How much you need to earn to buy median priced house on the Gold Coast

The Gold Coast property market continues to move ahead, bucking the national trend. Here’s what first time buyers would need to earn to secure an average priced house.

THE Gold Coast’s median house price is about 14 times the median local income, putting its first home buyers behind most Aussies trying to get a foot onto the property ladder.

Reflecting the continued buoyancy of the Gold Coast market while prices slip in other parts of the nation, this figure is higher than the national average of 12 times pre-tax income and higher than the Greater Brisbane average of 11.

Corelogic data for the year to September revealed the median house price on the Gold Coast was $630,000 while Australian Bureau of Statistics data for the 2015-16 financial year showed the median income was $44,016 a year.

In March, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) suggested lenders limit their loans to six times a borrower’s income.

SUBSCRIBE TO THE GOLD COAST BULLETIN - JUST $1 FOR THE FIRST 28 DAYS

The Gold Coast’s median house price is about 14 times the median local income.

WHAT THE MEDIAN HOUSE PRICE GETS YOU ON THE GOLD COAST

In the Gold Coast this would mean an average maximum loan of $264,096, suggesting a single homebuyer would first need to save an average of $365,904 for their deposit.

However, with a 20 per cent deposit, they would need to earn a far more realistic $84,000 a year to meet the APRA requirements for a home loan.

And the figures are good news for couples earning two incomes, revealing a clear path to home ownership for those on average incomes.

Gold Coast first home buyers can also find plenty of value in the booming northern suburbs and the unit market, allowing many more to get their foot on the property ladder.

First home buyers recently snapped up properties for below the median price at Ray White’s hugely successful ‘The Event’ mega-auction.

Nationally, the median house price was $567,650 and the median income was $47,692 so a typical single homebuyer would need a $281,498 deposit or, with a 20 per cent deposit, a buyer would need to earn at least $75,686 a year.

In the year to June, this was about the average full-time salary for an industrial designer ($76,313), child welfare, youth and family services worker ($75,509), insurance broker ($76,518), pharmacy worker ($74,584) or fitter and turner ($74,547), national SEEK job ad data showed.

Despite the Gold Coast's buoyant property market, home ownership remains within reach of many first time buyers.

HOW TO GET THE BEST HOUSE ON ANY STREET

New ABS data revealed Aussies were increasingly taking on a second job or starting a business on the side to help supplement their income.

There were 39,500 more jobs in the Australian economy in the September quarter than in the June quarter, and almost half of these (15,900) were filled by people who had at least one other job.

Career expert and founder of Change Meridian Michelle Gibbings said the key to establishing a successful “side hustle” was to be realistic and practical.

“Assess if there is a market and whether you are going to be able to make money from your hobby,” she said.

“Work out how much time you have to devote to setting up your side hustle, and set a schedule and lock out time in your diary to devote to it.

“Set yourself some clear goals and milestones as to what you want to achieve by when.

“This also includes considering how much money you are willing to invest in getting your idea off the ground.”