It takes the average Australian couple an estimated eight years to save the sum required to put down a deposit on their first home in Sydney.
This is according to the findings of a new first time buyers report from Bankwest, which specified that this sum is above the national average.
Nationwide, the average couple spends 4.4 years saving for a 20 per cent deposit on a median-priced house - and it was noted that this is two months longer than the corresponding figure recorded last year.
In terms of individual states, residents of New South Wales faced the longest wait for a deposit at 5.7 years to gather $138,600, while those living in Sydney take an average of 8.4 years to set aside the $214,600 required for a deposit in the city.
Bankwest executive general manager of retail Andrew Whitechurch acknowledged that there are growing price differences between some cities and other areas.
"The gap between the shortest and the longest required savings times has widened in NSW. However while it’s dire in the city, savings times in rural and regional areas have remained relatively stable and offer much quicker pathways onto the property ladder,” he commented.
"Sydney's median house value rose above $1 million for the first time in 2015," Mr Whitechurch explained, adding that every local government area in the capital city would see first home buyers save for at least four years to accumulate the necessary funds for a deposit on a median-priced house.
The shortest saving times were found in Hobart and Perth at 3.8 years - and the fact that several state governments removed the First Home Owner Grant was cited as a factor in the increased saving time.
