Australia Property Monitors Dr Andrew Wilson said Orange was likely to outstrip growth in the Sydney market.

“Orange is a very popular and resilient market,” Dr Wilson said.

“It has a robust economy and reasonable access to Sydney.”

Dr Wilson said Orange had experienced a 2.9 per cent increase in median house prices in the October quarter with the median price of a house in Orange now sitting at $313.750.

“The rise in house prices for this quarter makes Orange one of the better performers in regional NSW,” Dr Wilson said.

The median price of units in Orange has also risen by 6.2 per cent to $226.248.

“These are encouraging figures for Orange, it’s a very popular boutique market,” he said.

Dr Wilson said the property market is yet to see the full impact of the recent cut in interest rates.

In the quarter to October the national median house prices fell by 1.6 per cent and were down by 4.2 per cent over the year.

Dr Wilson said Darwin, Perth and Brisbane have the best prospects for price growth, while Sydney and Canberra are also expected to achieve reasonable growth in the year.

“Demand for housing will intensify in 2012, particularly in Sydney, Canberra and Perth, which will see housing markets re-energised albeit at different levels,” he said.

“Australia’s economic fundamentals are strong, and are well positioned to weather any downturn in international markets.

“This, coupled with renewed buyer confidence, will be the key to driving prices growth in the new year.

“Nationally, median house prices should recover to rise by 3 to 5 per cent through 2012.”