On another level

Apartments are no longer the poor relation of houses. These days, one in 10 of us chooses apartment living, rising to one in five among millennials. And it’s a choice that can have plenty going for it, particularly on the affordability front.

Nationally, there’s a $100,000 gap between the median house value and the median unit value. In Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra this gap widens to more than $180,000.

The price difference is a big deal, especially for first home buyers. A CoreLogic/ANZ report found it can take almost 10 years to save a 20% deposit for a house in our state capitals, compared with around eight years for an apartment.

But it’s not just about getting into a place of your own sooner. “Quite often an apartment means buyers will be able to afford to live closer