Despite recent concerns about rising median house prices in many Aussie property markets, Tasmania has consolidated its position as the country’s most affordable state for housing.

For the price of one house in Sydney, property investors and live-in buyers could buy three houses in Tasmania, according to the Real Estate Institute of Tasmania (REIT).

“Based on the typical size of mortgage repayments relative to earnings, home purchase in Tasmania remains much more affordable than in the seven other states,”Rick Sassin, executive director of Housing Industry Association, told ABC News.“The purchase of a median-priced dwelling in Tasmania absorbs 23.8 per cent of average earnings, well below the 30 per cent threshold which is considered manageable from an affordability perspective.”

In fact, affordability in Hobart improved by 1.2% during the December quarter, making it officially Australia’s most affordable capital city.

REIT’s Tony Collidge welcomes the findings, noting that Hobart is more than $100,000 cheaper than Adelaide, its closest competitor.

“[In] Sydney now the median price is over $1 million and Melbourne's very quickly approaching $850,000 to $900,000,” he said. "You look at Tassie at $365,000 being the median price ... there is a significant difference there.”

For comparison, in Sydney’s central business district, a budget of $800,000 can buy you a large, 64-square metre, one-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment.

The same budget will get you a two-bedroom apartment with 88 square metres of floor space in Melbourne.

In Hobart, that budget can get you 253 square metres of floor space with four bedrooms, two bathrooms, a garden, an in-ground swimming pool and a spectacular water view on a quarter-acre block.

With incentives such as these, it’s no wonder thatmany professionals from nearby states who work remotely have chosen to relocate their families to Hobart.
 

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