Where Canberra first home buyers can secure a house under the new home guarantee scheme threshold for the ACT

The scheme enables first home buyers and single parents to take out a mortgage with less than a 20 per cent deposit without paying lenders mortgage insurance.

The federal government announced on Monday the scheme's price thresholds will increase from July 1.

The ACT will see the country's largest price cap increase, from $500,000 to $750,000 for the 2022-2023 financial year.

It comes as dwelling values rose approximately 21.6 per cent for the 12 months to March 2022, to a current median value $932,704. The median value of a Canberra house is currently $1,055,812, while the median unit value is $609,314.

Industry groups have welcomed the changes, but say supply must be addressed to alleviate housing affordability pressures.

Currently only six ACT suburbs (12.5 per cent) have a median unit value equal to or under the $500,000 threshold, according to CoreLogic data. Under the increased threshold, 42 suburbs (87.5 per cent) have a median unit value under $750,000.

While buyers will have more unit options available to them, the choices are still slim for houses.

There are no suburbs in the ACT that have a median house value equal to or under the current $500,000 threshold.

Under the changes, there are three suburbs within the increased price cap: Strathnairn, where the median house value is $545,857, Phillip ($637,391) and Charnwood ($725,820).

Combining established houses and units, 31.4 per cent of properties in the ACT are valued equal to or under $750,000.

It's a significant increase on the 10.7 per cent of homes currently available to purchasers within the $500,000 price cap.

CoreLogic research director Tim Lawless said the large increase in Canberra's threshold shows the current price cap isn't a true reflection of the property market.

"We've seen Canberra benefit from the largest increase in the price cap and just over the past 12 months we've seen prices rise by over $165,000," he said.

"Arguably this is a generous increase in the price cap. I think it reflects that the original price cap, which was equivalent to Adelaide, was out of whack with where prices were."

Meanwhile, Canstar has revealed the income required for a person to afford a first home at the higher end of the new price caps.

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The data revealed a single ACT buyer, who owns a car and fronts the minimum 5 per cent deposit, would need to earn $128,904 per year for a $750,000 home. A couple with a car loan and two dependents would need to earn $136,410.

Mr Lawless said buyers looking to access the guarantee scheme are likely to secure a unit over a house.

"Under the new thresholds only 3.5 per cent of [Canberra] suburbs qualify for a median house value coming under the threshold, whereas if you go to somewhere else, even in Sydney under the new threshold 16 per cent of suburbs meet the new criteria," he said.

"Canberra definitely stands out as showing a very low proportion of houses being available."

But it doesn't mean a house is out of the question. Mr Lawless said it's important to remember there may properties available below the median values of each suburb.

"Keep in mind we're using median values here," he said.

"Median value is the 50th percentile of the values. The median value is more a reflection of the typical stock available.

"Chances are there still may be properties, such as fixer uppers or those located on a busy street. It's definitely worth drilling down beyond the headlines ... using the median value is just a guide."

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