Where the affordable and liveable pockets are now in each city

The most affordable and liveable Australian cities have been revealed. See how your city compares.

Melbourne is officially more affordable than Sydney and Brisbane, with the southern capital offering more suburbs at accessible prices.

The stunning revelation was made in the latest PRD Smart Moves: Capital City Editions report for the first half of this year, which found that the number of affordable unit suburbs in Brisbane had tanked.

Affordability in Brisbane has tanked. iStock

“For the first time, Melbourne eclipsed Brisbane and Hobart in terms of having the highest percentage of affordable suburbs for units,” the report by PRD chief economist Dr Diaswati Mardiasmo says.

“Melbourne recorded 42.9 per cent of affordable suburbs, much higher than Brisbane’s 38.7 per cent and slightly higher than Hobart’s 41 per cent.

“Compared to the 2nd Half 2024 report, the percentage of affordable suburbs has declined for all capital cities and almost all stock types.

“The largest decline is in Brisbane units. In the 2nd Half 2024 report, there were 60.3 per cent affordable unit suburbs.

“This proportion has dramatically declined to 38.7 per cent.”

Units have seen the biggest decline in affordability in Brisbane.

PERCENTAGE OF HOMES DEEMED AFFORDABLE AND LIVEABLE

HOUSES (No. of suburbs/% Affordable)

SYDNEY: 322 7.8%

BRISBANE: 218 25.2%

MELBOURNE: 224 24.6%

HOBART: 49 42.9%

ADELAIDE: 338 46.7%

GOLD COAST: 63 34.9%

UNITS (No. of suburbs/% Affordable)

SYDNEY: 312 36.9%

BRISBANE: 199 38.7%

MELBOURNE: 224 42.9%

HOBART: 39 41%

ADELAIDE: 267 49.4%

GOLD COAST: 56 53.6%

(Source: PRD Smart Moves)

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But the report found that units continued to provide the best hope for buyers in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and Hobart, with stark contrasts in affordability across houses and units.

In Sydney, the number of affordable house suburbs sits at 7.8 per cent compared to 36.9 per cent for units.

A suburb was deemed affordable and liveable if its median sales price was below the capital city average.

Units offer the only hope for anyone trying to crack the Sydney market

Suburbs deemed both affordable and liveable for houses in Greater Sydney were all located in the west, and included Condell Park, Guildford, Sefton, Chester Hill, Punchbowl, Greenacre, Granville, Lakemba, Auburn and Merrylands.

Nine of the top 10 unit suburbs in Sydney were also in the west.

But it was Brisbane that proved the hardest to choose suburbs that were both affordable and liveable due to property price growth in most of the city’s suburbs, and a low level of new residential stock planned, the report warned.

“Sydney and Melbourne proved easier, as many suburbs are still experiencing negative or low-price growth, yet with a higher level of new residential stock in the pipeline.”

It was revealed that of Brisbane’s 218 suburbs for houses, only 55 were MOW considered affordable.

Suburbs that made that benchmark for houses included Coopers Plains, Springwood, Taigum, Griffin, Slacks Creek, Lawnton, Inala, Alexandra Hills, Logan Central and Zillmere, with median prices ranging from $516,500 (Logan Central) to $822,500 (Taigum).

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33 Libra Street, Inala, in Brisbane is already under offer after being listed for $750,000

For units, affordable and liveable suburbs included Bowen Hills, Albion, Upper Mount Gravatt, Nundah, Springwood, Griffin, Slacks Creek, Lawnton, Zillmere and Spring Hill.

10 Taragon Street, Bald Hills.

Of Melbourne’s 224 house suburbs 55 were affordable, while across Hobart’s 49 suburbs, just 21 met the benchmark.

The affordable Melbourne suburbs included Epping, Sunshine West and St Albans, while for Hobart, Berriedale, Rokeby and Risdon Vale made the list.

“Hobart still has the most affordable chosen suburbs for houses, followed by Melbourne,” the report said.

“Brisbane is now the second most expensive city for houses, especially for those that are also looking for liveability and the possibility of new housing stock.

“The prospect of this price growth slowing down is unlikely, due in part to the concentrated nature of new stock.

“That is, they are mostly found in suburbs that have a median house price closer to or higher than the Brisbane Metro median house price.”

Meanwhile, chosen suburbs for units show median prices that are approximately on par between all four capital cities.

