In Australia, AUD400,000 (US$276,124) is a lot of money and would go a long way but when it comes to real estate and buying a home, it is another story.
News.com.au reports that it won't go far if we are talking about bricks and mortar in some of Australia's major cities. If you are eyeing Sydney, for example, you would be lucky to get a lock up garage or a tiny studio and not much else.
In relation to this, realestate.com.au says that those who have searced for homes last year had set a budget from AUD0 to AUD400,000. The question is, how far would it go and how realistic would the planned purchase would be if talking about getting a place close to transportation and employment areas?
For instance, in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra, the median prices for both units and houses are AUD780,000, AUD555,000 and AUD570,000 respectively and it would be near impossible to find a decent place under AUD400,000.
To cite an example, Nuri Shik, a selling agent with Laing + Simmons Potts Point/Elizabeth Bay listed a 22sq m studio apartment on Macleay St, Potts Point (just 3.3km from the CBD), with a price guide of AUD379,000. However, this is something he is not expecting to last long.
He said, "Under AUD400,000 there are some studios but they get snapped up pretty quickly. People are buying them as part of their super portfolios. And they don't just buy one - they tend to buy a few. They know how to create wealth."
It is not that it is impossible to find good places with a budget of AUD400,000, however, those looking would have to look hard, far and wide. If you get lucky, according to realestate.com.au, South Australia and Western Australia still have hot suburbs that will make your AUD400,000 totally worth it. Buyers would even get a chance to buy a good house and perhaps a property in a top performing postcode
Bruce Walker, managing director of Walker and Keipert in Adelaide said, "People really look at houses here as exactly the same as house in (nearby) St Clair, but they're AUD150,000 to AUD200,000 cheaper. The reason it's (Mansfield Park) going up so quickly is, it's so close to the city."
Next to Mansfield, news.com.au continues, the most affordable and profitable suburds are Maddington, WA, with a yearl annual growth of 4.1 per cent to $366,500 was recorder; Salisbury Heights, SA, with prices up to 4 per cent to AUD360,000; and Langford, WA, with sales up to 3.4 per cent to AUD395,000.
