Homeowners Alyce Stimpson and Adam Hong spent years saving up and investing to get their new home – and with Brisbane’s prices spiking, they’re not sure they would be able to get into the market otherwise.
“If we started from scratch, I don’t know how we’d have been able to afford this, because it’s so expensive,” Ms Stimpson said.
“I feel like because we got into the real estate market quite a few years ago with investments, and we sold those before this, that’s the only way we could.”
Homeowners Alyce Stimpson and Adam Hong said if they tried to get into the housing market today, they didn’t think they’d make it.
The family’s concerns come off the heels of Brisbane entering the million-dollar market, with the city’s median house price having now hit $1.015 million.
PropTrack’s latest Home Price Index released this week showed Queensland’s houses and units jumped by the equivalent of an average annual salary ($74,800) in the past 12 months.
Across Brisbane, the median price for all properties still remains at $908,000, when also accounting for unit prices.
Brisbane’s median house price has finally hit the $1 million mark, with home prices jumping by the equivalent of an average annual salary.
Ms Stimpson and Mr Hong just finished building their new property in the Sunshine Coast, with Queensland builder Creation Homes. The company recently partnered with brokerage firm Resolve Finance to combine builds and loans under one service, in order to help homeowners save costs.
“Having both finance and build in a one-stop shop [would] take away so much of the guesswork and make the whole process even easier,” she said.
“We’ve sold pretty much everything to get this house, and feel a bit more comfortable, and this’ll be our home for quite a while.”
Ms Stimpson and Mr Hong invested when they were younger, which they were able to save up for their new home build.
Creation Homes’ Queensland general manager, Peter Ryan, said the milestone reflected both Brisbane’s “rapid growth, and the ongoing demand for housing”.
“It signals confidence in the market but also highlights the affordability challenges facing many Queenslanders,” he said.
Mr Ryan added Creation Homes’ land and build options were designed for homeowners still seeking residences under the million dollar mark.
“New builds offer real advantages, particularly in a market like this,” he said. “Not only do you get the benefit of modern design and energy efficiency, but you may also qualify for government incentives such as the First Home Owner Grant and stamp duty concessions, which aren’t available when buying established homes over certain price points.”
Creation Homes, which worked with Ms Stimpson and Mr Hong, is still marketing land and house builds around Brisbane for under the $1m mark.
With Ms Stimpson’s family recently back from holiday, the homeowner said she worried new financial pressures would affect what the four would do in the future.
“We saved up. It won’t be another holiday for a while,” she said.
“I’d say get into the market as soon as you can before it goes sky high.”
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