One of the nation’s top mega teams is returning to Corcoran. New York City-based Noble Black & Partners is returning to Corcoran after a 10-year stint at Douglas Elliman, according to an announcement on Wednesday.
Founded by Noble Black, he and his team are bringing a portfolio of $500 million in luxury listings across New York City and the Hamptons with them. The team will be affiliated with Corcoran’s East Side and Southampton offices.
“I’m incredibly pleased to have Noble back at Corcoran,” Pamela Liebman, the president and CEO of Corcoran, said in a statement. “He has built an extraordinary business grounded in integrity, insight, and a profound understanding of the market.”
In 2024, the team closed $389.44 million in sales volume across 154 transaction sides, earning it the No. 2 rank among New York City mega teams for sales volume in the 2025 RealTrends Verified rankings. As an individual broker Black’s career sales have exceeded $3.5 billion, according to the release.
In a statement, Black expressed his excitement about returning to Corcoran, crediting the company’s “client-centric values, market leadership, global affiliate network, and marketing resources” for his decision to make the move.
“We are incredibly grateful to Douglas Elliman, its leadership, and management teams for their pivotal support and contribution to our success over the past decade,” he added.
In addition to Black, top agents Jamie Gagliano, Justin Figari, Jennifer Stillman, Cory Cahlon, and Matthew Mackay, are making the move to Corcoran. According to the release, for 10 members of Black’s team this will mark their return to Corcoran.
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Rocket Companies has extended the deadline for investors to exchange debt issued by a Mr. Cooper Group subsidiary for the lender’s own paper — a step tied to its $9.4 billion acquisition of the competitor.
The deadline moved from Sept. 2 to Sept. 30, still leaving enough time for the deal to close in the fourth quarter as planned. Rocket also signaled it may extend the deadline again until the acquisition and settlement align.
In a statement, the company said it “anticipates further extending the Expiration Date until such time that the Mr. Cooper Acquisition may be consummated substantially concurrently with the Settlement Date.”
The exchange offer covers $750 million in senior notes due in 2029 at 6.5% and $1 billion in senior notes due in 2032 at 7.125%. There are also notes due in 2030 paying 5.125% and others due in 2031 paying 5.75%. The debt was first issued by Nationstar Mortgage Holdings.
Participation has been high, with 98.4% of 2029 notes, 88.3% of 2030 notes, 89.3% of 2031 notes and 95.5% of 2032 notes already tendered and not withdrawn.
Recently, Rocket refinanced debt tied to its Mr. Cooper acquisition.
Rocket priced $4 billion in senior unsecured notes — $2 billion due in 2030 at 6.125% and $2 billion due in 2033 at 6.375%. The proceeds will primarily redeem the notes of Nationstar, a Mr. Cooper subsidiary, that mature between 2026 and 2028. Fitch Ratings assigned the notes a BBB- rating.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) approved the merger in late August, imposing a 20% cap on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac servicing exposure for the combined company.
In a statement given to HousingWire, a Rocket Companies spokesperson said, “We are pleased to have cleared FHFA’s review in our pending acquisition of Mr. Cooper, which we expect to close in the fourth quarter.“
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RE/MAX has purchased Compass’s Chicago North Shore office locations, Inman learned on Wednesday. Compass offloaded the brick-and-mortar locations as a result of its $444 million acquisition of @properties Christie’s International Real Estate, which closed in January.
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A TikTok user showed a glimpse of a sharehouse where an alleyway was made into a “shared living room”.
Rental homes are increasingly descending into squalor, with problems ranging from festering mould to crumbling finishes, because their landlords are so buried in debt they cannot afford repairs.
It comes as research from comparison group Finder.com.au revealed close to a third of renters across the country were waiting more than six months for issues to be fixed.
Serious problems that were not being addressed promptly included water leaks, structural defects, mould and broken appliances, according to the results of the national survey.
They also reported extreme but unaddressed moisture and mould issues following heavy rains earlier this year. The couple said they will take their case to tenancy tribunal.
