Shares vs. property: What does $1 million buy you?

Got a lazy $1 million to spend?

Great!

Let's fill you in on what $1 million buys in terms of shares vs. property investments.

What $1 million buys in shares vs. property

New Proptrack data from REA Group Ltd (ASX: REA) shows there are 1,438 suburbs across Australia with a median house price of $1 million or more.

NSW is home to the lion's share, with 672 suburbs, or 46.7% of all suburbs in the state, having a million-dollar house price median. REA is projecting that another 70 suburbs will reach this price point within 12 months.

Next is Queensland, with 268 suburbs (18.6% of all suburbs) having a median house price of $1 million or higher. REA is tipping another 37 suburbs to join the club over the next year.

Then Victoria has 246 suburbs (17.1% of all suburbs), with REA expecting 23 more to come soon. South Australia has 108 suburbs (7.5% of all suburbs) and there are 13 more set to exceed this price benchmark.

REA says Western Australia has 90 suburbs (6.3%) with a $1 million median and six more are coming. The ACT has 45 suburbs (3.1%), and 10 more are expected to surpass the million-dollar median over the next year. Tasmania has seven million-dollar median suburbs (0.5%), and seven more are coming.

Next suburbs to become $1 million-median neighbourhoods

Here are the next suburbs in line to join the $1 million median club in each state and territory.

We reveal the current median house price, median weekly rent, and annual rental income yield.

• NSW: Lansvale has a median house price of $950,000 and is next in line to join the $1 million club, according to REA projections. The median house rent is $600 per week, delivering a gross rental yield of 3.28%.
• Victoria: Ringwood's median house price is $999,500 and it is about to breach the $1 million median. The median house rent is $590 per week, delivering a gross rental yield of 3.06%.
• Queensland: Birtinya has a median house price of $972,500 and REA says it will be next to surpass the $1 million median. The median house rent is $765 per week, delivering a gross rental yield of 4.09%.
• South Australia: Clapham has a median house price of $961,000 and is next in line to join the $1 million club. The median house rent is $615 per week, delivering a gross rental yield of 3.32%.
• Western Australia: Doubleview's median house price is $985,000, so it's not far off that $1 million median mark. The median house rent is $750 per week, delivering a gross rental yield of 3.96%.
• ACT: Fisher has a median house price of $955,000 and is next in line to join the $1 million club. The median house rent is $692 per week, delivering a gross rental yield of 3.76%.
• Tasmania: Mount Nelson has a median house price of $937,500 and REA says it will be next to strike the $1 million median. The median house rent is $597 per week, delivering a gross rental yield of 3.31%.

What if you invested $1 million in ASX dividend shares instead?

Here is the annual dividend income you could expect from $1 million invested equally across five popular ASX 200 dividend shares.

The dividend amounts included in this table are consensus analyst forecasts for 2025 published on CommSec.

In total, you would earn $45,281 per annum in fully franked dividend income by investing $1 million in this ASX 200 shares portfolio. This equates to an overall portfolio dividend yield of 4.53%.

With franking credits included, the grossed-up portfolio dividend yield would be 6.47%.

Shares vs. property: What about capital growth?

Research from AMP Ltd (ASX: AMP) shows shares vs. property deliver very similar rates of capital gains over the long term.

Since 1926, AMP says ASX shares have risen by an average 11.2% per annum vs. Australian residential property which has lifted 10.9% per annum.