So, now is the time to get in before confidence grows stronger. A two bedroom unit will cost anywhere from $465/wk to $555/wk in rent. In monthly rent terms, this works out to $2020 per month to $2411 per month. Saving $50,000 and mortgaging $400,000 at 6.78% interest leads to an average monthly mortgage bill of $2927. This might seem like a lot of extra cash to find each month, but there are other ways you can make purchasing a home more affordable.

Checklist of things you should do:

1. Explore Off-market listings. These are often the owners that don’t want to invest in advertising and just want to sell the property. Because the house isn’t advertised, there’s not as much competition, so your offer might look like the best. Be wary though, so of these vendors

2. Start Small – look for apartments for sale, properties for sale in Melbourne, or smaller units for sale in great areas with good transport and amenities, so you can live in the property yourself or potentially treat the property as an investment.

3. Leverage government plans like the First Homeowners Grant

4. Watch the mortgage interest rate movements. Typically increased interest rates slow the property market down while decreasing rates speed the market up. If you time it correctly, you could get in just before the drop and save yourself a good chunk of change.

5. Weigh up living at home that little bit longer to save a bigger deposit, or possibly living/sharing with friends so your housing expenses stay low. It’s worth it in the end to sacrifice a few years of convenience if it leads to your first step on the property ladder.

6. Look for properties that have good bones, but bad taste. Most buyers aren’t interested in renovating. They want to move in ready properties and therefore will overlook some of the ugly ducklings. Discerning buyers know that sometimes just moving a door, or applying a fresh coat of paint and new carpet could mean the difference of thousands of dollars in equity.

7. Expand your search further down train lines.

Once you have your dream home, you should follow below steps:

1. Take on a roommate for your extra room at $180/wk plus bills to help towards the mortgage and bills.

2. Look for units to buy that already have great renters in them and choose to keep this property as an investment. This allows you to write off expenses and depreciate items in the house, which should give you a reduced tax bill at the end of the financial year, or maybe even a tax return.

3. Pay your mortgage weekly – interest is calculated daily, so it’s to your benefit to put as much money and you can, as often and you can, towards your loan. This brings down your interest balance over time and shaves years off the length of your mortgage.