Revealed: Markets where first-home buyers can save for a deposit the fastest

Residential prices rose at a faster pace than wages over the decade, extending the average time first-home buyers needed to save for the typical 20% deposit.

According to Domain’s latest report, it now takes almost a year longer on average for couples aged between 25 and 34 to save for an entry-level house and three months longer for units.

Based on the average dual income of first-time buyer couples, it would take, on average, four years and five months to come up with a 20% deposit for a house and three years and nine months for an apartment.

Buyers in Sydney take the longest to save for an entry-level house deposit, at eight years and a month while those in Perth take the shortest savings time at three years and seven months.

For unit buyers, it would take them five years and six months to access the market of Sydney and two years and six months to save for a Perth apartment.

Time taken to save for a 20% deposit
Market	House	Unit
Sydney	8 years and 1 month	5 years and 6 months
Melbourne	6 years and 6 months	4 years and 4 months
Brisbane	4 years and 10 months	3 years and 5 months
Adelaide	4 years and 7 months	2 years and 11 months
Perth	3 years and 7 months	2 years and 6 months
Hobart	5 years and 10 months	not provided
Darwin	4 years and 3 months	2 years and 7 months
Canberra	7 years and 1 month	3 years and 9 months
Combined Capital Cities	5 years and 8 months	3 years and 6 months
Combined Regional Markets	3 years and 10 months	3 years
National	4 years and 5 months	3 years and 9 months

Domain chief of research and economics Dr Nicola Powell said the longer time to save for a deposit is apparent across Australia as wages have not kept pace with escalating property prices especially over the past 20 years.

“First home buyers are facing a growing financial hurdle when it comes to saving a deposit, and this is becoming more daunting in the context of rising living costs, low wage growth, weak saving rates and the rapid rise in property prices,” she said.

Over the past 20 years the average annualised property growth in capital cities is 6.9% and for regionals 7.1%, whereas annualised wage price growth is less than half that at 3%.

Affordability and the time it takes to save for a deposit improve the further the market is from capital cities.

The shortest time to save a deposit for an entry-house and therefore quickest market access was Playford in Adelaide and Kwinana in Perth, where first-home buyers will only need two years and seven months to come up with the 20% mortgage down payment.

For units, first-home buyers can save the fastest in Brisbane’s Springwood-Kingston and Perth’s Bayswater-Bassendean.

Below are the top five markets in each city where first-time buyers can save with the shortest time.

House markets with shortest time to save for a deposit

Sydney

• St. Marys (5 years and 10 months)
• Mount Druitt (5 years and 11 months)
• Campbelltown (6 years and 2 months)
• Wyong (6 years and 2 months)
• Richmond-Windsor, Wollondilly (6 years and 7 months)

Melbourne

• Melton-Bacchus Marsh, (4 years and 10 months)
• Wyndham, (5 years and 3 months)
• Tullamarine-Broadmeadows, (5 years and 4 months)
• Cardinia, (5 years and 6 months)
• Sunbury, (5 years and 6 months)

Brisbane

• Ipswich Hinterland, (3 year and 1 month)
• Springwood-Kingston, (3 year and 4 month)
• Ipswich Inner, (3 years and 5 months)
• Beaudesert, (3 years and 6 months)
• Caboolture Hinterland, (3 years and 10 months)

Perth

• Kwinana, (2 years and 7 months)
• Armadale, (2 years and 8 months)
• Mandurah, (3 years)
• Gosnells, (3 years and 1 month)
• Rockingham, (3 years and 2 months)

Adelaide

• Playford, (2 years and 7 months)
• Gawler-Two Wells, (3 years and 4 months)
• Salisbury, (3 years and 8 months)
• Onkaparinga, (4 years and 2 months)
• Adelaide Hills, (4 years and 3 months)

Canberra

• Belconnen, (6 years and 4 months)
• Gungahlin, (6 years and 5 months)
• Tuggeranong, (6 years and 6 months)
• Molonglo, (6 years and 9 months)
• Weston Creek, (7 years and 8 months)

Darwin

• Palmerston, (3 years and 10 months)
• Litchfield, (4 years and 2 months)
• Darwin Suburbs, (4 years and 4 months)
• Darwin City, (4 years and 11 months)

Tasmania

• Brighton, (4 years)
• Hobart-North West, (5 years and 2 months)
• Sorell-Dodges Ferry, (5 years and 6 months)
• Hobart-North East, (5 years and 10 months)
• Hobart-South and West, (7 years and 4 months)

Unit markets with shortest time to save for a deposit

Sydney

• St. Marys (3 years and 1 month)
• Mount Druitt (3 years and 2 months)
• Fairfield (3 years and 4 months)
• Liverpool (3 years and 8 months)
• Wyong Penrith (3 years and 9 months)

Melbourne

• Melton-Bacchus Marsh, (3 years and 3 months)
• Dandenong, (3 years and 4 months)
• Brimbank, (3 years and 6 months)
• Wyndham, (3 years and 7 months)
• Melbourne City, (3 years and 7 months)

Brisbane

• Springwood-Kingston, (1 year and 9 months)
• Ipswich Inner, (2 years)
• Beenleigh, (2 years and 2 months)
• Caboolture, (2 years and 3 months)
• Loganlea-Carbrook, (2 years and 4 months)

Perth

• Bayswater-Bassendean, (1 year and 10 months)
• Mandurah, (2 years and 2 months)
• Rockingham, (2 years and 2 months)
• Gosnells, (2 years and 3 months)
• Swan, Perth City, (2 years and 4 months)

Adelaide

• Salisbury, (2 years and 3 months)
• West Torrens, (2 years and 6 months)
• Port Adelaide-West, (2 years and 7 months)
• Port Adelaide-East, (2 years and 7 months)
• Mitcham, (2 years and 7 months)

Canberra

• Belconnen, (3 years and 2 months)
• Woden Valley, (3 years and 3 months)
• Gungahlin, (3 years and 4 months)
• Molonglo, (3 years and 9 months)
• North Canberra, (3 years and 9 months)

Photo by @andretaissin on Unsplash