What a deal! Nollsy’s old town has houses for $232,000. Picture: Matt Williams
ANALYSIS
If you thought buying a house in Australia meant spending upwards of a million dollars, think again.
New PropTrack data has revealed dozens of regional towns across the country where homes are still selling for under $300,000, including one location with a rock star connection.
Bear in mind, Australia’s cheapest markets are priced that way for a reason. They may have a lack of demand from other buyers due to falling population, a lack of employment opportunities, or because a nearby mine has closed down.
But if a cheap house is what you’re after, there are 43 suburbs across the nation that fit under that $300,000 price bracket.
Coober Pedy houses are, unsurprisingly, pretty cheap.
MORE:Foreign buyer scores Aus property larger than Lebanon
The most affordable market is in the outback South Australian town of Coober Pedy, where the median house price is just $77,500. Known for its opal mines and underground homes built to escape the desert heat, the town remains the cheapest place in the nation to buy.
From there, the bargains stretch across various states. Charleville, in Queensland’s outback, has a median of $165,000, while houses in Coonamble in western NSW change hands for around $170,000. Tasmania’s Queenstown and Rosebery, both mining towns on the west coast, have house medians of $180,000 and $188,000 respectively.
One of the best-known cheap housing markets is Broken Hill in far-west NSW. The former mining town has long been popular with tree-changers and artists, with 464 houses selling in the past year at a median of $200,000.
Broken Hill is a famous town to make the list. Picture: iStock
SCROLL TO BOTTOM FOR FULL LIST
REVEALED: Aus’ most disaster prone suburbs
Other regional centres with strong turnover include Whyalla Stuart in SA (175 houses sold, median $208,000) and Port Augusta (206 sales, $258,750). Mining hubs like Blackwater in Queensland and Roxby Downs in SA also featured, with prices in the mid-$200,000s.
One town on the list with a touch of celebrity is Condobolin in central NSW, where the median is $232,500. The town is famously the hometown of singer Shannon Noll, who shot to fame on Australian Idol in 2003.
A young Nollsy on the family farm in Condobolin.
MORE:Nine out of 10 Boomers causing Aussie crisis
Other towns of historic note include Longreach (home of Qantas’ first hangar, $250,000 median), Townsville ($260,000), and Qld gold rush town Clermont ($280,000).
For investors, the appeal of these towns lies not only in price but in rental yields, which often outperform metro markets. With medians under $300,000, towns like Ingham in North Queensland ($290,000), Wellington in NSW’s Orana region ($295,000), and St Arnaud ($290,000) in northwest Victoria, have rental yields at 7 per cent or higher, making them positively geared for investors.
43 suburbs below $300,000 median for houses
| Suburb | State | Number Sold 12 months | House median |
| Coober Pedy | SA | 38 | $77,500 |
| Kambalda East | WA | 30 | $165,000 |
| Charleville | QLD | 69 | $165,000 |
| Coonamble | NSW | 43 | $170,000 |
| Peterborough | SA | 34 | $172,500 |
| Collinsville | QLD | 72 | $179,500 |
| Queenstown | TAS | 40 | $180,000 |
| Rosebery | TAS | 31 | $188,000 |
| Kambalda West | WA | 68 | $195,000 |
| Broken Hill | NSW | 464 | $200,000 |
| Port Pirie West | SA | 69 | $200,000 |
| Tara | QLD | 45 | $200,000 |
| Whyalla Stuart | SA | 175 | $208,000 |
| Warracknabeal | VIC | 56 | $215,000 |
| Condobolin | NSW | 50 | $232,500 |
| Cloncurry | QLD | 59 | $235,000 |
| Dysart | QLD | 87 | $239,000 |
| Whyalla Norrie | SA | 163 | $243,000 |
| Ceduna | SA | 35 | $245,000 |
| Blackwater | QLD | 129 | $245,000 |
| Moura | QLD | 58 | $247,500 |
| Barraba | NSW | 37 | $250,000 |
| Longreach | QLD | 62 | $250,000 |
| Wee Waa | NSW | 49 | $250,000 |
| Hay | NSW | 43 | $250,000 |
| Roxby Downs | SA | 63 | $252,000 |
| Dimboola | VIC | 44 | $252,500 |
| Sunset | QLD | 38 | $257,000 |
| Port Augusta | SA | 206 | $258,750 |
| Nhill | VIC | 43 | $260,000 |
| Charters Towers City | QLD | 90 | $260,000 |
| Merredin | WA | 71 | $265,000 |
| Nyngan | NSW | 33 | $270,000 |
| Cobar | NSW | 92 | $272,500 |
| Home Hill | QLD | 46 | $275,000 |
| Clermont | QLD | 71 | $280,000 |
| Mount Morgan | QLD | 71 | $285,000 |
| Ingham | QLD | 78 | $290,000 |
| St Arnaud | VIC | 44 | $290,000 |
| Soldiers Hill | QLD | 50 | $292,000 |
| Wellington | NSW | 100 | $295,000 |
| Wagin | WA | 47 | $295,000 |
| Monto | QLD | 38 | $295,000 |
English (US) · 