well-money-ceo-scott-spencer-construction-background-feature
Well Money’s CEO Scott Spencer, the company commissioning the research. Image: Supplied; The Property Tribune.
  • The two states with most suburbs on the list are Queensland and Victoria
  • The criteria has a strong focus on owner-occupiers and freestanding homes
  • Some suburbs had as much as three months inventory

Well Money Homes has commissioned research to identify the top 20 family housing markets in Australia, defining a “family suburb” as:

  • Having a median house price between $200,000 and $1.5 million,
  • No more than 200 kilometres from a capital city CBD,
  • Having a minimum of 70% owner-occupiers accounting for the local population,
  • Having a minimum of 60% freestanding houses accounting for the local dwellings,
  • Having at least 2.5 people per household, on average, and
  • Having a SEIFA education score of at least 6.

The top 20 are then ranked based on change in inventory levels over the previous three months.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics ranks Australian areas by relative socio-economic advantage and disadvantage, with the acronym standing for Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas.

The education and occupation score looks at, well, education and occupation. A score of at least 6 means it is in the top half of the country for educational and occupational status.

Well Money did note that while these suburbs are good for a family, they aren’t guaranteed to rise in price or outperform the market. “Sophisticated data analysis has found these locations are good places for typical families to live right now, but that doesn’t mean they’ll have strong price growth in the future,” said the report.

Top 20 suburbs to start a family

Rank State Suburb Postcode Median house price Increase in inventory levels over past 3 months
1 QLD Barellan Point 4306 $807,000 +3.3 months
2 SA Willunga 5172 $607,500 +3.3 months
3 QLD Mons 4556 $1,100,000 +3.2 months
4 WA Boya 6056 $620,000 +3.0 months
5 QLD Nudgee 4014 $855,000 +2.8 months
6 VIC Gisborne 3437 $1,050,000 +2.7 months
7 VIC Junortoun 3551 $750,000 +2.6 months
8 VIC Silvan 3795 $1,395,000 +2.5 months
9 QLD Camp Mountain 4520 $1,300,000 +2.5 months
10 QLD Newport 4020 $1,350,000 +2.4 months
11 VIC Selby 3159 $1,000,000 +2.3 months
12 WA Warwick 6024 $630,000 +2.3 months
13 SA West Lakes Shore 5020 $842,000 +2.2 months
14 WA Edgewater 6027 $630,000 +1.9 months
15 NSW Bolwarra Heights 2320 $940,000 +1.9 months
16 VIC Torquay 3228 $1,330,000 +1.9 months
17 ACT Curtin 2605 $1,421,000 +1.8 months
18 QLD Black Mountain 4563 $950,000 +1.8 months
19 NSW Saratoga 2251 $1,300,000 +1.7 months
20 VIC Viewbank 3084 $1,270,000 +1.7 months

A quick wrap

Queensland and Victoria seem to be the states to reside in, according to the list, with six suburbs each from the states making the top 20. Western Australia had three in the list, with two in New South Wales and South Australia each, and one in the Australian Capital Territory.

Well Money CEO Scott Spencer said this data was good news for buyers looking for a place to settle with family because: “Over the past three months, inventory levels have increased in all the suburbs, which means there’s more stock on market, buyers have more options and downward pressure is being placed on prices, which should translate into discounts sooner or later.”

Suburb by suburb breakdown

Barellan Point

Indicator Result
Median house price $807,000
Inventory level – February 2022 0.0 months
Inventory level – May 2022 3.3 months
Inventory level – change +3.3 months
Average household weekly income $1,726
Owner-occupier share of local population 88%
Freestanding house share of local population 99%
SEIFA education score 6

Willunga

Indicator Result
Median house price $607,500
Inventory level – February 2022 1.1 months
Inventory level – May 2022 4.4 months
Inventory level – change +3.3 months
Average household weekly income $1,360
Owner-occupier share of local population 85%
Freestanding house share of local population 99%
SEIFA education score 8

Mons

Indicator Result
Median house price $1,100,000
Inventory level – February 2022 1.0 months
Inventory level – May 2022 4.2 months
Inventory level – change +3.2 months
Average household weekly income $2,238
Owner-occupier share of local population 88%
Freestanding house share of local population 97%
SEIFA education score 10

Boya

Indicator Result
Median house price $620,000
Inventory level – February 2022 0.8 months
Inventory level – May 2022 3.8 months
Inventory level – change +3.0 months
Average household weekly income $1,919
Owner-occupier share of local population 92%
Freestanding house share of local population 100%
SEIFA education score 8

Nudgee

Indicator Result
Median house price $855,000
Inventory level – February 2022 1.3 months
Inventory level – May 2022 4.1 months
Inventory level – change +2.8 months
Average household weekly income $2,091
Owner-occupier share of local population 75%
Freestanding house share of local population 92%
SEIFA education score 9