“That said, Brisbane’s most affordable unit prices are at times pricier than Sydney’s, due to ensuring there is a reasonable amount of ready-to-sell stock planned for construction in 2025,” it noted.

“This is the same pattern as the 2nd Half 2024 report series, which suggests that to access new stock, Brisbanites must sacrifice affordability for availability.”

Listings on real estate portals also make it tough with buyers, with many not listing a price, merely saying “make an offer”, “expressions of interest” or simply “for sale”.

Others are scheduled to go to auction.

In Brisbane, a three bedroom house at Bald Hills is listed for sale for best offers over $699,000 by June 30.

The median house price in the River City is now $989,818.

10 Taragon Street, Bald Hills, is listed for sale with best offers over $699,000.

In Sydney, a three bedroom cottage in Hazelbrook is listed with a price guide of $1.2 million to $1.28 million.

Hazelbrook is about 85km from the city centre.

The median house price in Greater Sydney is $1,474,343.

82 Railway Parade, Hazelbrook.

In Melbourne, a two bedroom Victorian cottage in South Melbourne is listed for offers between $850,000 and $900,000.

The median house price in Melbourne is now $934,500, approximately $55,000 less than the Brisbane median house price.

198 Pickles Street, South Melbourne

Meanwhile, in Hobart, a Kingston home is listed for offers over $650,000 - $57,506 below its median house price of $707,506.

11 Moir Road, Kingston.

It comes after the latest PropTrack Home Price Index revealed that the median house price across Australia was now $1 million.

The research found that there are 106 suburbs across the capitals where 100 per cent of houses are valued at less than $1 million, the vast majority of which are located in outer areas where land is less scarce and properties are much more affordable as a result.

On the other hand, the suburbs with the lowest proportion of houses under $1 million are found in the priciest pockets of the capitals, such as Sydney and Melbourne’s eastern suburbs or the inner suburbs of Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.

The report revealed that national home prices hit a new record high last month.

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TOP 10 AFFORDABLE AND LIVEABLE SUBURBS (Top picks in bold)

SYDNEY

HOUSES: Condell Park, Guildford, Sefton, Chester Hill, Punchbowl, Greenacre, Granville, Lakemba, Auburn, Merrylands

UNITS: Sefton, Roselands, Belmore, Punchbowl, Narwee, Granville, Lakemba, Auburn, Merrylands, Harris Park

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BRISBANE

HOUSES: Coopers Plains, Springwood, Taigum, Griffin, Slacks Creek, Lawnton, Inala, Alexandra Hills, Logan Central, Zillmere

UNITS: Bowen Hills, Albion, Upper Mount Gravatt, Nundah, Springwood, Griffin, Slacks Creek, Lawnton, Zillmere, Spring Hill

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MELBOURNE

HOUSES: Williams Landing, Heidelberg West, St Albans, Sunshine North, Thomastown, Epping, Tullamarine, Truganina, Lalor, Sunshine West

UNITS: Maribyrnong, North Melbourne, Kensington, Williams Landing, South Yarra, Ormond, St Albans, Hawthorn, Epping, Carlton

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ADELAIDE

HOUSES: Northfield, Bowden, Blair Athol, Salisbury North, Ridgehaven, Salisbury, Woodville Gardens, Taperoo, Para Hills, Modbury North

UNITS: Para Hills West, Adelaide, Royal Park, Seacliff, Daw Park, Para Hills, Glynde, Keswick, Northfield, Alberton

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HOBART

HOUSES: Goodwood, Mornington, Lutana, Warrane, Clarendon Vale, Geilston Bay, Berriedale, Rokeby, Risdon Vale, Glenorchy

UNITS: Moonah, Goodwood, Mornington, Lutana, Mount Nelson, Clarendon Vale, Berriedale, Risdon Vale, Glenorchy, New Town

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GOLD COAST

HOUSES: Pimpama, Coomera, Nerang, Upper Coomera, Jacobs Well, Pacific Pines, Labrador, Southport, Arundel, Parkwood

UNITS: Nerang, Southport, Biggera Waters, Labrador, Pimpama, Pacific Pines, Coomera, Surfers Paradise, Parkwood, Robina

(Source: PRD Smart Moves Capital Cities 1st Half 2025)

Originally published as Where the affordable and liveable pockets are now in each city