Cairns real estate: Port Douglas, Palm Cove set to hit $1m median
Two in-demand Far North addresses are poised to break the $1m median house price but the property obsession isn’t stopping there. What is the “trickle-down effect”?
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TWO suburbs are poised to join the million-dollar-plus club in the Far North, with stellar price growth over the past 12 months.
Palm Cove and Port Douglas regularly record eye-watering sales, but both have struggled to reach a median house sales price north of $1m.
But new data from PropTrack shows that both are edging closer to that prestigious club, with the median house price in Palm Cove now $947,500 and $935,000 for Port Douglas.
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House values in Palm Cove were up 21.5 per cent over the same period and up 73.1 per cent since 2019.
Just three years ago, the average house in Palm Cove cost $647,500.
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But the pandemic exodus to the regions has resulted in some big money flowing north, with more than 60 houses selling for more than $1m since January 2020.
Ray White Cairns Beaches principal Paul Stirling said Palm Cove and Port Douglas were seen as akin to Noosa and Byron Bay.
“The pandemic saw an unprecedented rise in inquiry for housing in this wonderful area,” Mr Stirling said.
“This almost immediate demand for new and second-hand housing witnessed an almost panic level of buying – often unseen, or by rushed trips to Cairns to make the purchasing choice.”
He said rising construction costs had influenced the upward price trend.
RE/MAX Cairns owner and broker Ray Murphy said the huge increase in interest in Palm Cove had come from southerners and westerners, with holiday-makers often attracted to property and choosing to relocate.
“It’s similar for Port Douglas, it gets high exposure from holiday-makers along with celebrity visitors, and that brings eyes and money to the area,” Mr Murphy said.
He said the fiercely hot market at Palm Cove and Port Douglas had a “trickle-down effect” to more affordable beach locations including Clifton Beach, Kewarra Beach and Trinity Beach, resulting in strong capital growth in those suburbs.
Mr Murphy said while southerners may not have been able to afford a beach location in metropolitan cities, they saw Palm Cove and Port Douglas as affordable and solid long-term investments.
Ray White Port Douglas agent Steve Doble said rising interest rates had not impacted sale prices.
“It is strongly evident in regional areas that a strong decentralisation shift of newcomers from larger populated areas has occurred, seeking lifestyle choices over what big cities offer,” Mr Doble said.
Mowbray is the region’s most expensive suburb with a median house price of $1,132,500, up a staggering 74.9 per cent in a year.
The coastal enclave has attracted some big prices, with a stunning Queenslander on a 5.25ha block selling for $2.8m in December and a 3.45ha house selling for $2.9m in January.
Mowbray’s second most expensive property sold for $2.275m back in 2003.
PropTrack economist Angus Moore said he expected Queensland would continue to outperform other states in spring, but added that prices were easing, even declining, in some areas, just like in other states.
“It has cooled but demand is still strong and above what it was pre-pandemic,” he said.
“There is also limited stock, more than there was but not as much as before the pandemic.
“However, many vendors are sitting on substantial capital growth so I think more might be motivated to sell.”
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Originally published as Cairns real estate: Port Douglas, Palm Cove set to hit $1m median
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