Where you can buy in QLD for less than the average home loan

The average househunter in Queensland has been priced out of nearly 500 suburbs, with the average national home loan hitting a new record high. Here’s where to look for less.

The average househunter in Queensland has been priced out of nearly 500 suburbs, with the average national home loan hitting a new record high of $574,422.

New data shows there are now 476 suburbs across the state where the median house value is more than $575,000.

But for the average first home buyer, the struggle to achieve the great Australian dream is even harder.

The Finder RBA Cash Rate Survey for November revealed the average first-home buyer loan value was $461,244 in September, with 621 Queensland suburbs recording median house values above that benchmark, according to the latest REA Market Trends report for October.

Finder head of consumer research Graham Cooke said fears around housing affordability and household debt had “hit record highs”, with 83 per cent of respondents concerned about housing affordability, 62 per cent worried about cost of living and 59 per cent fearful about household debt, according to the survey.

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Finder’s Graham Cooke

REA Group director of economic research Cameron Kusher said that while the average home loan in Queensland was likely lower than the national average, it was getting harder for the average buyer, in particular first home buyers, to get a foot on the ladder.

He added that while buyers did not borrow 100 per cent of the loan, trying to save a deposit was a tough ask in the current booming market.

“We don’t have Home Builder anymore, wage growth is benign and trying to save for a deposit when prices keep going up, it is tough,” he said.

“But we are probably going to start to see that price growth begin to slow, even though rate hikes might still be a way off.

“We are also seeing more properties coming onto the market so some of that FOMO (fear of missing out) should also start to subside, but it will remain tough for first home buyers because while rates are low, they also aren’t earning much on their savings.”

Mr Kusher said that while the market had become tougher for first home buyers, many had made the move onto the property ladder last year.

“It was the highest number since 2009,” he said. “But now, with less incentives and more investors, it is tougher” he said.

“And it will not only make it tough from a first home buyer perspective, but also for essential workers in some communities with wage growth slow.”

But it is not all bad news either, with 587 suburbs across Queensland boasting median house values below the average national home loan of $574,422, and 442 suburbs with house prices below the average first-home buyer loan value.

In Brisbane, there are 14 suburbs with median house values below the value of the average national home loan.

But the pressure on prices is clear, with just six suburbs below the average national first-home loan value, and only one of those on the mainland – Acacia Ridge, with $455,000.

Opportunities for first-home buyers improve significantly outside of Brisbane, with 97 suburbs across the Logan, Ipswich and Moreton Bay regions providing median house values below $461,250.

They range from houses in the Moreton Bay suburb of Bellara ($461,250) to Ellen Grove in the Ipswich region ($430,000) and Yarrabilba in the Logan region ($397,750).

And aerial view of Yarrabilba. Photo: Supplied

First-home buyers hoping to spend less than the average first-home buyer loan value have just one option in the booming Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast markets, with only one suburb, Stapylton on the Gold Coast, having a median house price below the average first-home loan value.

Even the average househunter may be hard pressed to land a home in the booming lifestyle markets, with just nine suburbs priced below the average national home loan value.

They range from Springbrook on the Gold Coast ($507,500) to Meridian Plains on the Sunshine Coast ($566,000).

But there are more places to choose from outside of the southeast corner, with 59 suburbs in the Cairns region boasting median house values below the average national mortgage value.

There are also 57 suburbs in the Townsville region with house values at or below the $574,422 threshold, while there are 43 in the Mackay-Isaac-Whitsunday region, and 23 in the Toowoomba region.

Regional areas like Townsville offer a greater range of affordable suburbs

Ray White economist Nerida Conisbee said the Queensland market was “going through what the NSW and Victorian markets already have” in terms of price growth.

“What that price growth does start to change though is the type of home that people can buy, particularly first home buyers,” she said.

“If they want to live on the Gold Coast or Sunshine Coast, a house is likely out of reach but a townhouse might be achievable.

“Brisbane also has house options a bit further out.

“So my advice to first home buyers is this, your first house does not need to be your forever home.”