South Australia and Western Australia have the most affordable suburbs close to their respective CBDs, according to new research.
Research from Well Home Loans found that the inner-Adelaide suburb of Westbourne Park represented the best value for homebuyers in search of a combination of affordability and city access.
Rounding out the top five affordable suburbs, were Black Forest in SA, Macquarie in the ACT, Henley Beach South in SA and Baldivis in WA.
To make the list of affordable and desirable housing markets, Well Home Loans assessed all housing markets with a median price of under $750,000 in suburbs less than 25km from the CBD, which also had a good socio-economic standing.
Notably, the top 20 suburbs were all unit markets, showing just how unaffordable many housing markets in Australia located within close proximity to the CBD have become.
Western Australia (seven suburbs) and South Australia (seven suburbs) were the states that featured most prominently on the list of top 20 suburbs with Queensland (three), the ACT (two) and the Northern Territory (one) also present. There were no suburbs that met the criteria from NSW or Victoria.
Well Home Loans CEO Scott Spencer said the research showed it is hard for young families to find affordable housing in the current environment.
“It has definitely become harder for first home buyers and young families to buy properties that are affordable, desirable and relatively close to capital city CBDs, but this report proves it’s not impossible,” Mr Spencer said.
“That said, if your budget is $750,000 and you want to live within commuting distance of the city centre, your options are limited.”
Mr Spencer said, given how much house prices have increased relative to units, it is forcing buyers to look at more affordable options.
“Notably, the top 20 list consists entirely of unit markets,” he said.
“Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that house prices have grown faster than unit prices over the long-term, so that’s something for buyers to bear in mind.”
