Chemical engineer Stephanie Lim lives as a single woman in the regional town of Gladstone – but when she decided to buy her own home, she made the 500km journey south to find a place in the city.
“I didn’t know if I had enough deposit to put down to afford a home,” she said.
“It took me a whole year that I figured out I do want a place.”
“A lot of my friends are back in Brisbane, so I’d just like to move back there eventually.”
“I don’t really want to be stuck in Gladstone my whole life … the difficult part of establishing friendships [here] is you know they’re gonna leave at some point.”
Chemical engineer and single homebuyer Stephanie Lim travelled 500km south from Gladstone, to buy a Brisbane home before she was priced out. Picture: John Gass
Ms Lim made the decision before she felt she was priced out of the city market. Research by home comparison site Canstar has found Brisbane’s house market is now too pricey for Aussies on an average annual salary.
Ms Lim said working in Gladstone allowed her to pay less rent, which helped her save money for a home deposit.
But even with her available savings, she needed extra help to get her foot in the door.
The average Aussie salary isn’t enough to afford a house in most Brisbane suburbs, according to research by Canstar.
Ms Lim said she was lucky to have her parents, who helped her afford the deposit for a home in Springfield.
“I’m a very independent person, and I’d like to get what I can call mine out of my own ability,” she said. “They’re giving me that money, but I would like to pay them back for it when I can.”
Ms Lim’s on-location job meant she couldn’t move back to Brisbane yet, and hopes renting her home out while she’s away will help increase her options once she returns to the city.
Ms Lim needed help from her family to pay for her home deposit, but plans to pay them back over the years with her future savings. Picture: John Gass
Buyers agent Lauren Jones said she has seen an increase in single women who have managed to find different workarounds to get into the housing market.
“I’ve started seeing a lot more women investing [in property],” she said.
“I’ve seen a lot of single female buyers using self-managed super funds and rent-vesting as well.”
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