- Perth remains the most affordable capital city in Australia
- The 10 cheapest suburbs in Perth within a 30km radius of the CBD have house median prices below $365,000
- Camillo in Perth's south east has a median house price of just $299,000
While Perth house prices have soared to levels not seen since the last mining boom, Perth remains the most affordable capital city in the country.
The Real Estate Institute of Western Australia (REIWA) reports that, as of March 2022, the median house price in Perth is $527,000. Given house prices have historically increased with interest rate rises, it is likely this will increase in the short term.
SQM Research shows that weekly asking prices have risen to $760,000.
Greater Perth
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But where are the cheapest suburbs?
Several months ago, REIWA published a list of the cheapest suburbs for houses in Perth. To meet the list, these suburbs must be within 30 kilometres of the Perth CBD.
Houses also have to be detached dwellings, and wholly own the land they are on. This excludes apartments, units, villas and caravan park homes.
Due to the distance constraint, the list excludes some of the cheapest areas of Perth such as Armadale, Kwinana and surrounding areas. Mandurah is excluded, due to the distance from CBD and it is technically part of the Peel region.
Where are the cheapest homes in Perth?
- Camillo – $299,000
- Gosnells – $333,000
- Middle Swan – $335,000
- Lockridge – $337,500
- Midland – $342,000
- Kelmscott – $343,500
- Balga – $350,000
- Maddington – $350,000
- Stratton – $350,000
- Koondoola – $364,000
Most of these suburbs are found in Perth’s south eastern corridor (Camilo and Gosnells for example), although some are north (Balga and Koondoola) and east (Lockrige, Middle Swan and Midland). Notably, none are west of the CBD, although it should be noted relatively cheap apartments, villas and units can be found west of the Perth CBD.
AS REIWA President Damian Collins noted, Perth is very fortunate to have plenty of affordable properties within 30 kilometres, something that is unthinkable for most Sydneysiders and Melburnians.
“These 10 suburbs show just how achievable it is to own a home within 30 kilometres of Perth’s city centre,” said Mr Collins.
Mr Collins added that all ten suburbs have a median house price – not just any dwelling, but house price – below $375,000, with all bar Koondoola having a price below $350,000.
“Some of the suburbs on this list, like Lockridge, Balga and Koondoola, are less than 15 kilometres from the CBD. You would need to outlay over a million dollars to buy a house in Sydney this close to its CBD,” Mr Collins said.
“Perth is in a very enviable position compared to its eastern state counterparts. Our strong economy, resilient property market and affordable house prices has kept the Australian dream of home ownership alive and well in WA.”
Let’s talk about Camillo
Arguably among the least well-known of the suburbs on this list, Camillo is 25 kilometres south east of the Perth CBD, and five kilometres north west of Armadale.
It was part of Kelmscott (itself the sixth cheapest suburb in Perth) and until 2008 was called Westfield, perhaps explaining why it isn’t well known.
As of the 2016 census, 4,408 people live in Camillo, with a median age of 35 years, below the national median, and one year below the Perth median.
While Camilo has enjoyed a 13.2% price growth over the past year – well above the Perth metro region growth rate of 3.5% – price growth over the past five and ten years has been just 0.3% and 0.6% respectively.
Both of these statistics are below the 0.6% and 1.3% rates enjoyed by the Perth metropolitan region during the same time.
The census revealed that there were 1,586 occupied dwellings (excluding visitor-only households) with 174 unoccupied dwellings. Median weekly household incomes were $1,209, well below Perth’s median of $1,643. Median mortgage repayments are $1,481 monthly, well below the Perth median ($2,000).
6111 – Camillo and surrounding suburbs, including Kelmscott, Champion Lakes and Roleystone
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SQM Research data shows that weekly asking prices in the area are just shy of $400,000. While this 8.9% up over the past year, it is 0.7% below the same level 10 years ago, and well below the $544,000 level seen in December 2014.
Stock on the market for sale has declined compared to much of the past decade, although there has been a slight uptick recently.
6111 – Camillo and surrounding suburbs, including Kelmscott, Champion Lakes and Roleystone
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Although Camilo as a suburb is tiny, being only 3 square kilometres large, over 95% of dwellings are houses. 24.1% are fully owned, 50.5% currently being purchased with the bulk of the remaining dwellings being rented (25.1%).
Public and private schools serving the area include Kelmscott Primary School, Kelmscott Senior High School, Cecil Andrews College, Southern College, Lumen Christi and Armadale Senior High School.
Currently, Camillo has a three-bedroom, one-bathroom home on a 769 sqm block listed for $199,000 – $100,000 below the median. Although built in the 1970s, much of the dwelling is in a good condition, unlike many of the cheapest houses available in Australia.
Other cheap houses in Perth…
In nearby Kelmscott (number six on the list) there is a three-bedroom, one-bathroom house built in 1966 that is currently listed for $200,000, which is $143,500 below the median.
The Trangie Way house is a brick/veener home with wood floors throughout. It is built on a 332 sqm block, with the old backyard subdivided.
What about suburbs outside of these top ten, but still considered to be in the metropolitan area?
Among the cheapest houses for sale in Perth at the moment is this three-bedroom, one-bathroom home in Medina, which is 32 kilometres south of Perth, located in the Kwinana area.
The house is set on a significant 809 sqm block – the average in Perth is around 384.5 sqm, according to the Urban Development Institute of WA (UDIA) – however, the 1954-built home has seen better days. It does need significant renovation work. The house also has a large power workshop.
It is currently listed for $175,000 via Open Negotiation. At time of publication there is no house for sale in Melbourne or Sydney within 32 kilometres of either CBD available at this price.
So, if willing to do go 30 kilometres or so south east of the Perth CBD, houses can be found for $250,000 – a rarity compared to most of the Australian capital cities.