Tenants Union of NSW chief executive Leo Patterson Ross said landlords dragging their feet when it came to basic repairs could be traced back to the record levels of debt they held.
Mr Patterson Ross said a high proportion of property investors who had snapped up homes over the last five years took on larger loans than they should have.
Tenants Union NSW CEO Leo Patterson Ross said landlords were often pressured to take on more debt. Picture: Rohan Kelly
This was often motivated by the blind belief that prices would continue to grow and that buying higher value homes would deliver more capital growth.
“People are being pushed and pressured to take on massive debts basically on the gamble that home prices will rise,” he said.
“It means many landlords are on a tight budget. It is hard to take meaningful steps to improve a home and keep it maintained if so much of your income has to go to the bank first.”
Mould is an issue that landlords are frequently failing to address.
Mr Patterson Ross said that landlord debt levels – especially in markets like Sydney, where rental yields were among the lowest in the country – often made a bigger difference than policy settings.
“With all this talk of rent reforms, we are ignoring the elephant in the room. The biggest problem for landlords trying to deliver decent housing isn’t (policy) requirements or settings. It’s the size of the loan they have been pushed into taking.”
Servicing landlords’ extreme levels of debt was a considerable commitment for landlords – even when offsetting losses against their taxable income through negative gearing, Mr Patterson Ross said.
Richard Whitten, home loans expert at Finder, said delayed repairs could be a major source of stress for tenants.
“It’s unacceptable that so many people are forced to live with problems like mould and water leaks for months, or even years on end.
Damage inside a rental home in Sydney suburb Bradbury.
“These aren’t just minor inconveniences – they can impact a person’s health, their wallet, and their peace of mind.”
Landlords themselves admitted that they dragged their feet.
A Finder survey of 148 landlords found that two in five (38 per cent) have had a tenant wait longer than is reasonable for a repair in the last year.
Landlords cited the same issues that tenants did: water leaks, mould, and broken appliances.
Mr Whitten said tenants shouldn’t accept substandard living conditions lying down.
“Knowledge is power. You have a right to a safe and well-maintained home,” he said.
“Document all communication with your landlord or agent, send requests in writing, and if you aren’t getting a response, know your rights and be prepared to escalate the issue.”
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Mortgage lender Click n’ Close has rolled out a new financing product that pairs an adjustable-rate mortgage with down payment assistance in an effort to make new homes more accessible to buyers.
The program — called the SmartBuy 5/1 ARM Down Payment Assistance product — offers a first mortgage alongside a repayable second mortgage.
The second loan can be applied toward costs such as down payments, closing costs, prepaid expenses or rate buydowns.
Homebuilders have been seeking more flexible financing tools as affordability pressures such as mortgage rates weigh on buyers and new home sales remain flat.
“The SmartBuy 5/1 ARM DPA is built with builders in mind,” said Jeff Bode, founder and CEO of Click n’ Close. “It provides a practical way to address affordability concerns, giving builders another tool to help buyers move forward with confidence in today’s market.”
Click n’ Close has previously offered other down payment assistance programs and is also a provider of Section 184 home loans for Native Americans.
The company operates in multiple states and serves consumers and mortgage originators through wholesale and correspondent channels.
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Australia’s housing market just got hit with a brutal reality check – and it’s bad news for anyone with a mortgage dream.
Fresh analysis by Money.com.au has revealed it could take more than a decade before home lending claws its way back to the levels we saw during the Covid boom, when more than 1300 home loans were being issued on average each day
In fact, home lending won’t return to those levels until at least 2036, new projections show.
According to ABS lending data, owner occupier loans last peaked at 1322 per day in the
March quarter of 2021, fuelled by a record-low cash rate of 0.10 per cent and government support measures during Covid.
Then, volumes fell by more than a third, to just 822 loans per day in the March 2023 quarter.
That was when the Reserve Bank was in the midst of its rate-hiking cycle.
