The Aussie ‘lookalike’ suburbs that could save you $30k a year

Aussies struggling with soaring housing costs could save more than $30,000 a year by swapping their postcode for a cheaper lifestyle “lookalike”, new research reveals. Analysis of every local government area in the country has uncovered unlikely “twin” locations offering a remarkably similar mix of restaurants, entertainment, schools, shopping and other amenities — but with dramatically different housing costs. RELATED: Sellers rush to beat property slump as homes flood market B105 host Abby Coleman in tears after listing beloved family home Aerial photograph of a suburban housing development in Townsville, which has been identified as the lifestyle ‘twin’ of Sydney’s Northern Beaches. The research by removalist platform Muval found some renters could cut their housing costs by more than half without necessarily sacrificing the lifestyle they enjoy, although in many cases it would require an interstate move. The research found Western Australia’s East Pilbara was an 84 per cent lifestyle match to Weipa, but had a median rent of just $132 a week. That $495-a-week difference equates to a 79 per cent reduction, or more than $25,700 a year, while mortgage repayments were calculated to ...