The 5 best suburbs in Canberra for first home buyers 2022
Find out which suburbs in Canberra made the top 5 list in Canstar’s Bright Starters Australian First Home Buyer Report powered by Hotspotting.
There are plenty of great locations in Canberra where you can buy a home for less than $803,413. This was the cut-off price we used to come up with our ‘Bright Starter’ suburbs in the nation’s capital. (For more on why we chose this see our full report.)
Of course, price isn’t the only consideration for first home buyers. A good lifestyle and prospects for growth should also be on the checklist. In Canstar’s inaugural Bright Starters Australian First Home Buyer Report we used five key metrics – sales volumes, price growth, vacancy rates, infrastructure and proximity to work and amenities – to identify suburbs that are desirable and likely to grow in value over time. Check out our list below.
The 5 best suburbs in Canberra for first home buyers
- Charnwood
- Dickson (Units)
- Gungahlin (Units)
- Isabella Plains
- Ngunnawal
Charnwood
Canberra is an expensive city, with a median house price above $1 million and few cheap suburbs. Charnwood is one of the most affordable, with houses in the high $500,000s and low $600,000s, and ultra-low vacancies. It’s in Canberra’s north, with multiple schools, a shopping centre and, like much of Canberra, great access to parks and reserves. Ginninderra Drive connects to the University of Canberra and the neighbouring Belconnen Town Centre.
Dickson (Units)
Apartments in the inner north suburb of Dickson present an affordable way to access good local facilities and all the amenities and employment prospects around Canberra City. Dickson has schools, shopping and green spaces, plus quick access to the vast Canberra Nature Park. The median house price is close to $1 million but typical units are half the price, despite recent price uplift. Vacancies are well below 1% and rents are high.
Gungahlin (Units)
Apartments in the northern hub of Gungahlin provide a rare Canberra option – buying in the $300,000s and $400,000s near major amenities and job opportunities. Gungahlin has major retail and education facilities and is the starting point of the train service to central Canberra. It’s surrounded by the sprawling Canberra Nature Park and has the Gungahlin Lakes Golf Club.
Isabella Plains
There’s been plenty of notable uplift recently in buyer demand and prices in the Tuggeranong precinct of Canberra, including Isabella Plains where vacancies are near zero and rents are soaring. Isabella Plains has its own amenities and is a short hop to the Tuggeranong Town Centre, which includes shopping centres, an office park, sports and leisure facilities, and a bus interchange. There are lots of parks and green corridors.
Ngunnawal
Green spaces and leisure facilities are a feature of Canberra, but Ngunnawal is particularly well serviced, including the Gungahlin Lakes Golf Club and amenities around Yerrabi Pond. It’s a neighbour of Gungahlin, the key hub in that part of northern Canberra, with its retail, commercial and education facilities, plus the train station to ride to central Canberra. Houses are in the $600,000s and units $500,000s, after major recent increases.
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The best suburbs in Canberra for first home buyers
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Suburb | Median price | 1-year growth | Median rent | 10% Deposit | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Initial outlay* | Time to save^ | Monthly repayment+ | |||||
Single income | Dual income | ||||||
Charnwood | $615,000 | 21% | $520 | $62,071 (plus $16,368 stamp duty for dual income) | 5 yrs & 4 mths | 3 yrs & 3 mths | $2,502 |
Dickson (U) | $510,000 | 27% | $540 | $51,571 (plus $11,832 stamp duty for dual income) | 4 yrs & 5 mths | 2 yrs & 8 mths | $2,064 |
Gungahlin (U) | $405,000 | 9% | $470 | $41,071 (plus $8,170 stamp duty for dual income) | 3 yrs & 6 mths | 2 yrs & 1 mth | $1,639 |
Isabella Plains | $685,000 | 14% | $550 | $69,071 (plus $19,392 stamp duty for dual income) | 6 yrs | 3 yrs & 8 mths | $2,787 |
Ngunnawal | $685,000 | 18% | $560 | $69,071 (plus $19,392 stamp duty for dual income) | 6 yrs | 3 yrs & 8 mths | $2,787 |
Sources: Median price, growth and median rent: CoreLogic as at 1 February 2022. Initial outlay, time to save and repayment data: canstar.com.au as at March 2022. (U) stands for units. *Initial outlay includes the deposit, stamp duty, transfer fee and mortgage registration fee. ^Time to save calculations are based on the time required to save up the initial outlay costs with the average income (ABS Personal Income by greater capital city statistical area, adjusted by ABS Wage Price Index, June 2021). Calculations assume that 20% of after-tax income is saved each month, earning a savings rate of 0.62% (average bonus savings rate over the past 12 months to 1/03/22). 2021/22 tax rates plus the 2% Medicare Levy are applied to the annual income and savings interest, and inflation of 2.5%pa is applied to income and property price. Dual income calculations assume there are two savers with the average income. Actual time to save will vary depending on your individual circumstances as well as the rate of property growth. +Repayment calculations assume principal and interest repayments over a 30-year loan term with an interest rate of 3.36% (average owner-occupier variable rate over the 12 months to 1 March 2022). LMI for an owner-occupier first home buyer (per Genworth LMI Premium Calculator) is included in the loan amount for the 10% deposit monthly repayment calculations. ~ ACT Stamp duty concession available for total income up to $160,000, which the dual-income scenarios do not qualify for. For initial outlay, time to save and repayment data based on a 20% deposit download the full Bright Starters report.
Cover image source: HarrisR/Shutterstock.com
About Terry Ryder
Terry is the founder and Managing Director of hotspotting.com.au, which he created in 2006 to help investors find the best places to buy. Terry has been a specialist researcher and writer on Australian residential property in a career spanning four decades. During that time he has published four books.
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