Buyers priced out of detached housing in Australia’s capital cities could find themselves purchasing a house near the beach for less than the cost of a typical city apartment, with new research identifying 74 coastal suburbs where median house prices remain below $735,000.
According to the latest realestate.com.au Home Price Report, the median unit value across the combined capital cities is $735,000, a budget that would be sufficient to purchase a median-priced house in coastal locations across Queensland, Victoria, South Australia and other parts of the country.
The research, based on PropTrack data, found that median house prices in the identified suburbs ranged from $330,000 in Solomontown, South Australia, to $732,500 in Old Beach, Tasmania.
However, affordability has not necessarily translated into weaker market conditions, with 63 of the 74 suburbs recording annual house price growth and just 11 experiencing declines.
Realestate.com.au Senior Economist Eleanor Creagh said higher interest rates were forcing buyers to reconsider what they could afford and where they were prepared to live.
“As higher interest rates reduce borrowing capacity, buyers are increasingly having to make trade offs around location, dwelling type and size,” Ms Creagh said.
“More affordable regional markets remain accessible to a larger pool of buyers than many capital city alternatives.”
Queensland and Victoria offer the most options
Queensland and Victoria accounted for 34 of the 74 suburbs identified, with 17 locations each meeting the affordability benchmark.
In Queensland, Scarness in the Wide Bay region recorded a median house price of $730,000, while Emu Park in Central Queensland came in at $729,000.
Further north, Eimeo in the Mackay region had a median of $715,000, while Bowen offered a lower entry point at $570,000.
Cardwell, in the Cairns region, was another relatively affordable option, with a median house price of $542,000.
However, Cardwell also recorded annual price growth of 46.5 per cent, demonstrating that some of the country’s lower-priced coastal markets have continued to experience substantial increases in house values.
Victoria offered a similarly broad range of locations, including established holiday destinations and regional coastal towns.
Cowes on Phillip Island recorded a median house price of $710,000, while Lakes Entrance in Gippsland came in at $560,000.
Venus Bay was more affordable again, with a median of $497,500 following a 1.5 per cent decline over the past 12 months.
Other Victorian markets recorded strong annual growth despite remaining below the capital city unit benchmark.
Portland, in the state’s south-west, recorded a 22.6 per cent increase in median house prices to $505,000, while Coronet Bay rose 19.2 per cent to $620,000.
The figures highlight the variation between coastal markets, with some experiencing price declines while others continue to record double-digit annual growth.
NSW buyers have just one coastal alternative
New South Wales had the fewest qualifying suburbs of any state included in the research, with Sunshine Bay on the South Coast the only location where the median house price fell below $735,000.
The suburb recorded a median of $730,000, just $5,000 below the combined capital city unit benchmark.
Sunshine Bay’s median house price declined 12.8 per cent over the past year, placing it among the 11 suburbs on the list to experience annual falls.
The result contrasts with Queensland and Victoria, where buyers have a much wider selection of coastal suburbs below the same price threshold.
South Australia, meanwhile, accounted for several of the lowest-priced locations in the research.
Solomontown recorded the nation’s lowest median house price among the identified suburbs at $330,000, followed by Port Augusta at $340,000 and Ceduna at $362,500.
Despite their relatively low entry prices, both Port Augusta and Ceduna experienced substantial annual growth, with median house prices increasing 25.9 per cent and 31.8 per cent respectively.
In Tasmania, George Town recorded a median house price of $475,000, while Devonport came in at $601,000 and Old Beach at $732,500.
Western Australia also featured, with Geraldton recording a median house price of $599,000 and Port Denison at $640,000.
Port Denison’s median increased 25.5 per cent over the past year, while Geraldton recorded growth of 18.6 per cent.