In today’s property market, finding a house for less than $1 million can be tricky – let alone for half of that amount.
For home buyers with a budget of $500,000 or less, living close to the city is still a challenge with the median value of capital city suburbs reaching far beyond the half-a-million mark.
So, how close can you actually get with a $500,000 budget?
Property research group Corelogic has analysed the five suburbs in each capital city closest to the CBD where the media house value remains under $500,000.
The data revealed that with $500,000 in hand and a dream of living in Sydney, the closest a buyer could get to the CBD is the suburb of Bar Point which 39.5km away.
“Most capital cities have seen a significant decline in suburbs with a median value below $500,000 over recent years meaning that to access more affordable housing buyers have to move further away from the city centre,” Corelogic analyst Cameron Kusher said.
There are only two NSW suburbs within 50km of Sydney’s CBD with a median house value below $500,000.
Related reading: Brisbane Rental Market Keeps Investors Optimistic
In Melbourne, buyers were able to get 16.1km from the CBD, with the suburb of Dallas containing housing typically costing less than $450,000.
Brisbane and Canberra have also made it difficult to afford city living, with the closest $500,000 or less suburb 10km from Brisbane’s CBD and more than 12km in Canberra.
The story was different in other parts of Australia, where buyers could potentially find a house under $500,000 3.5km, 3km and just over 5km in Adelaide, Hobart and Perth respectively.
These suburbs recorded the most affordable median house values in relations to other states.
Hobart remains the nation’s most affordable capital city housing market and, despite strong value growth recently, still has many suburbs with a median below $500,000 quite close to the city centre.
