Sydney home buyers are facing one of the longest waits in the world to purchase their first property, according to a new global analysis from developer Bloom Holding.
The study, which examined housing costs, incomes, taxes, savings rates, and deposit requirements across 46 major global cities, estimates the average age at which first-home buyers can enter the property market.
Sydney, one of the world’s most expensive housing markets, ranks second for the oldest first-time buyers at age 52, driven by high property prices (US$13,156 per m²), a 45% income tax rate, and an average deposit of US$297,589 – requiring an estimated 29 years of saving.
Only Tel Aviv, Israel, had a higher average age, at 58 years, due to steep property prices and low relative wages.
At the other end of the spectrum, Bucharest, Romania, topped the list with the youngest first-home buyers at age 25, requiring just two years of saving thanks to low property prices (US$2,015 per m²) and moderate taxes.
Eastern European cities such as Budapest and Vilnius (age 26), and Tallinn (age 27), dominated the top ranks for affordability.
Meanwhile, despite extremely high property prices in Zurich and Geneva (each above US$18,000 per m²), buyers could still enter the market around age 37, thanks to strong salaries and higher savings capacity.
The research highlights the widening gap between housing affordability in different regions.
Bloom noted that “there’s a surprising disparity between global cities when it comes to the ease of buying a first property,” adding that high taxes and income limitations in Western markets often slow down saving times, while lower living costs and higher saving rates in Eastern Europe make early homeownership more achievable.
It takes 23 more years of saving in Tel Aviv – the world’s hardest city to buy a first home – than in Bucharest, the most affordable, to enter the market.
For mortgage brokers, the findings underscore the growing need to factor deposit hurdles, savings capacity, and housing affordability into client advice – particularly in Sydney, where property prices and living costs remain among the world’s highest.
While Lenders Mortgage Insurance (LMI), NHFIC Home Guarantee Schemes, and state-based stamp duty concessions can help shorten the path to ownership, the report’s findings show the scale of the challenge facing first-home buyers on average incomes.
Brokers can also assist clients in exploring shared-equity programs, rentvesting strategies, or parental guarantees, which can help overcome large deposit barriers.
Bloom Holding’s analysis combines local housing costs with average incomes, tax rates, and savings ratios to estimate how long it would take a typical buyer to save for a deposit. The results assume a start-saving age of around 23, adding the estimated years required to reach the deposit goal.
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