A growing number of Australians expect property prices to fall over the next year, a new survey has found.

The poll by Metropole has found 43% of respondents expect property values to decline over the coming year. The proportion has grown from 27% in a previous poll six months ago.

Among those who didn't foresee declines, optimism was still scarce. Twenty per cent of respondents indicated property values would see little growth, while 34% said they expected values to remain flat.

In spite of the outlook for property prices, 59% of respondents still indicated they planned to buy an investment property in the year ahead.

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