Following a 4.9 per cent rise in Australian house prices in 2024, Shane Oliver, chief economist at financial services firm AMP, expects average house prices to rise by around 3 per cent in 2025. However, he said the year's performance would be split in two, with the first few months being weak due to high interest rates and rising unemployment, followed by an improvement in the second half as lower rates would eventually act as a boost. Oliver believes the Reserve Bank of Australia will start cutting rates by May and expects to cut rates three times this year by 25 basis points each. (Golden Ten)