The investment property market in South East Queensland has been one of the biggest growth areas in Australia in the last two years.
The region around the Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast is experiencing what one Brisbane real estate agent described as ‘unprecedented demand’ from investment property buyers.
The announcement of the 2032 Brisbane Olympics has led to widespread interest in the region, with South East Queensland property prices predicted to rise precipitously as a result of infrastructure investment in the next decade to ready the area for the Games.
The ‘rentvesting’ phenomenon, too, is thought to be a factor, as Sydney and Melbourne buyers are priced out of their own cities and thus choose to place their cash in investment properties on the Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast rather than buying their own homes as owner-occupiers.
The growth of Brisbane real estate prices, too, has led to many in the city being able to generate the cash for second and third properties, which they are choosing to purchase in nearby coastal regions.
“What we’re seeing on the ground in Queensland is unprecedented demand from our southern counterparts in Sydney and Melbourne, as well as international interest,” said Adam Empringham of Image Property, a real estate agent who specialises in the South East Queensland investment property market.
“More than ever before, we’re seeing local investors, because for the first time in a long time, we’re seeing natural equity growth within our marketplace, and that money is getting spent, particularly on the Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast, it’s a lot of Brisbane money going further afield.”
“We’re also seeing the lifestyle proposition of what South East Queensland can be, which is people selling their properties down there and coming up here, buying a really nice property and then potentially pick up a couple of investment properties for the same debt coverage that they had down south.”
South East Queensland might be the hottest investment property market in Australia
“It’s not just about being priced out of Sydney and Melbourne: it’s also about yield and return. You get a stronger yield and return in South East Queensland right now: your average in Sydney is less than 2%, but a solid return up here is still 4.5%.”
“You’re getting good capital growth but also good rental return. That’s why a lot of people down south are considering South East Queensland investment properties.”
“What we’re seeing is not dissimilar from what we saw in Sydney in the late 90s, when the Sutherland Shire was connected to Sydney and the Central Coast became connected. You could nearly argue now that Sydney runs to Newcastle, there’s barely a gap.”
“When you look at what is happening up here with the connectivity of our urban sprawl, we’re seeing development of infrastructure and private sector investment in retail. We’ve got major infrastructure popping up that we never had before.”