Gisborne

Indicator Result
Median house price $1,050,000
Inventory level – February 2022 2.5 months
Inventory level – May 2022 5.3 months
Inventory level – change +2.7 months
Average household weekly income $1,863
Owner-occupier share of local population 83%
Freestanding house share of local population 88%
SEIFA education score 9

Junortoun

Indicator Result
Median house price $750,000
Inventory level – February 2022 0.7 months
Inventory level – May 2022 3.3 months
Inventory level – change +2.6 months
Average household weekly income $1,819
Owner-occupier share of local population 96%
Freestanding house share of local population 97%
SEIFA education score 8

Silvan

Indicator Result
Median house price $1,395,000
Inventory level – February 2022 0.7 months
Inventory level – May 2022 3.2 months
Inventory level – change +2.5 months
Average household weekly income $1,698
Owner-occupier share of local population 89%
Freestanding house share of local population 99%
SEIFA education score 7

Camp Mountain

Indicator Result
Median house price $1,300,000
Inventory level – February 2022 2.7 months
Inventory level – May 2022 5.1 months
Inventory level – change +2.5 months
Average household weekly income $2,419
Owner-occupier share of local population 90%
Freestanding house share of local population 98%
SEIFA education score 10

Newport

Indicator Result
Median house price $1,350,000
Inventory level – February 2022 3.2 months
Inventory level – May 2022 5.6 months
Inventory level – change +2.4 months
Average household weekly income $1,990
Owner-occupier share of local population 89%
Freestanding house share of local population 95%
SEIFA education score 8

Selby

Indicator Result
Median house price $1,000,000
Inventory level – February 2022 1.2 months
Inventory level – May 2022 3.6 months
Inventory level – change +2.3 months
Average household weekly income $1,835
Owner-occupier share of local population 94%
Freestanding house share of local population 99%
SEIFA education score 9

Warwick

Indicator Result
Median house price $630,000
Inventory level – February 2022 2.6 months
Inventory level – May 2022 4.9 months
Inventory level – change +2.3 months
Average household weekly income $1,586
Owner-occupier share of local population 81%
Freestanding house share of local population 93%
SEIFA education score 8

West Lakes Shore

Indicator Result
Median house price $842,000
Inventory level – February 2022 1.0 months
Inventory level – May 2022 3.2 months
Inventory level – change +2.2 months
Average household weekly income $1,498
Owner-occupier share of local population 84%
Freestanding house share of local population 65%
SEIFA education score 8

Edgewater

Indicator Result
Median house price $630,000
Inventory level – February 2022 4.0 months
Inventory level – May 2022 5.9 months
Inventory level – change +1.9 months
Average household weekly income $1,830
Owner-occupier share of local population 83%
Freestanding house share of local population 96%
SEIFA education score 8

Bolwarra Heights

Indicator Result
Median house price $940,000
Inventory level – February 2022 1.7 months
Inventory level – May 2022 3.6 months
Inventory level – change +1.9 months
Average household weekly income $2,147
Owner-occupier share of local population 89%
Freestanding house share of local population 97%
SEIFA education score 8

Torquay

Indicator Result
Median house price $1,330,000
Inventory level – February 2022 1.8 months
Inventory level – May 2022 3.7 months
Inventory level – change +1.9 months
Average household weekly income $1,757
Owner-occupier share of local population 76%
Freestanding house share of local population 87%
SEIFA education score 10

Curtin

Indicator Result
Median house price $1,421,000
Inventory level – February 2022 0.9 months
Inventory level – May 2022 2.7 months
Inventory level – change +1.8 months
Average household weekly income $2,255
Owner-occupier share of local population 74%
Freestanding house share of local population 84%
SEIFA education score 10

Black Mountain

Indicator Result
Median house price $950,000
Inventory level – February 2022 1.4 months
Inventory level – May 2022 3.2 months
Inventory level – change +1.8 months
Average household weekly income $1,260
Owner-occupier share of local population 88%
Freestanding house share of local population 97%
SEIFA education score 7

Saratoga

Indicator Result
Median house price $1,300,000
Inventory level – February 2022 1.6 months
Inventory level – May 2022 3.3 months
Inventory level – change +1.7 months
Average household weekly income $1,638
Owner-occupier share of local population 84%
Freestanding house share of local population 95%
SEIFA education score 8

Viewbank

Indicator Result
Median house price $1,270,000
Inventory level – February 2022 1.0 months
Inventory level – May 2022 2.7 months
Inventory level – change +1.7 months
Average household weekly income $1,746
Owner-occupier share of local population 87%
Freestanding house share of local population 90%
SEIFA education score 9


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