Now in 2025, loan numbers averaged just 890 per day in the June quarter.
At the current pace of growth, home lending won’t return to its previous highs of around 1300 loans a day until at least 2036, when volumes are projected to reach 1327 per day in the March quarter.
Source: Money.com.au
By then, the average new home loan size is projected to reach $1,145,982 – up 69 per cent from today’s average of $676,434.
Money.com.au’s Mortgage Expert, Debbie Hays, says the road to recovery for Australia’s
mortgage market may be bumpy.
“The stimulus-fuelled peak of 2021 was short-lived, and led to a major trough which we’re
still slowly digging our way out of,” she says.
“The fact it will take a decade to return to those levels under normal growth shows just how distorting housing bubbles can be to the wider market.
“There may also be smaller peaks and troughs along the way. These disproportionately
affect homeowners and first-time buyers, who are the most exposed to swings in borrowing
costs and property prices. When volumes surge, prices rise, and those without a foothold in
the market are locked out.”
New analysis by Money.com.au reveals it could take more than a decade for Australia’s mortgage market to return to its previous heyday.
Ms Hays adds that the next peak will likely occur in a very different environment.
“Borrowers will be facing much higher average loan sizes relative to their incomes, tougher affordability pressures, uncertainty in the jobs market due to AI, and likely an ongoing shortage of housing supply,” she says.
“That’s if another global shock doesn’t intervene before then.”
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Lower interest rates and expanded government schemes are set to unlock more properties for first-home buyers, though rising prices could soon close this window of opportunity.
The new PropTrack CommBank First-Home Buyer Report, released on Thursday, found that first-home buyers continue to battle against property affordability and mortgage serviceability, but lower interest rates will help put more homes within reach.
However, they may need to move fast to experience the benefits as rising property prices and improved conditions increase competition – particularly in first-home buyer hotspots like Melbourne, where the tide appears to be turning on the market’s underperformance.
PropTrack executive manager of economics Angus Moore said despite the headwinds first-home buyers currently face, many are finding a way to enter the property market.
“The good news for first-home buyers is that conditions are improving. Interest rates have already fallen from their peak, and further cuts are expected,” Mr Moore said.
Melbourne has been revealed as a first-home buyer hotspot with 7 of the top 10 most popular areas located in the Victorian capital. Picture: realestate.com.au
“Recent government policies, low deposit loans and Lenders Mortgage Insurance are key enablers helping first-home buyers purchase.
“Many also seek homes in more affordable areas or purchase semi-detached homes or units to overcome affordability challenges.”
The report found most first-home buyers were purchasing with a smaller than 20% deposit, taking advantage of government schemes and family guarantors to get into the market sooner.
Where first-home buyers are flocking
Melbourne has emerged as the most popular location first-home buyers are searching, with four of the top five hotspots located in the Victorian capital.
Dandenong took out the number one position with almost twice as many first-home buyers as is typical across Australia. The Brunswick – Coburg region in the inner-northern suburbs ranked second, followed by Darebin and Moreland.
Note: ABS SA3 regions | Source: PropTrack
The top 20 hotspots were ranked based on areas with the highest concentration of first-home buyers searching relative to other buyers, with nearly half located in Melbourne’s outer suburbs.
Gungahlin and Molonglo in Canberra along with Hobart’s north western region were the only locations outside of Melbourne to make it into the top ten.
In Sydney, the most-searched areas for first-home buyers are all more-affordable areas located in the west and southwest of the city such as Mount Druitt, Parramatta, Liverpool, Blacktown and Campbelltown.
Brisbane’s outer areas are first-home buyer hotspots, with the North Lakes region in Moreton Bay, Springwood – Kingston region in Logan, and Forest Lake – Oxley region in Ipswich the most popular overall.
Suburbs in Sydney’s south west are popular with first-home buyers. Picture: Getty
But first-home buyers face looming headwinds as conditions heat up this spring selling season.
Amid the increasing competition, some first-home buyers are using buyer’s agents to win their ideal home, particularly as investor activity increases simultaneously.
