Reductions at the cheaper end of the real estate market has sent some house costs in the metropolitan area into a price range that was common more than a decade ago — below $200,000.

Analysis of the cheapest 25 per cent of the market by The West Australian shows that houses, units and blocks of land in the metropolitan area dropped between 3 and 14 per cent in the three years to December 2017.

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The cheapest quartile of houses in the metropolitan area dropped about 8 per cent, or $35,000 between December 2014 and December last year.

Real Estate Institute of WA president Hayden Groves said it had led to some homes selling below $200,000, such as the recent sale of a four-bedroom home in Cooloongup for $187,000.

A three-bedroom house on a 384sqm block in Gosnells is currently on the market for a price range starting at $199,000.

“You would have to go back 10 to 15 years to find a time when homes were consistently sub-$200,000,” Mr Groves said.

Mr Groves said the drop in value at the cheaper end of the established market was due partly to the removal of the First Home Buyers Grant for established properties, which had encouraged entry-level buyers into building.

Camera Icon The prices of Perth’s cheapest houses haven’t been this low in more than a decade. Credit: Kerry Edwards

He said lack of confidence had also discouraged investors, who typically dipped their toes into the sub-$350,000 market.

Metropolitan units have dropped 13.5 per cent, or $50,000 in that time, with some unit prices in the western suburbs now costing below $170,000.

Land in the metropolitan area has dropped just over 3 per cent, or $7000 in that time.

Regional blocks of land have seen the biggest falls, dropping 35 per cent in the three years to December 2017, or nearly $50,000.

Mr Groves said it was due in part to fewer people buying rural retreats.

In some cases, it was due to lack of jobs in the area. He said this was probably the reason for 1000sqm blocks of land in Menzies selling for less than $6000.

The statistics show house prices in regional WA have dropped 18.5 per cent, or $57,000 while unit costs have fallen 26 per cent, or $70,000.