Where SA singles can still afford to buy

Looking to buy a home in SA on a single income?

Well, good luck to you, a new report says, with fresh data indicating none of the 301 South Australian suburbs comparison site Compare The Market has figures for are affordable to a single-income buyer.

It puts Adelaide on par with Hobart and Sydney where 100 per cent of all metropolitan suburbs required a dual salary to purchase a median-priced home.

Nationally, less than 1 per cent of metropolitan suburbs are affordable for single people on an average salary.

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When it comes to couples, the news doesn’t get a whole lot better.

Adelaide was the second worst city in the nation for dual-income househunters – and by a long way – with hopeful buyers only able to afford to buy in one in three suburbs.

Just 33 per cent of all suburbs, or 101, of them, could be bought by an average-earning couple without sending themselves into mortgage stress.

Compare the Market property expert Andrew Winter said staggering value growth had left hopeful buyers on average wages in the dust.

Real estate guru Andrew Winter says it is tough for singles. Image: Luke Marsden.

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“Wage growth has not kept pace with property prices over the past five years, with people on average salaries no longer able to afford in our capitals without coupling up with a loved one, trusted friend or family member,” Mr Winter said.

“When we talk about affordability, we often think of the size of the deposit, but it’s actually the ongoing cost of monthly repayments that are the real strain for most new homeowners.”

The report found the cheapest homes for average couples were units in Salisbury, Salisbury East Paralowie and Klemzig, and Elizabeth North houses, where mortgage repayments needed were 18.8 per cent, 20.1 per cent, 20.1 per cent, 21.1 per cent and 21 per cent of an income respectively.

Compare The Market’s calculations assumed an average $65,000 income, a 20 per cent deposit, with repayments on the remaining loan paid at a 5.97 per cent interest rate.

It caps mortgage repayments at no more than 30 per cent of a household income.

Floor tiler Vinnie Jurkovic, 21, last month bought a block he will build on at Riverlea.

Vinnie Jurkovic, 21, has managed to buy a property at the Riverlea development, north of Adelaide. Picture: Dean Martin

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After saving for about three years throughout his apprenticeship he said he was excited to have a place he will one day call his own home.

“I used to live in Virginia so I wanted to move back into the area,” he said.

“It’s not easy for a single person, but if you have help from your parents, in that you’re living at home and you don’t have expenses then it makes it easier.

“Getting the loan was the hardest part, with the three month saving plan. You just have to be on your bare minimum of costs for three months to show you can afford the property.

“An interest rate will definitely help.”