Positive gearing suburbs in Australia’s hottest property market

Western Australia remains Australia’s strongest property market, with home values up 23.2% to a median price of $751,000 in Perth and 14.9% to a median of $528,000 in regional Western Australia over the year to August. This is the highest rate of annual capital growth among Australia’s capital cities and regional areas, according to Proptrack data.

Rents have also risen more in Western Australia than anywhere else. The latest available Proptrack data covering the March quarter shows a 15.5% annual increase in rents in Perth and a 14.3% uplift in regional Western Australia. The state has also seen the strongest growth in property investment lending as investors from all over the country seek to buy in the booming market. Proptrack economic analyst Megan Lieu said investor lending in Western Australia was 48% higher in the June quarter compared to the same period last year, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics data.

Rapid increases in weekly rents have led to more suburbs across the country offering positive gearing opportunities for investors. Proptrack has identified 140 positive gearing suburbs nationwide where rental returns entirely cover the investment loan repayments for investors.

“Rent growth has … outpaced home price growth over the last 12 months, making conditions increasingly favourable for investors,” Ms Lieu said. “While many of them are benefiting from the current market, those with properties in select suburbs are not only seeing their rental income cover their mortgage but also deliver positive cash flow.”

The data shows Western Australia has 57 positive gearing suburbs, which is the most of any state and territory. Examples of these suburbs are listed below. The data assumes a 30-year loan at an 80% loan-to-value ratio (LVR) with an interest rate of 6.52%.

Positive gearing suburbs in Western Australia

Baynton

Baynton is in the Pilbara mining region and is the best positive gearing suburb in the state. Investors can cover their mortgage repayments with $2,100 per month to spare, according to Proptrack data. A typical house in Baynton costs a median of $682,500 and fetches $5,600 per month in rent. This is more than enough to cover the monthly loan repayment of $3,458.

Kambalda West

Kambalda West is in the Goldfields-Esperance mining region of Western Australia. A typical house costs $180,000 and rents for $1,520 per month. The mortgage costs $912 per month, which gives investors surplus cash of $607 per month to help cover other expenses like council and water rates.

Port Headland

Port Hedland is the second largest town in the Pilbara mining region and another strong positive gearing suburb. The median house price is $730,000 and the rental return is $4,900 per month. The investment loan repayment costs $3,698 per month, leaving the investor with $1,201 per month in their pocket. Investors on a lower budget can buy an apartment for a median of $474,396, which will rent for $3,200 per month and easily cover the mortgage of $2,403 per month.

Cable Beach

In the Broome region of Western Australia, Cable Beach sits on a 22km stretch of white sandy coastline along the Indian Ocean. The suburb was named after a telegraph cable that was laid between Broome and Java in 1889. Cable Beach houses have a median price tag of $670,000 and rent for $3,930 per month which is more than enough to cover the loan repayment of $3,394 per month.

Perth CBD

Investors can purchase a unit for a median of $465,000 and rent it out for $2,480 per month in Perth CBD. While the loan repayment gobbles up most of this, costing $2,356 per month, it is a notable rarity for a CBD suburb in the centre of an Australian capital city to deliver positive gearing.

Mosman Park

Mosman Park is an affluent suburb along the Swan River in Perth. An Australian house price record was set here in 2009 when mining magnate Chris Ellison bought a waterfront mansion for $52.5 million. Property investors can achieve positive gearing in this suburb with apartments. The median unit costs $380,000 and commands $2,000 per month in rent. This covers the monthly mortgage repayment of $1,925.

Somerville

Somerville is a positive gearing suburb in the city of Kalgoorlie-Boulder in the state’s Eastern Goldfields region. An investment unit here will cost a median of $282,000 and command a monthly rent of $2,440. This easily covers the loan repayment of $1,428 per month, with more than $1,000 to spare.

Sharjah is set to receive one of its largest new residential communities, with Azizi Developments unveiling plans for a US$8.1 billion master-planned precinct containing more than 10,000 homes.

Named Azizi Florence, the freehold development will comprise 1,130 villas, more than 6,000 townhouses and 3,500 apartments. Three-bedroom townhouses will start from US$515,000, with an indicative rate of US$231 per square foot of saleable space.

The project marks the Dubai-based developer’s first move into Sharjah, expanding a portfolio that includes the planned Burj Azizi skyscraper and the Azizi Venice community in Dubai.

A park at the heart of the community

Rather than treating landscaping as an afterthought, Azizi Florence will be organised around a 1.7 million sq ft central park.

The wider precinct is planned as a self-contained neighbourhood combining homes with retail, hospitality, education, leisure and wellness facilities.

Six residential clusters will sit within the development, each with its own park, clubhouse, community centre and landscaped gardens. The approach reflects a broader shift across large Middle Eastern developments, where greenery, recreation and everyday convenience are increasingly central to the residential proposition.

The scale of Azizi Florence suggests it is intended to function as a neighbourhood rather than a collection of housing estates. Its mix of housing types should also give the project broader appeal, accommodating apartment buyers alongside families seeking townhouses or standalone villas.

Azizi expands beyond Dubai

Azizi Developments has delivered more than 45,000 homes to buyers from over 100 countries and says it has approximately 150,000 units under construction.

Much of its growth has been concentrated in Dubai, where its portfolio extends across Palm Jumeirah, Mohammed Bin Rashid City, Dubai South, Sheikh Zayed Road and Downtown Jebel Ali.

Its most prominent current project is Burj Azizi, which is intended to become the world’s second-tallest building. Azizi Florence represents a different type of undertaking: a low-rise, family-oriented community built around public space and daily amenity.

For company founder and chairman Mirwais Azizi, the Sharjah project also carries a personal connection. The emirate was his first home in the UAE more than three decades ago, adding a symbolic dimension to the developer’s expansion.

Sharjah’s residential ambitions grow

Although Dubai and Abu Dhabi have traditionally captured much of the international attention directed at the UAE property market, Sharjah has been steadily broadening its residential offering.

Large freehold communities such as Azizi Florence have the potential to attract both local families and international purchasers looking for comparatively accessible entry points into the Emirates’ property market.

At a starting price of US$515,000, the project’s three-bedroom townhouses will sit well below the cost of equivalent family homes in many of Dubai’s more established luxury communities.

The ultimate appeal, however, will depend on execution. At this scale, the quality of the public realm, connections between residential clusters and delivery of the promised supporting infrastructure will be as important as the homes themselves.

If those elements come together, Azizi Florence could help establish a new benchmark for large-scale residential development in Sharjah—and give buyers another option beyond the UAE’s better-known property markets.