Brisbane was Australia’s strongest property market in 2021 exhibiting astonishing growth, with many locations experiencing 30+% house price growth.
And as growth slowed in other parts of Australia, Brisbane's housing markets continued to perform strongly in the first half of 2022, even despite the devastating floods earlier in the year.
Also unlike the two other most major cities - Sydney and Melbourne - Brisbane actually experienced an influx of migrants during the past 2 years as Sydneysiders and Melbournians (in particular) fled their harsh lockdowns and sky-high property prices in search of lifestyle suburbs and affordable living.
All made possible by the pandemic-induced work-from-home trend which made ‘the office’ a distant memory.
Sunshine State gained a net 7,035 people from interstate over the March 2021 quarter alone – while NSW shed 4,463 and Victoria lost 4,864.
It would come as no surprise that migration data showed that the Sunshine State was particularly popular since the onset of the pandemic.
While the Brisbane property market has now tapered off from its peak (albeit a delayed taper), PropTrack data shows there are some suburbs where demand is still surging and strong competition is keeping prices high.
Areas in lifestyle or coastal suburbs are in particularly strong demand as homebuyers wait to secure their dream property.
Analysis by PropTrack shows suburbs in the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast top the hotspots for the strongest buyer demand over the past year, for both houses and units.
And PropTrack economist Angus Moore said the Gold and Sunshine Coasts have been very popular during the pandemic.
"We've seen a lot of people move, particularly from Sydney and Melbourne, to South East Queensland. To date that appears to be continuing in where we're seeing buyer demand."
But city living is not completely out of favour, with the PropTrack analysis showing some inner-city suburbs are also experiencing particularly strong demand.
"There is still plenty of demand particularly as cities reopen and we return to the office," he said.
Moore said buyer demand has eased compared to earlier in the year and late spring last year due to the rapid rise in interest rates but remains significantly stronger than pre-pandemic levels.
"In an environment of rising rates and mortgages becoming more difficult to service, we might be seeing some buyers shift where they're looking a little bit further out and to lower price points."
The most in-demand Brisbane suburbs
Suburbs in Brisbane’s Inner City and West regions dominate the top 10 most in-demand suburbs for houses in Brisbane.
In the top spot for houses is Kenmore Hills, about 14km south-west of the CBD where the median house price is $1.5 million.
There have been 117% more buyers looking at a house in Kenmore Hills than typical across Brisbane.
In second place is Newmarket in Brisbane’s Inner City with 108.1% more potential buyers for its $1.3 million houses.
Third and fourth place went to Pullenvale and Brookfield, both in Brisbane’s West - the suburbs have 102% and 97.8% more potential buyers respectively for their $1.81 million and $1.8 million houses respectively.
For units, Brisbane’s Inner City region unsurprisingly dominates the top three spots.
Red Hill came in first place with an impressive 170.4% more potential buyers than typical for its $650,000 units.
Wilston took second place with 168.3% more potential buyers for its $508,250 units and Newmarket came in third with 163.9% more potential buyers for its $450,000 units.
Here’s the full list:
The most in-demand suburbs in regional Queensland
Brisbane’s demand levels are impressive, but the real story for Queensland lies in its regional housing markets.
The sea- and tree-change shift, accelerated during the pandemic, saw many Aussies pack up and move to regional Queensland in significant numbers.
The report shows that a small township in the Gold Coast Hinterland has an enormous demand for its few hundred houses, taking the prize as the most in-demand suburb not just in regional Queensland but across the entire country.
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Springbrook had more than triple the typical demand for houses from potential buyers in regional Queensland over the past year, with a score of 239%.
Springbrook, where the median house price is $680,000, is home to 705 people and has only 406 dwellings in total.
Close behind in second place is Lower Beechmont, also on the Gold Coast, which the data shows has 226.2% more potential buyers for its $722,500 median-priced houses.
In third place for houses is Maroochy River on the Sunshine Coast.
The riverside suburb came in with an in-demand score of 189.9% for its $1.307 million median-priced houses.
In fact, many Gold and Sunshine Coast suburbs have been experiencing buyer demand well above the typical level for regional Queensland.
For houses, all suburbs on the list experienced a score of over 140%, and for units 134%.
The small coastal town of Peregian Beach on the Sunshine Coast had a massive 276% more buyers looking at units than typical for regional Queensland.
Median unit prices for the suburb currently sit at $972 million.
For units, Currumbin and Highland Park, both on the Gold Coast, came in second and third place on the in-demand list for regional Queensland.
The suburbs have seen enormous 247.4% and 218.9% more potential buyers respectively for their $815,000 and $495,000 median priced units respectively.
Here’s the full list:
A final note
When it comes to investing, following trending suburbs doesn’t necessarily make the best investment sense.
You see, you want to invest in stable suburbs and properties which offer long-term growth.
So while these suburbs listed might make for an attractive purchase, they aren’t necessarily where I’d recommend investing.
At Metropole, we always advise on the importance of investment-grade properties and locations, rather than chasing a hotspot or growth area.
But not just that.
Even before looking for the right location, you need to make sure you have a Strategic Property Plan to steer you through the challenges we’ll inevitably see ahead in our property markets.
Because aside from remembering that you should focus your efforts on investment-grade properties and locations, you also need to remember that property investing is a process, not an event.
That process has to be done in the right order – and selecting the location and the right property in that location comes right at the end of the process.
Long before we talk about a property or the right location with our clients at Metropole, we look at factors including their age, their timeframes, and the desired end results in other words, what do they really want the properties to do – are they looking for cash flow, capital growth, or a combination of both.
And that’s because what makes a great investment property for me, is not likely to be the same as what would suit your investment needs.
So at Metropole, it all starts with helping our clients formulate a Strategic Property Plan which takes into account their surplus cash flow position, their risk profile (for example would they consider undertaking renovations or small development), and whether they currently own a home or are wanting to buy a new home or upgrade their existing home in the future, if they are going to earn more income in the future, or if they’re going to decrease their family income because they’re having a baby, how many other investment properties they own, where they are located and how they are performing plus 35 other considerations.
So whether you’re looking to buy a new home or an investment property and you want more certainty and direction in these interesting times, my recommendation is to sit with an independent property strategist to formulate a plan.
It’s just too difficult to do on your own and I’ve found most investors tend to be too emotionally involved to see their situation objectively.
If you’re a beginner looking for a time-tested property investment strategy or an established investor who’s stuck or maybe you just want an objective second opinion about your situation, please leave us your details here and we’ll be in contact and give you more details about how to book a Strategic Property Plan Consultation.