Nelson Alexander real estate agent Damian Ponte said that in Coburg there had been a clear uptick in first-home buyer enquiries.
“It is a competitive landscape, with multiple buyers circling the same homes, particularly those that are well-presented and sit comfortably under the $950,000 threshold,” he said.
Accessible deposits and improved serviceability are key
First-home buyers face two key challenges as they seek to enter the market. The first is saving a standard 20% deposit. The other is serviceability, or borrowing power, which is generally dependent on income and the buyer’s prospective interest rate.
But with savings timelines blowing out to 5.9 years for an average income household – and even more in NSW (6.9 years) and South Australia (7.2 years), most first-home buyers are opting to buy with a smaller deposit.
Source: PropTrack, ABS | Assumes household saves 20% of average household income, buying median priced home
Commbank data shows the average loan-to-value ratio for a first-home buyer is approximately 85%, meaning most first-home buyers typically buy with a deposit of less than 20% and either using a family guarantor, the government’s home guarantee scheme, or pay Lenders Mortgage Insurance to get into the market sooner.
The higher price thresholds will vastly increase the proportion of homes eligible for purchase through the scheme, the report shows, with Sydney’s new price cap of $1.5 million meaning two thirds of homes would be eligible – up from less than a third of homes under the existing cap of $900,000.
Melbourne’s new price cap of $950,000 from 1 October will see 64% of homes become eligible across the city, up from half (51%) under the current cap of $800,000.
This two-bedroom villa in Coburg recently sold for $920,000, which is less than Melbourne’s new price cap of $950,000 under the expanded Home Guarantee Scheme, from 1 October. Picture: realestate.com.au
Mr Ponte said the combination of rate cuts and the expanded federal government Home Guarantee Scheme was expected to drive a “surge of activity” in already in-demand suburbs like Coburg.
“The window of opportunity could be short-lived before prices adjust upwards,” he said.
“Freestanding houses under $950,000 are becoming harder to find, so well-located townhouses, villa units and larger apartments are increasingly on buyers’ radars.”
He says the best time to act is while affordability is still in the favour of first-home buyers, because competition “will only build as confidence returns.”
Due to the competitive nature of entering the market for the first time, the report also indicated that approximately 6% of first-home buyers chose to ‘rentvest’, leasing out investment properties instead of living in them to enter the market sooner.
But many experts suggest that it is essential to do the necessary research before raising a hand at auction. The quarterly Mortgage Choice Home Loan Report, released in August, showed that more than half of borrowers (57%) wished they’d done more research when choosing their first home loan.
CommBank’s head of Australian economics Belinda Allen said home prices are expected to lift over 2025 and into 2026 given the RBA is in the middle of an interest rate cutting cycle.
“After cutting the official cash rate in February, May, and August, our current expectation is that the RBA will cut rates again once more and favour November as the next meeting to do so. This will see the cash rate to settle at 3.35% by the end of this year,” Ms Allen said.
“Lower interest rates should improve borrowing capacity, helping first-home buyers. However, interest rates will remain well above pre-pandemic levels and challenges of housing affordability persist.”
Hundreds of economists say Trump adminstration’s move to fire Cook “threatens the fundamental principle of central bank independence and undermines trust in one of America’s most important institutions.”
Real estate agents in Oregon belonging to Regional Multiple Listing Service (RMLS) will be a bit quicker to verify the integrity of their deal documents thanks to the latest artificial intelligence offering by Restb.ai.
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Hundreds more suburbs will become available for first-home buyers thanks to a major change designed to help people get into the market.
Property price limits for the federal government’s Home Guarantee Scheme will be lifted across most of Australia, significantly increasing the number of suburbs first-home buyers can target.
Under the scheme, buyers can purchase their first home with as little as a 5% deposit without the need to pay Lenders’ Mortgage Insurance.
But from October 1, the scheme’s price caps will be lifted across most markets, reflecting the increase in property prices in recent years.
