It took healthcare worker Ana De Dionisio more than a decade of renting to buy her first home her way, on just a single income.
Having immigrated to the country from Spain, Ms De Dionisio spent several years in Sydney living in share houses while she worked to gain her citizenship.
Living in Australia’s priciest city meant she had to save where she could, even before spiking prices following the Covid pandemic.
Healthcare worker Ana De Dionisio finally has a home of her own in Bowen Hills; but it took her more than a decade of renting as a single woman to buy it. Picture: Steve Pohlner
“Sydney is so expensive, so there wasn’t really another option for me,” she said. “Then I moved into Brisbane in 2017, and after a few bad experiences renting rooms, I decided to apply for a lease and to sublet the other two rooms.”
Ms De Dionisio said having control over the sharehouse experience allowed her to choose who she wanted to live with for the first time, and helped give opportunities to other international students in her position.
“It’s nice to come home and someone’s there,” she said. “We actually ended up having a great relationship … I was able to save money and live with people I liked.”
Ms De Dionisio struggled with Sydney’s rental market even before Covid hit; moving to Brisbane in 2017 to lease a sharehouse under her own name.
Homeowners are feeling the sting of rising interest rates, and even saving an extra $3,500 can help ease the strain on people struggling to afford a home.
New research has shown single women can have a particularly tough time getting into the housing market.
Data analysis of ABS statistics by Stop Renting Australia has shown Aussie men can earn up to $1,000 more than women per week in some regions, affecting borrowing capacity and the ability to save for a deposit.
Queensland in particular was found to have the second-highest male to female wage gap in the country.
Homeowners across the board are struggling with spiking interest rates, with single women having an especially difficult time getting a home on their own. Picture: Michael Perini
But when Ms De Dionisio needed to move out of her rental in 2024, she decided getting a home was a matter of ‘now or never’.
“I was saving money,” she said. “I wasn’t really sure of the purpose, because I thought it would be difficult for me to buy a property.”
A conversation with her broker revealed she had enough borrowing capacity to try. With her savings and the first homeowners grant, she was able to buy herself a one-bedroom unit in Bowen Hills for $448,000.
“I’m probably paying less money as an owner than if I were paying for this property as a tenant,” she said. “Which is quite annoying, because if you’re trying to save money and you’re stuck renting, it’s very hard.”
”I thought it would be difficult for me to buy a property … if you’re trying to save money and you’re stuck renting, it’s quite hard.” Picture: Steve Pohlner
In 2025, she managed to use leftover savings to get a second property in the suburb: a two-bedroom unit for $775,000.
Ms De Dionisio said she planned to rent out the larger of her two units to other people who were in the position she once was.
“I’ve spent many years on the other side, paying a fortune for dirty rooms in barely liveable houses, and I don’t want to do that to anyone,” she said.
“I like people to feel comfortable, and that starts with charging a fair price without putting anyone under pressure. I’m not trying to make money out of this – yes, it’s an investment, but a long-term one.”
Place New Farm agent Cody Durante said most home purchases he dealt with nowadays involved multiple people pitching in to afford a place.
Cody Durante of Place New Farm helped Ms De Dionisio buy her second home, and said he’d found most home purchases involved some form of financial collaboration.
“We’ve noticed since these government incentives has come out, there has been an increase in buyers in the marketplace,” he said. “I’ve dealt with people who’ve said in the past couple years they’d wait for the market to come down … [but] it’s tough to predict the unpredictable.”
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