TASMANIANS sick of renting are flocking to suburbs where their dream of buying a house is not financially out of reach.
In some suburbs, the gap between renting and paying a mortgage is beginning to shrink.
Residential property analyst RP Data's recent Buy v Rent report showed there were 14 suburbs in Greater Hobart, six in Launceston and five in the Burnie/Devonport are where on average it is cheaper to buy than to rent.
Hobart's Northern Suburbs dominated the list in the state's South.
Real estate agent Patrick Berry, who has been selling houses in the Northern Suburbs for six years, said the area was changing quickly and, after a recent lull in sales, first-home buyers were returning to the market.
"It's always been popular with first-home buyers," he said.
"Claremont has been a pretty strong suburb in recent times, Brighton [also] because you can buy a brand new three-bedroom home for what you would get an older home in Glenorchy.
"Gen Y tend to want a brand new or almost brand new home. Claremont has a lot of homes that have been renovated in the past few years. We've been seeing a lot of first-home buyers heading out that way.
"Anything from Moonah back towards Hobart now is getting pretty expensive. A lot of home buyers can't afford to borrow that much."
The places beyond the so-called "Flannelette Curtain" are also enjoying an improved image.
There's no better example of this than Chigwell, the birthplace of the term "Chigga," which means bogan.
With its river views, a community vibe and affordable homes, Chigwell is becoming a real-estate hot spot.
"A lot of people wouldn't go near it [before]," Mr Berry said.
He said there was a growing number of attractions and facilities in Glenorchy to attract new people to the area.
Recent major developments include MONA, the Glenorchy Art and Sculpture Park, new facilities at Elwick Bay, and a major redevelopment of the King George V sports precinct.
"There isn't really a huge need to go into town [Hobart] like there used to be. Glenorchy has become a lot more impressive with what it offers," Mr Berry said.
Launceston real estate agent Eric Andersen, director of the Bushby Property Group, said it was possible to get a three-bedroom home within a 15-minute walk of the Launceston CBD for the same price as a house several suburbs out of Hobart.
Mr Andersen said up-and-coming suburbs included Invermay, Newstead and Mowbray, though he said Mowbray was dominated by investment properties.
"Invermay is very much a hot spot for first-home buyers," he said. "Most properties range from $200,000 to $300,000 and it's a lovely old suburb.
"People's idea of a 'standard mortgage' is a fair bit higher than it used to be.
"The lower part of Newstead is underdone in my opinion, and it's in our top five suburbs in town."
Burnie property consultant Dee Green, of Emu Bay Real Estate, said Acton, Montello and Hillcrest were well within the price range of first-home buyers, with houses available for $200,000 or less.
All three suburbs were listed by RP Data as being in the "cheaper to buy than rent" category.
Mrs Green said it could sometimes be a struggle for real estate agents to find homes that meet buyers' expectations while remaining within a tight budget.
"A lot of first-home buyers are becoming very fussy because there's a lot on the market to choose from," she said.
Couple excited to become homeowners
NURSE Jess Horton and disability support worker Tammie Robertson have just joined the steady movement of Hobart first-home buyers happily heading north of Creek Rd.
Two months ago the couple bought their first home at Claremont, one of a pocket of northern Hobart suburbs where at the moment making repayments on the average weekly mortgage is cheaper or on par with the average cost of rent.
Ms Robertson, 28, and Ms Horton, 24, paid $240,000 for their three-bedroom renovated weatherboard house, close to the average Claremont house value of $231,00, and are spending only slightly more on their mortgage per week than they were paying in rent.
"We were so excited to move in, it happened really quickly for us," Ms Robertson said.
The women said buying a house together had always been a long-term goal, but the decision to buy was made suddenly.
They had previously been renting together in the nearby suburb of Austins Ferry and were sick of spending money on rent.
"We just woke up one day and said 'We're not renting any more'," Ms Horton said.
"We looked at pretty much all the houses in this area in our price range."
The couple went on an extreme saving mission, managing to save close to a 10 per cent deposit in three months which, in addition to the $7000 first-home buyers' grant, got them into their own home.
They said while their street was populated by a mix of residents, more young couples and families were moving into the area.
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