Beach houses for every budget: Where you can own a coastal home by summer

Homes near the beach are available right now at different price points around the country, so if you want to be in your beach house by summer, it's time to start looking.Summer is just around the corner, meaning buyers seeking a coastal home will need to act quick to move in before the weather really heats up.There are beachy options available at different price points around the country, ranging from sub-$500k cottages to multimillion-dollar homes.But deciding whether to purchase as an owner-occupier or investor may impact your strategy.Rebecca Pritchard, senior financial planner at Rising Tide cautioned that the Australian Tax Office is now watching holiday homes and assessing when they’re used, not just if they’re leased at times. “Block out peak periods like Christmas or school holidays for family time and you can lose deductions on indirect costs including mortgage interest; generally the single biggest expense on a holiday home,” she said. “If you're weighing up a purchase, work out which ‘zone’ your intended use actually falls into before you rely on tax deductions to make the numbers stack up.”Beach houses and coastal land under $500,000 Despite market activity slowing in m...