Income caps will also be removed and the scheme will have unlimited places available under the changes announced last week.
First-home buyers purchasing under the scheme will be able to spend up to $1.5 million in Sydney, $1 million in Brisbane and Canberra, $950,000 in Melbourne, $900,000 in Adelaide, $850,000 in Perth and $700,000 in Hobart.
Home Guarantee property price caps to increase from October 2025
Current property price cap
Property price gap effective 1 October 2025
Sydney
$900,000
$1,500,000
Melbourne
$800,000
$950,000
Brisbane
$700,000
$1,000,000
Perth
$600,000
$850,000
Adelaide
$600,000
$900,000
Hobart
$600,000
$700,000
Canberra
$750,000
$1,000,000
Regional NSW
$750,000
$800,000
Regional Victoria
$650,000
$650,000
Regional Queensland
$550,000
$700,000
Regional WA
$450,000
$600,000
Regional SA
$450,000
$500,000
Regional Tasmania
$450,000
$550,000
Source: Housing Australia. Price cap for NT remains unchanged at $600,000.
The most significant price cap increase was in Sydney, where the cap increased by 67%. Price limits will increase by 50% in Adelaide, 43% in Brisbane, 42% in Perth, 33% in Canberra.
Melbourne’s price cap will rise by 19%, while Hobart’s will be lifted by 17%, reflecting the smaller rise in prices in these cities in recent years.
Regional centres including the Illawarra, Newcastle and Lake Macquarie in NSW, Geelong in Victoria, and the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast in Queensland will also see their price caps rise to the same level as their respective capital cities.
More suburbs now available to first-home buyers
The scheme’s current price caps mean that based on median prices, only a small proportion of suburbs were realistically available to first-home buyers looking for a house, especially in pricey markets like Sydney.
It’s a major bugbear for buyers frustrated by the lack of options under the limits imposed by the scheme, especially in traditionally-affordable areas where prices have shot up in recent years as a result of higher levels of demand.
REA Group executive manager of economics Angus Moore said expanding the scheme would help more first-home buyers get into the market, while the higher price caps would help bring more homes into eligibility.
“Uncapping the number of places almost surely will see more first-time buyers using the scheme,” he said.
“While first-home buyers are a reasonably small part of the market overall, we may see bigger effects in the price brackets and areas where first-home buyers are particularly concentrated.”
The view from 5/118a Kirribilli Avenue, Kirribilli, which sold for $1.035 million – well under the new Home Guarantee Scheme cap for Sydney. Picture: realestate.com.au/sold
Analysis of PropTrack data shows that there are dozens of in-demand suburbs where median prices sit between the old and new price caps, meaning these suburbs will be opened up to more first-home buyers from October 1.
The changes mean first-home buyers purchasing under the scheme could potentially buy into high-demand and pricier suburbs such as Kirribilli in Sydney, Toorak in Melbourne and Paddington in Brisbane, provided they’re looking for an apartment rather than a house, that is.
The median price is the midpoint of all property sales in the past year, meaning half of properties sold below and half above. It gives a good indication of typical property prices in a suburb.
The list of suburbs is ranked by enquiries per listing — a measure used to determine the level of demand from buyers — to determine the most sought-after suburbs now unlocked for first-home buyers.
Most in-demand Sydney suburbs under $1.5 million Home Guarantee cap
Suburb
Median price
Enquiries per listing
Houses
1
Werrington
$994,500
150
2
St Marys
$990,000
144
3
Rooty Hill
$1,000,000
111
4
Lansvale
$1,150,000
109
5
Plumpton
$967,500
107
6
Colyton
$970,000
104
7
North St Marys
$950,000
103
8
St Johns Park
$1,230,000
102
9
Claremont Meadows
$1,050,000
102
10
Mount Druitt
$1,015,000
101
Units
1
Kirribilli
$1,470,000
101
2
Coogee
$1,450,500
84
3
Crows Nest
$1,075,000
83
4
McMahons Point
$1,325,000
82
5
Randwick
$1,200,000
81
6
Ramsgate Beach
$1,085,000
80
7
Vaucluse
$1,457,500
77
8
Bondi Beach
$1,400,000
76
9
Five Dock
$1,110,000
76
10
Wollstonecraft
$1,300,000
72
Source: PropTrack. Includes suburbs with median sale prices between $900,000 (current cap) and $1.5 million (new cap). Suburbs ranked by enquiries per listing. Excludes suburbs with fewer than 30 sales in the 12 months to July 2025.
