Australia’s best regions to raise a family revealed: Guess how much it costs to live there
New and expecting parents who want to live in the suburbs with the best access to childcare and childhood development services should be prepared to pay a premium for property.
Health insurance comparison service iSelect analysed the best regions to raise a family, ranking them based on factors including childcare costs, performance of local healthcare systems and the number of available childcare places.
“Starting a family is an exciting journey, but it also comes with many decisions around access to support services in your area and how to plan for your child’s future,” says iSelect general manager Andres Gutierrez.
“Our research shows that the availability and affordability of childcare can vary significantly across Australia, as can healthcare quality.”
Rank
Region (SA3)
State
Median unit prices
Median house prices
Median weekly unit rent
Median weekly house rent
1
South Canberra
ACT
$664,944
$1.93 million
$610
$930
2
Dural – Wisemans Ferry
NSW
N/A
N/A
N/A
$850
3
Leichhardt
NSW
$1.12 million
$2.2 million
$675
$1,033
4
Bayside
VIC
$890,000
$2 million
$650
$1,000
5
Ku-ring-gai
NSW
$990,000
$3.25 million
$770
$1,400
6
Kenmore – Brookfield – Moggill
QLD
N/A
$1.42 million
N/A
$800
7
Chatswood – Lane Cove
NSW
$1.01 million
$3.56 million
$780
$1,300
8
Cottesloe – Claremont
WA
$637,500
$2.23 million
$630
$1,123
9
Stonnington – East
VIC
$595,000
$2.13 million
$525
$850
10
Manly
NSW
$1.65 million
$3.66 million
$950
$1,763
The regions analysed were based on the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) SA3 regions, and iSelect’s research revealed the top 10 were spread far and wide, from Cottesloe-Claremont in Western Australia to the Kenmore-Brookfield-Moggil region in Queensland.
In addition to the financial burden of raising a child, parents would need to pay a premium to live in these suburbs, as all of the top 10 regions on the list are above the combined capital median house price of $1.17 million, according to Domain data.
Buying an apartment is a more affordable option, but in regions like Leichhardt, Chatswood, Lane Cove and Manly, the median cost of a unit still exceeds $1 million.
South Canberra region
The SA3 region of South Canberra, ACT, which encompasses Red Hill, Griffith and Forrest, is considered the best place to raise a family, with the highest childcare availability in any region across the nation, according to iSelect.
However, the median house price is $1.93 million, significantly higher than Canberra’s median of $1.04 million, according to Domain data.
Despite the higher house prices, the quality of life offered to families makes buying in the area worthwhile, says agent Janae McLister of Belle Property Canberra.
“There is a lot of access to everything,” she says. “There are sports every afternoon. There’s the Manuka pool for summer. You have public transport that is incredibly good. Plus, you have multiple ovals around here.”
McLister says there is a large diversity of property types, from apartments to massive period homes, that generally accommodate buyers with budgets at both ends of the scale.
The median unit price is $664,944, a much more affordable option compared to the region’s median house price of $1.93 million. The median weekly rent for a house is $930, and for a unit, it is $610, according to Domain data.
Leichhardt region
Dural-Wisemans Ferry in NSW is the second-best region, but there have not been sufficient sales in the area for Domain to determine a median price. The Leichhardt region follows as the third-best place in which to raise a family.
Real estate agent Simone Azzi of Belle Property Annandale notes that the SA3 region of Leichhardt, which encompasses Sydney suburbs such as Rozelle, Annandale and Leichhardt, has experienced a demographic shift towards younger families over the past five years.
“It’s become a really popular hotspot for families for a number of reasons,” she says. “We’ve got great-quality schools, we’ve got a number of really beautiful parks, and its [close] to the city.
“From a lifestyle perspective, it ticks a lot of boxes for young professionals who maybe haven’t started a family yet, but that’s the plan, and certainly young families.”
The median property price of the region is $2.2 million for houses and $1.12 million for units, according to Domain data.
Azzi says first-home buyers make up roughly 20 per cent of the market, with many of them receiving help from the bank of mum and dad to secure a home to raise a family.
Renting is a more accessible option for families hoping to move into the area and benefit from the area’s highly sought after childcare facilities and early childhood services, but the median weekly house rent of $1,033 is still far above Sydney’s median weekly house rent of of $775, according to Domain data.
Units in the region have a median weekly rent of $675.
Bayside region
The SA3 region of Bayside in Melbourne was considered the best region for families to live in Victoria, according iSelect.
The region has a median house price of $2 million and a median unit price of $890,000, and includes Brighton, Sandringham and Hampton.
Local agent Andy Nasr of Marshall White Bayside says the region has always been popular with new and young families, who move into the area early to benefit from its high-quality schools.
“You’ve got a lot of private schools there, and you’ve obviously got multiple train stations,” he says.
“Lots of families stay in the area, and they start in a single, smaller, single-floor home on a small block. Then families will probably upsize to a larger home.
“They [stay for] a sense of community, schools, transport, shops and public spaces.”
The median weekly house rent is $1000, and the median weekly apartment rent is $650, much higher than Melbourne’s median weekly rent of $580 for houses and $575 for units, according to Domain data.
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