Finding affordable housing in Australia’s metropolitan areas may not be such an impossible task, especially in Perth, where the property boom is lagging behind other states.
According to real estate data across Australia, there are still plenty of options, whether you’re a first-time homebuyer, family, investor or downsizer.
Depending on your capital city, some properties are priced as low as $290,000, but others will set you back as much as $2.5 million.
Sydney-based buyers’ agent Lucy Bulla told NCA NewsWire it was a great time to buy a home.
“I think if anyone is ready to buy right now, now is the time to buy,” he said.
“You have less competition and you can really pick a few, I wouldn’t say good deals, great deals, but really fair prices for properties.”
Sydney eastern suburbs agent Kiki Bermudez agreed that buyers were in a much better position now than they were last year.
“Last year, we all know it was a bull market where it was crazy in terms of its bullish momentum,” he told NCA Newswire.
“Now what we are seeing is that downward transition, or correction in the market.”
Ms Bulla pointed out that interest rates affected how much people could borrow and therefore how much they offered on a property.
But she said there were other factors as well.
“It’s a lot of things like the fact that the cost of living has gone up is also affecting prices,” he said.
“Yes, interest rates are going up, but we’ve had higher interest rates for many years (before), it’s only now that we’ve had these really low interest rates.
“So I think once people get used to the new interest rates, it will be the new normal.”
Here’s how some of the states in Australia compare:
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Perth is experiencing a property boom but has lagged behind other capital cities.
It means that there are still bargains in the suburbs relatively close to the CBD.
According to the WA Real Estate Institute, the cheapest suburb is Armadale, which has a median price of just $290,000.
Other affordable suburbs include Camillo ($307,500), Brookdale ($319,250), Middle Swan ($340,000), Gosnells ($350,000), Lockridge ($350,000), Stratton ($352,500), Midland ($358,500), Balga ($360,000), and Maddington ($360,000).
New south Wales
In Sydney, prices remain high, but Ms Bulla said the city was cyclical with house prices.
“Right now we are down. As soon as everyone is confident in interest rates again, they will start to rise again,” she said.
“Any time we go through a low period, it’s always much less than the growth period.”
Ms Bulla said more affordable suburbs within 30km of the CBD would still cost her up to $2.5m.
“I wouldn’t necessarily say that ‘these’ suburbs are affordable,” Ms. Bermudez added.
“But what I see is a lot of people who were priced last year are now finding things within their reach.”
VICTORY
Melbourne is one of the main markets that still has relatively high prices.
But there are opportunities in some suburbs within 20 km of the CBD.
According to the Real Estate Institute of Victoria, the cheapest is Dallas, where the median price is $540,000.
Other suburbs include Meadow Heights ($568,250), Broadmeadows ($608,000), Laverton ($615,000), Kings Park ($645,000), and Albanvale ($648,888).
Rounding out the top 10 is Westmeadows, which could set you back around $735,000.
SOUTH AUSTRALIA
Adelaide remains a highly affordable capital city, according to data provided by the Real Estate Institute of SA.
Elizabeth North and Davoren Park have a median price of just $325,000.
Other affordable suburbs include Smithfield and Andrews Farm for under $400,000.
Rounding out the top 10 is Newport, which still has a reasonable median price of $437,000.
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