In Sydney, the most in-demand suburbs with house buyers had prices much more affordable than the city’s $1.58 million median house price, and were found largely in the city’s west.
Mr Moore said the higher cap would mean two thirds of homes across Sydney would be eligible – up from less than a third of homes under the existing cap.
Under the new caps, buyers would be able to purchase a median-priced house in Rooty Hill ($1 million), St Johns Park ($1.23 million) and Mount Druitt ($1.015 million) – suburbs prized for their relatively affordability, but generally not an option under the lower existing caps.
Houses on the market in these suburbs received more than 100 enquiries on average, indicating elevated interest in properties at the more affordable end of the market.
This five-bedroom house in Rooty Hill in Sydney’s west recently sold for just under $1.2 million in July. It would now be eligible for the expanded Home Guarantee Scheme. Picture: realestate.com.au/sold
Real estate agent and Ray White United Group director Peter Diamantidis said the existing caps were too low for purchasing a freestanding house, even in some of Sydney’s most affordable suburbs.
“$900,000 for a house? No chance,” he said. “But for a townhouse or unit, there’s big opportunities out our way.”
He said conditions were already heating up in popular western Sydney suburbs such as St Marys, but higher price caps would encourage more first-home buyers to get into the market, particularly in suburbs just a little pricier than the existing caps.
“At the moment, we’re running out of properties,” he said. “We’re getting more buyers coming to the area, and [the higher caps] might push prices even higher.”
It’s a very different situation in the unit market, with the higher $1.5 million cap allowing buyers to purchase with government assistance in several affluent waterfront suburbs such as Kirribili, Coogee, McMahons Point and Bondi Beach, where units are highly sought-after.
Most of the Sydney suburbs with median unit prices between $900,000 and $1.5 million were found in the inner and eastern suburbs, north shore or northern beaches.
Most in-demand Melbourne suburbs under $950,000 Home Guarantee cap
Suburb
Median price
Enquiries per listing
Houses
1
Mill Park
$808,800
46
2
Endeavour Hills
$800,000
44
3
Ferntree Gully
$880,000
41
4
Berwick
$881,500
40
5
Narre Warren South
$815,000
40
6
Keilor Downs
$807,000
40
7
Boronia
$863,350
39
8
Heidelberg West
$800,800
39
9
Lyndhurst
$935,000
38
10
Upwey
$856,000
36
Units
1
Epping
$800,000
47
2
Oakleigh East
$860,000
44
3
Burwood
$888,000
41
4
Vermont
$909,444
37
5
Mulgrave
$827,500
37
6
Glen Waverley
$912,500
33
7
Blackburn North
$864,600
31
8
Balwyn
$800,000
31
9
Toorak
$802,500
30
10
Camberwell
$861,000
30
Source: PropTrack. Includes suburbs with median sale prices between $800,000 (current cap) and $950,000 (new cap). Suburbs ranked by enquiries per listing. Excludes suburbs with fewer than 30 sales in the 12 months to July 2025.
In Melbourne, suburbs such as Endeavour Hills, Narre Warren South and Berwick in the outer east were among the most in-demand in the city, but houses mostly sold for prices exceeding the existing cap of $800,000.
The higher price cap of $950,000 made the scheme appealing to more first-home buyers, according to real estate agent and Area Specialist Endeavour Hills director Jay Giblett.
“Buyers are talking more about it and are getting excited about it,” he said. “Some people have said they’re going to wait for it to begin [before buying].”
