Big cities still present big opportunities for smart property buyers

The most recent data on median home values shows that there are still affordable housing options across our most expensive capital city markets.

Housing affordability has been one of the most significant barriers to entry into home ownership across the country, particularly for first time buyers. The relatively high cost of housing within the major regions of the country means that some have abandoned hopes of ever owning a home.

Although housing can be expensive in the most populous areas of the cities, the data shows that there are opportunities in most regions to enter into the housing market at relatively affordable prices; you just need to know where to look. Of course, most of these suburbs are going to be located further away from the city centre or buyers will have to purchase higher density housing product rather than a detached house.

Within the detached housing market, 47.9% of suburbs throughout the combined capital cities have a median house value of less than $500,000 with 27.9% less than $400,000. Across regional markets there are a much higher proportion of suburbs with a median house value below $500,000 (87.4%).

Across the individual capital city markets, 92.1% of suburbs in Hobart have a median house value below $500,000, followed by: Adelaide (63.2%), Brisbane (60.5%) and Melbourne (44.9%). On the other hand, Darwin has far fewer suburbs with a median house value below $500,000 (16.4%) as do: Canberra (24.5%), Sydney (37.0%) and Perth (41.4%).

Despite the fact that all cities except Hobart, Adelaide and Brisbane have a majority of suburbs with a median value above $500,000, there are still quite a large number of suburbs with values below $500,000 throughout most cities.

For those who simply can’t afford the price of purchasing a detached house, the unit market offers a significantly greater opportunity to enter into ownership at a more affordable price point.