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Jermia Turner, pictured with partner Lloyd Johnston, has been trying for years to crack the property market. Picture: Adam Head
Growing up in the family business, Jermia Turner started planning her financial future early.
But despite saving a sizeable deposit and securing pre-approval for a home loan, the third-generation Logan caravan park operator says home ownership feels increasingly out of reach.
“Buying a home on my own has always been my dream and I’ve been looking on and off for six years or so,” the 32-year-old said.
“I had saved up my deposit, and was looking around the $500,000 mark and I remember then saying, ‘I don’t see the value in this property’.
“The same home would easily be $950,000. It is so hard to wrap my head around the massive price increase.”
Ms Turner is a third-generation Logan caravan park operator. Picture: Adam Head
Ms Turner was originally going to buy with a former partner, but when he wasn’t ready to commit, the opportunity slipped away.
Now, having engaged buyers’ agent Lauren Jones to streamline her search, she has found her budget of about $900,000 is no longer enough to afford the type of property she wants around Daisy Hill, Cornubia or Shailer Park.
“I’ve taken over the family business running a caravan park, which has put me in good stead to have more borrowing capacity, but it is still nowhere near enough to buy anything comfortable.”
While banks typically lend more to couples purchasing together, Ms Turner’s situation highlights the unique challenges faced by young business owners.
A four-bedroom, two-bathroom house listed at $1.13m in Shailer Park
She and her partner, gym owner Lloyd Johnston, live together, but since they are both self-employed, the bank wouldn’t increase their combined borrowing power. As a result, only her name will be on the title.
“I started looking more seriously again at the end of last year, and I engaged Lauren because it was getting to the point where I just can’t find anything that felt liveable on my own, and people were swooping in all the time when a home did become available.
“There was one asking for offers above $900,000 that I thought was brilliant, but by the time we spoke about offers it was sold to a cash buyer for over $1m.”
Ms Turner established a strong savings habit early, taking over front counter duties from the age of 14 as she learnt to run the business held by her family since 1974.
A four-bedroom, two-bathroom house advertised at $895,000 is under offer at Daisy Hill
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She wanted to buy a three-bedroom, two-bathroom home, but found the only affordable properties either had just one bathroom or were in need of significant upgrades.
“I don’t know how people can afford it – even having a really solid deposit gets you nowhere,” Ms Turner said.
“I had to push my budget further than where I was comfortable with just to open up options, and now I have to factor in renovations too.
“All I wanted was a house with space for a trampoline, because I was always outside playing as a kid.
“But that dream just seems so unreachable.”
This four-bedroom home in Marsden is scheduled for auction
PropTrack data shows Logan Central house prices were up 23.2 per cent over the past 12 months, to a median of $650,000.
Demand for homes in the fast-growing region south of Brisbane has exploded as first-home buyers were priced out of areas closer to the CBD, while investors scooped up entry-level properties offering high rental yields.