A median-priced home in Endeavour Hills, a popular suburb for first-home buyers in Melbourne’s outer east, would now qualify for the expanded Home Guarantee Scheme. Picture: realestate.com.au/sold
He said the expansion of the scheme, as well as recent rate cuts, had increased demand in the area, which was popular among first-home buyers.
“The numbers at open homes have gone through the roof,” he said. “Buyer confidence is certainly there.”
The expanded scheme could give more unit buyers access to pricey suburbs such as Toorak and Balwyn, where median unit prices sit just above the current price caps.
Real estate agent Brandon Whitta of Marshall White said the expanded caps would help some first-home buyers who had their eyes set on Toorak.
“For young professional buyers who work nearby, the apartment space is a great first step.”
However many first-home buyers in Toorak were locals who already had financial support from family, he said.
Most in-demand Brisbane suburbs under $950,000 Home Guarantee Scheme cap
Suburb
Median price
Enquiries per listing
Houses
1
Redbank Plains
$700,500
112
2
Browns Plains
$802,500
111
3
Slacks Creek
$743,500
107
4
Loganlea
$780,000
105
5
Waterford West
$720,000
104
6
Darra
$950,000
104
7
Tanah Merah
$900,000
104
8
Beenleigh
$715,000
99
9
Loganholme
$792,500
99
10
Bald Hills
$850,000
98
Units
1
Paddington
$850,000
85
2
Newmarket
$725,000
85
3
Windsor
$700,750
84
4
Wishart
$780,000
80
5
Aspley
$780,000
77
6
Eight Mile Plains
$725,000
77
7
Greenslopes
$760,000
76
8
Ashgrove
$805,000
76
9
Alderley
$700,000
75
10
Kangaroo Point
$767,500
72
Source: PropTrack. Includes suburbs with median sale prices between $700,000 (current cap) and $1 million (new cap). Suburbs ranked by enquiries per listing. Excludes suburbs with fewer than 30 sales in the 12 months to July 2025.
Apartment buyers will also be able to access some of Brisbane’s most sought-after inner suburbs, where prices are above the existing cap of $700,000, but below the new cap of $1 million.
That means Paddington, Newmarket and Windsor could all be on the radar for more first-home buyers looking to buy a unit with the aid of the home guarantee scheme.
This four-bedroom house in Darra sold for $950,000 – the suburb’s median price. It would qualify for the upsized cap for Brisbane homes under the Home Guarantee Scheme. Picture: realestate.com.au/sold
Much like the other capitals, the high-demand Brisbane suburbs now unlocked for house buyers were at the more affordable end of the market, but the existing price caps were too low for a median-priced house to qualify.
From October 1, first-home buyers in Browns Plains, Slacks Creek and Darra will be able to buy a median-priced house using the scheme, something previously not possible due to prices typically exceeding the $700,000 cap.
Most in-demand Perth suburbs under $850,000 Home Guarantee cap
Suburb
Median price
Enquiries per listing
Houses
1
Balcatta
$845,000
74
2
Osborne Park
$790,000
68
3
Carlisle
$820,000
64
4
Bentley
$751,000
61
5
Queens Park
$733,750
57
6
Westminster
$659,000
57
7
Maddington
$625,000
56
8
Kenwick
$680,000
56
9
Martin
$850,000
55
10
Midland
$600,000
55
Units
1
Fremantle
$610,000
56
2
Palmyra
$667,000
52
3
Doubleview
$740,000
50
4
Attadale
$645,000
50
5
Shenton Park
$625,000
48
6
Leederville
$675,000
48
7
Bentley
$600,000
47
8
Como
$737,000
46
9
North Coogee
$710,022
46
10
Innaloo
$615,000
43
Source: PropTrack. Includes suburbs with median sale prices between $600,000 (current cap) and $850,000 (new cap). Suburbs ranked by enquiries per listing. Excludes suburbs with fewer than 30 sales in the 12 months to July 2025.
