Last week we investigated how close to the city you could find suburbs where the median house value was under $500,000, this week the report looks at the results for units.  Note that distances quoted are measured in a straight line and the distances by road may be much different.

The results highlight that housing options under $500,000 are available much closer to the CBD for units compared with houses. This likely also goes some way to explaining why in Sydney and Melbourne, where house values are falling, the more affordable unit market is holding up better.

Suburbs closest to a capital city GPO with a
median unit value of less than $500,000

Units are much more affordable than houses throughout the city.  In fact, throughout the whole city there are only five suburbs in which median unit values are in excess of $500,000.

Perth

While most of the suburbs surrounding Perth’s CBD have a median unit value below $500,000 there remains many suburbs with a median value of more than $500,000.  These suburbs are typically along the coast or along the Swan River in some of the more exclusive enclaves.

Hobart<

With a citywide median unit value well below $500,000 most of the suburbs across Hobart have a median value below $500,000.  In fact, across the whole city only 3 suburbs have a median unit value of more than $500,000.

Darwin

Only one suburb in all of Greater Darwin has a median unit value of more than $500,000.  As a result, the supply of relatively affordable unit stock is significant, particularly when compared to houses below $500,000.

Canberra

While there was only 1 suburb with a median house value below $500,000 there are substantially more suburbs with a median unit value below $500,000. Many of these suburbs are also quite close to the city centre resulting in a cheaper and more viable housing alternative in these areas.