How much it costs to buy property in Australia's most beautiful towns

Far be it for me to assume, but it’s likely not a stretch to say that most of us don’t live an Instagram life.

Everyday life is not is set against a backdrop of roaring sunsets over historic bridges, or pristine expanses of turquoise sea lapping bright white sand. Everyday life is not national parks, the salty tang of the ocean and posts hashtagged “staircasetothemoon”.

That is, of course, unless you are someone who actually lives in one of these places.

Australia’s most beautiful towns have been ranked by social media and if you are a resident of Richmond, Tasmania, you are truly living your best Instagram life.

Ranked first on MortgageBroker.com.au’s list – based on figures combined from Instagram hashtags and Pinterest pins – this tiny and very historic town has 4.9 million Instagram hashtags and 1088 pins, according to the research.

Others on the list included Byron Bay in NSW, Noosa and Port Douglas in Queensland, Albany, Exmouth, Broome and the Margaret River in Western Australia, Daylesford in Victoria and Moonta in South Australia.

Since these picturesque locations dominate the social platforms, perhaps it is no surprise that buying into these places does not come cheaply.

Byron Bay, once a hippie and backpacker haven, is now home to the rich, famous, and everything in between. It sports a median house price of $2.28 million.

Noosa Heads, on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast, has a median house price of $2.053 million. Port Douglas in tropical north Queensland, has a median house price of $1.175 million.

Even Richmond, home to less than 900 people, has a median house price of $827,500 – that’s $141,500 more than Hobart’s.

Richmond is steeped in history. It’s home to Australia’s oldest working bridge and the sheer history of the town acts as a magnet not only to the thousands of tourists who descend upon it each year but also to the locals who live there.

Offers Over $990,000

15 Gunning Street, Richmond TAS 7025

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Agent Anne Stuart of Raine & Horne Sorell says the tightly bound community keeps the local housing market tight and prices higher than in Hobart, 25 kilometres away.

“Towns like Richmond, you’re more born and bred there,” she says. “People grow up there and live their whole lives there.

Offers Over $1,290,000

9 & 9A Wellington Street, Richmond TAS 7025

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“For those who do buy there, the history of Richmond is why they buy there … to live in that sort of historic place is what they love about it.”

But not every sought-after setting for the socials comes with a real estate price tag to match.

For those who truly want to live a life with a backdrop worthy of Instagram, it can be done on a budget as little as $500,000.

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14 Prisk Lane, Moonta SA 5558

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Moonta, in South Australia, has a median house price around half that of Melbourne or Canberra.

Houses there have been bought for as little as $155,000 this year, although at that price, buyers would be looking at something in a knockdown state.

However, for less than $500,000, buyers can pick up either a renovated cottage on 2000 square metres of land or a small beach house within walking distance of the bay and the picturesque Moonta Jetty.

In Albany, located at the southern tip of Western Australia, turquoise blue water laps at the bright white sand.

It is not difficult to see what has the Instagrammers uploading en masse, but what is even clearer is how many of them do not know how affordable it would be to live with that view on tap all day, every day.

The median house price in Albany is just $543,000, which puts it on par with the suburb of Melton West in Melbourne, but the views are different.

Local Ray White agent Les Ralston is selling a spectacular block of land with unrestricted views over Princess Royal Harbour. The owner is asking for offers over $399,000, but he says buyers will need to be quick as interest has been strong already.

“For that price with views that beautiful, honestly, it’s cheap,” he says.

Offers Above $420,000

15A Festing Street, Albany WA 6330

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Ralston says that for all of the jibes about Instagram, the influx of tourists, and their hashtags of #albanywesternaustralia had all done their part in putting the town on the map. This, in turn, had converted tourists into permanent residents, who bought property and laid down roots there.

“Albany was flying under the radar for some time but when people couldn’t travel during COVID, that’s when it was really discovered,” he says.

“Albany property used to sell for less than replacement value. Now, prices have gone crazy. We have a lot of visitors who relocate here. They come here as tourists and fall in love with the place … or we get a lot of families relocating from the city. And they don’t buy holiday homes, they move here permanently.”

And these are the people living the Instagram life.