Astronomical house prices in Sydney and Melbourne are leaving many prospective homebuyers on the sidelines. But instead of being shut out of the property market forever, many are considering “reinvesting,” which is renting where they want to live and investing in more affordable places, such as Queensland.

According to Domain Group’s House Price Report: September Quarter 2016, the house price gap between Brisbane and Sydney is at its widest point in more than a decade. Sydney’s median house price is now $1,068,303. In contrast, Brisbane’s median house price is almost half at $521,152.

Brisbane’s greater affordability has allowed young couples to enter the housing market with little difficulty. Newly engaged couple Britany Dyke and Daniel Swanson, both in their mid-20s, recently settled in a townhouse in Tarragindi, a suburb situated about nine kilometres from the CBD. They admit they could not have afforded a similar home in Sydney or Melbourne. 

“We really wanted to buy a house where the mortgage wasn’t going to be a struggle,” Britany said. “We did need to get lenders mortgage insurance. I think if we waited until we had a full 20 per cent deposit we would still be saving today.”

According to Antonia Mercorella, chief executive officer of Real Estate Institute of Queensland, Brisbane doesn’t have the same affordability issues that plague Sydney and Melbourne.

“Our capital growth has consistently been around 4 per cent year on year, and this is very modest, especially when compared with Sydney and Melbourne. But the same principles apply. Houses are cheaper on the outer fringes of the city than they are in the inner-ring,” she said. 

While first-home home buyers in Sydney and Melbourne are forced to consider other locations, first-home buyers in Brisbane have more options at their doorstep.

“It’s not that hard, and for those living in Brisbane that have access to these cheaper house prices, they’re silly not to realise they should be doing everything they can to get into the market while it’s still good,” Mercorella said.

 

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