Penrith welcomed into exclusive club, with dozens more on the wait list
A record 34.1% of all housing markets in Australia now command a median home value of $1 million or more, up from 30.3% just a year ago.
According to Cotality data, this shift isn't just confined to blue-chip postcodes anymore, having seeped into traditionally affordable outer-metro areas, raising new affordability challenges for first-home buyers.
In just five years, the number of million-dollar markets has surged by 143%, driven by national dwelling value growth of 46.8% or around $270,000 at the median level.
As of September 2025, nearly 42% of house markets and 13.5% of unit markets have crossed into seven-figure territory.
While Sydney still leads the pack with only 15% of suburbs falling below $1 million, Brisbane has emerged as the standout growth market, adding 37 new seven-figure suburbs over the past 12 months.
On the other hand, regional Victoria recorded a net decline in million-dollar markets with only 11 of 278 suburbs having a median value at or above the $1 million mark.
The big price out
While the rising tide of property prices could mean larger loan sizes and commission volumes, the implications for brokers are far more nuanced.
For many clients, particularly first-home buyers and younger families, these price tags are pushing the dream of ownership further out of reach.
“A typical household earning $106,000 annually would need to allocate more than 50% of their pre-tax income to repay a $1 million mortgage – even with a 20% deposit,” noted Cotality economist Kaytlin Ezzy.
That figure jumps to over 60% under a 5% deposit scenario via the First Home Guarantee, well beyond the serviceability limits most brokers and lenders can reasonably approve.
What’s striking is where these new seven-figure markets are emerging.
While the inner-ring remains expensive, the latest entrants include mortgage belt areas once considered pretty affordable:
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Penrith (Sydney)
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Taylors Lakes (Melbourne)
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Oxley (Brisbane’s Ipswich region)
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Upper Coomera (Northern Gold Coast)
This signals a shift where price growth is no longer tied to prestige, but rather to broader demand and undersupply, especially in commutable, family-friendly locations.
Read more: First-home buyers get creative
Ezzy said: “While the sheer prevalence of seven-figure property values suggests that many can still access financing, the average age of first-home buyers has continued to creep higher, while home ownership rates have steadily declined, particularly among younger and lower-income households whose earnings struggle to keep pace with rising housing prices.”
“With tight supply levels and additional demand from the expanded First Home Guarantee scheme, values are expected to continue an upward trajectory through 2025, which will likely see more suburbs cross the seven-figure threshold.
Over 80 more markets expected to join the million-dollar club by year-end, Ezzy added.
