Mortgage Choice has appointed the thirtieth adviser to its financial planning franchise and said it was on track to meet its target of 60 planners by June next year. The financial planning business was launched last year as part of the group's diversification strategy. It operates as a separate, although closely aligned, network from the company's established broker franchise. Mortgage Choice chief executive Michael Russell said customers were responding well to the offer of a single organisation serving their borrowing and investing needs. Wealth in Australia grew by 14.4 per cent, up from A$2.86 trillion in 2012 to A$3.27 trillion in 2013, with the biggest beneficiaries being the rapidly expanding "millionaire middle-class", according to the latest Global Wealth Report from The Boston Consulting Group. "Equity markets generally made strong gains in 2013, so populations with high exposure to shares such as Australia, the US and Canada enjoyed high growth in wealth," said Andrew Dyer, leader of BCG's financial services practice in Australia and New Zealand. On a regional basis, Asia-Pacific (excluding Japan) posted the strongest growth of 30.5 per cent. On BCG's estimates, this year Asia-Pacific is expected to overtake Western Europe as the second-wealthiest region and North America as the wealthiest in 2018. The median price for Australian residential property, as tracked through the Bendigo Bank/REIA Real Estate Market Facts Report, increased during the March 2014 quarter. The weighted average capital city median price rose 1.9 per cent for houses and 1.7 per cent for other dwellings over the December 2013 quarter. The weighted average median price for houses in the eight capital cities is now $606,517. Compared to the same quarter last year, the weighted average median price for houses in Australia rose 13.1 per cent. At $782,973, Sydney's median house price remains highest among the capitals, while Hobart ($385,000) had the lowest.