Epping and Craigieburn are among the top 10 most popular suburbs with first-home buyers, the latest Westpac data shows.
The 2015 Westpac First Home Buyers Report found first-home buyers who are eligible for the federal government’s first-home owners grant are increasingly buying in Melbourne’s north.
Craigieburn was the second-most-popular suburb with first-home buyers in Victoria in the six months until March 30.
Epping was the ninth-most-sought-after suburb with this first-home buyers’ group.
The report surveyed 1521 Australians, aged 18 to 64, via an online questionnaire. The information was then supplemented with Westpac internal data collated between October 2014 and March 2015.
The findings reveal almost 80 per cent of first-home owners chose to purchase a house with a backyard rather than a townhouse or apartment.
Westpac’s Andy Kerr said half the popular suburbs chosen by Victorian first-home buyers in the past six months were in the northern growth corridor. He attributed the region’s attraction to the state government’s increasing investment in infrastructure, such as the promised Mernda rail extension, affordable housing and the new Melbourne Wholesale Market, which opens in Epping next month.
“First-home buyers are seeing the growth potential of northern suburbs, like Epping, which are developing some of the benefits and amenities of inner Melbourne while living with more space and without the price tag,” Mr Kerr said. “As you move further away from the inner city, these areas also give first-home buyers the chance to find a larger property that can fit a growing family at an entry-level price.”
The report found the three most important features for first-home buyers were proximity to shops, work and public transport.
Nine in 10 named owning their own home as one of their top three life goals.
