Despite the rate hikes over the past year, mortgage holders in some suburbs across Australia seemed to have been able to manage the increases in their repayments.
PropTrack’s latest report identified suburbs where mortgages for houses and units are the most serviceable in May.
The report looked at the median sale price in each suburb over the year to May 2023, the average total income, and the average mortgage repayments in the period. The report takes into account the 400bps increase in the cash rate since May 2022.
For houses, Fisherman Bay in regional Australia had the most serviceable mortgages — median sale price in the suburb is only $60,000 while the average total income is $61,000.
All suburbs in PropTrack’s list for most serviceable mortgage for houses are in regional areas:
|
Suburb |
Median sale price |
Average total income |
Current mortgage repayments |
Mortgage repayments as a share of income (%) |
|
Fisherman Bay, SA |
$60,000 |
$61,000 |
$270 |
2.7% |
|
Kambalda West, WA |
$140,000 |
$92,000 |
$670 |
4.4% |
|
Blackwater, Qld |
$180,000 |
$98,900 |
$860 |
5.2% |
|
Charleville, Qld |
$150,000 |
$62,300 |
$710 |
6.9% |
|
Roxby Downs, SA |
$280,000 |
$112,400 |
$1,320 |
7.0% |
|
Moura, Qld |
$185,000 |
$74,100 |
$880 |
7.1% |
|
Cloncurry, Qld |
$220,000 |
$85,100 |
$1,050 |
7.4% |
|
Cobar, NSW |
$200,000 |
$75,600 |
$950 |
7.5% |
|
Port Pirie West, SA |
$160,000 |
$59,700 |
$760 |
7.6% |
|
Broken Hill, NSW |
$180,000 |
$66,200 |
$860 |
7.7% |
Across the unit market, Mosman Park in Greater Perth appears to be where homeowners can find mortgage repayments the most manageable amid rate rises.
The median sale price in Mosman Park is $350,000 while the average income is $170,000. Mortgage holders in the suburb spend $1,660 on repayments.
Unit suburbs in the list are mostly from regional areas, with some in the Greater Perth region joining the list, including Mosman Park, Wembley, and Cottesloe:
|
Suburb |
Median sale price |
Average total income |
Current mortgage repayments |
Mortgage repayments as a share of income (%) |
|
Mosman Park, WA |
$350,000 |
$170,200 |
$1,660 |
5.9% |
|
South Gladstone, Qld |
$170,000 |
$78,100 |
$810 |
6.2% |
|
Emerald, Qld |
$200,000 |
$89,700 |
$950 |
6.4% |
|
West End, Qld |
$215,000 |
$85,700 |
$1,020 |
7.2% |
|
Wembley, WA |
$290,000 |
$114,000 |
$1,380 |
7.3% |
|
South Hedland, WA |
$260,000 |
$98,700 |
$1,240 |
7.5% |
|
Cottesloe, WA |
$910,000 |
$331,100 |
$4,320 |
7.8% |
|
Manunda, Qld |
$195,000 |
$69,200 |
$920 |
8.0% |
|
Hermit Park, Qld |
$200,000 |
$68,700 |
$950 |
8.3% |
|
Bungalow, Qld |
$205,000 |
$69,200 |
$970 |
8.4% |
While some suburbs have been able to avoid heavy impacts from the rate hikes so far, the overall affordability of housing seemed to continue moderating.
In fact, the Housing Industry Association (HIA)’s Affordability Index went down 1.1% over the first quarter of the year.
The index found that overall, it requires 1.6 average incomes to service the typical new mortgage, compared to 1.2 incomes in 2019.
Most capital cities witnessed a decline in affordability index, with only Hobart reporting an improvement over the period.
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