Woden Valley offers swifter path to home ownership

First-home buyers looking for the quickest time frame to save for a property in Canberra should consider Woden Valley, new data suggests.

Domain’s 2024 First-Home Buyer Report shows that while it takes younger Canberrans around five years and nine months to save a 20 per cent deposit on an entry-priced home, the second longest in the country, the stakes look slightly different for entry-priced units.

According to the report, the time it takes for a couple aged 25-34 to save a 20 per cent deposit to purchase an entry-priced unit is closer to three years and seven months. This ranks Canberra behind Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.

Of interest, Woden Valley has emerged as the area with the shortest time for buyers to save, with an estimated period of just over three years.

Local agent, Chris Wilson from Cream Residential, said first-home buyers were more active in the Woden Valley precinct, which offers a higher concentration of apartments, particularly around Irving and Easty Streets.

“Housing in the area is very expensive so first-home buyers are generally seeking units and dual occupancy homes,” he said.

Units offer more affordable entry-level price points, with the median unit price in Woden Valley currently $590,000 – an increase of 2.6 per cent over the year.

Housing prices in the area fell 10.5 per cent over 2023, resulting in a median price of $1.175 million.

After Woden, Belconnen was the next region with the shortest period to save for a deposit at three years and four months.

According to Domain’s chief of research and economics, Dr Nicola Powell, Canberra’s higher average wage helps to combat the more expensive entry-unit purchasing price.

“However, it is a tale of property types that unravels this bucking trend, with unit prices jumping almost 8 per cent annually – a challenge even for the higher wages to keep up with — while entry house prices remained stable,” she said.

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