Looking at buying a home in metro Adelaide and only have $500,000 to spend?
Well, according to new data, and Adelaide’s property experts, your choice of suburb has all but dried up.
The latest PropTrack data reveals there is currently only one suburb in Adelaide with a median house price of less than $500,000.
And even then, it only just sneaks in.
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Elizabeth North in Adelaide’s northern suburbs, currently has a median house price of $496,000.
To put this into context, this time in 2023 – just two years ago – that same suburb had a median house price of $300,000.
And it wasn’t even Adelaide’s cheapest.
Elizabeth South, just, well, south of Elizabeth North, had a median house price of $296,000.
In fact, just two years ago there were 36 suburbs with a median house price of $500,000 or less – still not great when you consider that’s just 36 out of the 328 metro suburbs PropTrack have data for, but a damn sight better than the current single offering.
Real Estate Institute of South Australia chief executive officer Andrea Heading says SA homes had grown in value enormously in recent years, but that that could not continue forever.
REISA CEO Andrea Heading. Supplied
“It has to stabilise at some stage because it can’t just keep on up, but while there’s limited supply then what is coming on the market is being snapped up at record prices and in record time,” she says.
“Certainly, affordability is a huge issue here, and there are a lot of hopeful homebuyers out there who have been really dismayed by the growth seen in recent years.”
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Ms Heading says buyers looking to enter the market need to look beyond their preference for a house and seek an alternative.
“Consider your other options just to get a foothold, and if it’s not houses at that pricepoint, then consider units or something like a homette, a townhouse, an apartment – all of that – because there are ways to get in if you want to, it just might not be a house,” she said.
“Certainly buyers at that price point will have more luck finding a unit than a house.”
Buyers are encouraged to consider their options.
And she’s right. For those looking to buy for $500,000 or under in Adelaide and who can’t afford a house, 32 suburbs currently have a median unit price that fits that criteria.
All up now, at 33, there are fewer suburbs where you can buy either a median-priced house or unit for less than $500,000 than there were suburbs with a median house price of $500k or less.
And even then, there were another 144 suburbs that fit that bill.
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If my maths checks out, that puts the total number of suburbs with a median house or unit price of $500,000 or less at 200.
Two hundred. Two years ago.
Compared to 33 now.
Edge Realty principal Mike Lao says Adelaide’s northern suburbs – which feature heavily in the list of sub-$500k unit suburbs – have seen phenomenal growth in recent years, making it difficult for some to get into the market.
Edge Realty principal Mike Lao.
“That said, there are still some great properties within reach of a lot of first home buyers,” he said.
“And comparatively, they’re a lot more affordable than similar properties closer to the city.
“The growth in this region has been huge in recent years, but it’s still home to Adelaide’s most affordable and accessible homes.
“It’s just a matter of doing your research and finding something that’s within your budget.
“If you can’t find something now, you generally don’t have to wait long until you do – there’s new stock hitting the market all the time.”
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