A survey by Canada's Scotiabank on price movements in a dozen advanced countries ranked Australia as the ''clear front-runner'' for house price increases, with a gain of 9.4 per cent year-on-year for the September quarter on an inflation adjusted basis.

That put Australia ahead of France (6.8 per cent gain), Sweden (5.6 per cent), Switzerland (4.7 per cent) and Britain (4.4 per cent). Losers in the period included the US (0.4 per cent down), Spain (5.2 per cent), Japan (2.8 per cent) and Canada (1.5 per cent).

But the 9.4 per cent increase in Australian prices did represent a slowdown from the 15.9 per cent year-on-year rise posted in the first quarter of 2010, with successive rate rises and the expiry of the enhanced First Home Owners Grant in January starting to bite.

A Scotiabank analyst, Adrienne Warren, said Australia's front-running status was due to low unemployment and tight supply.

But she said a slowdown in housing sales and price appreciation was expected in 2011. ''While Australia's close trade ties with Asia and resource wealth will continue to underpin a solid pace of domestic activity, higher interest rates will worsen already strained affordability,'' Ms Warren said.