Perth first-home buyers looking at houses could look at Balcatta, Bentley and Queens Park, where median prices between the current and new caps.
Most in-demand Adelaide suburbs under $900,000 Home Guarantee cap
Suburb
Median price
Enquiries per listing
Houses
1
Port Willunga
$787,500
65
2
Woodville West
$852,750
63
3
Salisbury
$671,000
62
4
Lewiston
$855,500
62
5
Christies Beach
$762,500
61
6
Gilles Plains
$795,000
61
7
Christie Downs
$650,000
60
8
Dernancourt
$890,000
58
9
Dover Gardens
$880,000
57
10
Park Holme
$886,935
56
Units
1
Henley Beach
$660,000
83
2
Norwood
$795,000
53
3
Campbelltown
$620,000
53
4
North Adelaide
$690,000
50
5
Magill
$635,000
49
6
Glenelg
$635,000
46
7
Glenelg East
$655,000
43
8
Brompton
$700,000
41
9
Parkside
$705,000
39
10
West Lakes
$740,000
39
Source: PropTrack. Includes suburbs with median sale prices between $600,000 (current cap) and $900,000 (new cap). Suburbs ranked by enquiries per listing. Excludes suburbs with fewer than 30 sales in the 12 months to July 2025.
Typical units in Battery Point in inner Hobart would fall under the city’s higher Home Guarantee price cap. Picture: realestate.com.au/buy
Hobart first-home buyers looking to take advantage of the scheme can now go house-hunting in Moonah or Kingston, while apartment buyers could look in Sandy Bay and Battery Point.
Most in-demand Hobart suburbs under $700,000 Home Guarantee cap
Suburb
Median price
Enquiries per listing
Houses
1
West Moonah
$656,000
34
2
Mornington
$607,500
31
3
Moonah
$635,000
30
4
Kingston
$700,000
28
5
Rosetta
$622,500
28
6
Austins Ferry
$605,000
27
7
Lutana
$615,000
25
8
Midway Point
$615,000
23
9
Rokeby
$600,000
22
10
Sorell
$660,000
20
Units
1
Hobart
$890,000
28
2
Battery Point
$750,000
26
3
Sandy Bay
$650,000
25
4
North Hobart
$750,000
22
5
Howrah
$626,000
20
6
Blackmans Bay
$620,000
17
Source: PropTrack. Includes suburbs with median sale prices between $600,000 (current cap) and $700,000 (new cap). Suburbs ranked by enquiries per listing. Excludes suburbs with fewer than 30 sales in the 12 months to July 2025. Fewer than 10 suburbs available for units.
The higher $1 million cap in Canberra unlocks several southern and western suburbs, including Kambah, Wanniassa and Holt.
Most in-demand Canberra suburbs under $1 million Home Guarantee cap
Houses
Suburb
Median price
Enquiries per listing
1
Wanniassa
$862,500
23
2
Isabella Plains
$840,000
23
3
Ngunnawal
$760,000
23
4
Richardson
$770,000
23
5
Waramanga
$882,500
22
6
Coombs
$758,000
22
7
Holt
$822,000
22
8
Evatt
$875,000
22
9
Kambah
$865,500
21
10
Latham
$817,500
21
Units
1
Campbell
$760,000
10
2
Forrest
$765,000
12
Source: PropTrack. Includes suburbs with median sale prices between $700,000 (current cap) and $1 million (new cap). Suburbs ranked by enquiries per listing. Excludes suburbs with fewer than 30 sales in the 12 months to July 2025. Fewer than 10 suburbs available for units.
The price cap in the Northern Territory will remain at $600,000. Median house prices in about half of Darwin suburbs sit under this figure, while only one suburb, Bayview, has a median unit price that’s higher.
https://www.juliankent.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/logo.png00JKentshttps://www.juliankent.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/logo.pngJKents2025-09-03 12:01:232025-09-03 12:01:23The in-demand suburbs about to be unlocked for a new wave of buyers
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