South East Queensland Property Market Update - March 2021
The South East Queensland (SEQ) property market has seen unprecedented activity and median price growth between 2019-2020, which was an unexpected result in the aftermath of COVID-19.
The SEQ market held resilient throughout 2020, as we navigated COVID-19 restrictions, and saw an uplift from September onwards due to multiple factors: The Queensland economy re-opening, the HomeBuilder grant and other first home buyer schemes, increased migration Queensland, and historically low-interest rates.
Key Findings:
- Brisbane recorded the highest median house price in 2020, at $724,000. However, the Sunshine Coast recorded the highest annual growth between 2019-2020, of 10.2%.
- The Gold Coast recorded the highest median unit price in 2020, at $457,000. However, the Sunshine Coast recorded the highest annual growth between 2019-2020, of 5.9%. During this time, Brisbane’s median unit price recorded a softening of -1.1%.
- There has been a drastic shift in the most common vacant lot sizes sold across SEQ in the past decade. Where the most common lot size range was previously 600 to 1,000 sqm, it is now the smallest range of 250 to 450 sqm across all three Local Government Areas.
- The Gold Coast recorded the highest house rental yield, as well as being the only increasing trend within the SEQ metro areas.
- Vacancy rates in SEQ are lower than in the pre-COVID-19 period. There is an extremely tight rental market with demand exceeding supply.
- The Sunshine Coast is focused on developing its infrastructure in 2021, whereas Brisbane and the Gold Coast are focused on mixed-use and residential projects. This includes 8,841 and 6,837 apartments respectively.
