One of the recurring themes of my writing in various pubications in recent months has been my belief that Adelaide is about to attract a lot of attention from property investors.

This is largely because of the extent of new resources activity in the state, the affordability of South Australian homes, the recent improvement in population growth and the success of the State Government in attracting new business to the capital city and the state generally.

The latest figures from the Real Estate Institute of SA show some signs of action in the property market already. The median house price for Adelaide rose almost 3% in the June quarter and was 8% higher than a year earlier.

With typical real estate hyperbole, the institute has interpreted this as a "red hot market". It says: "We are definitely back to a boom market in Adelaide." This, of course, is nonsense. An 8% annual rise in prices does not constitute a boom.

But it may be the beginning to a surge in the Adelaide market, one that I've been predicting for the past six months or so.