Brisbane suburbs where house, unit sales have skyrocketed

Brisbane’s boom suburbs have been revealed, with the number of properties changing hands nearly double the average in some places.

Natalie and Clint Cross are selling their home in Balmoral, which has seen the most sales of houses during the property boom this year. Picture: John Gass.

The suburbs where home sales have skyrocketed during the housing boom have been revealed, with the number of properties changing hands in some Brisbane hot spots nearly 100 per cent higher than average.

New research shows the locations where home sales are well above the five-year average, with the city’s inner ring suburbs the most active.

House sales within 5km of the CBD are up a whopping 29 per cent on the same time a year ago, while apartment sales are up 24 per cent.

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This four-bedroom house at 50 Derby St, Balmoral, recently sold for $1.56m.

Popular inner suburbs such as Balmoral, Newmarket and New Farm have seen strong turnover of houses, but perhaps surprisingly, so too have the traditionally less in-demand suburbs of Murarrie, Salisbury and Coopers Plains.

In Highgate Hill, where the median apartment price is $810,000, unit sales have increased by a whopping 97 per cent, while Bowen Hills and Clayfield have also seen strong apartment sales volumes.

Place Advisory researcher Connor Read said record low interest rates, low stock, strong consumer sentiment and increased infrastructure spending was behind the surge in sales, with transaction levels at their highest since 2017.

This property at 214 Wilston Rd, Newmarket, recently sold under the hammer for $3.17m.

“For houses, Balmoral led the sales,” Mr Read said.

“It has quite a good history of capital growth, increasing 5 per cent per annum over the last decade, so people are seeing value in that.

“Also, people are saving more so they’re willing to pay a bit more to live in a nice suburb.”

Mr Read said New Farm had been popular with Covid refugees from Sydney and Melbourne, while Coopers Plains had become the new Sunnybank.

For apartments, Clayfield has become popular because the median unit price is still an affordable $480,000, unlike the median house price of over $1 million.

A two-bedroom apartment in this complex at 34/106 Bonney Ave, Clayfield, sold for $690,000 last month.

“People want to live in a high-end area and a $480,000 (apartment) median allows entry-level buyers to get in,” Mr Read said.

Bulimba and Windsor were appealing to downsizers and small families looking for larger apartments over a house, he said.

“The strengthened market sentiment also drove demand in the new and off-the-plan apartment market, as quarterly sales were at their highest level since September 2018,” he said.

This three-bedroom house at 35 Wareela St, Murarrie, recently sold for $794,000.

Mr Read said Brisbane’s prestige market had experienced a “massive” jump in sales over the past 12 months, with the number of $3 million-plus home sales jumping 21 per cent.
Place Advisory expects Brisbane house values to continue to rise until there is either a significant increase in stock on market, or the inflation rate reaches the federal government target of two to three per cent — something the RBA has forecast to occur in 2024.

It comes as new data from digital property settlement platform, PEXA, reveals Queensland recorded more property settlements than Victoria over the past 12 months.

Greater Brisbane was also the standout capital city across the east coast, delivering a 52 per cent year-on-year increase in property sales.

PEXA senior research manager Mike Gill said the Covid-19 pandemic had been a huge driver of sales in Queensland metropolitan and regional areas.

“The Sunshine State has had an incredible year in property, with Greater Brisbane jumping more than 50 per cent on last year’s figures, and the rest of Queensland delivering significant year-on-year gains,” Mr Gill said.

A two-bedroom apartment in this complex at 60 Hood St, Sherwood, recently sold this month for $391,000.

Property researcher CoreLogic estimates sales activity in Brisbane over the three months to May was tracking 38.5 per cent higher than the five-year average.

CoreLogic head of research Tim Lawless said the sales to new listings ratio remained around 1:1, meaning for every new listing there was more than one sale occurring.

“This rapid rate of absorption is keeping advertised inventory levels extremely low, despite the rise in new listings,” Mr Lawless said.

“As a consequence, vendors remain in a strong selling position while buyers have a weak

position at the negotiation table.”

This five-bedroom house at 236 Harcourt St, New Farm, recently sold for $3.1m.

Mr Lawless said with housing sales activity continuing to outpace the number of new listings added to the market, the total number of homes advertised for sale remains about 24 per cent below the five-year average.

CoreLogic notes investors are stepping up their activity across the housing market, motivated by prospects for continued capital gain and low interest rates.

“The return of investors and high demand from owner occupiers may account for the continued strength in the housing market, despite affordability constraints.”

BRISBANE SUBURBS WITH THE MOST HOUSE SALES IN 2021

Suburb Median price Number of sales 5-year average %age increase

Balmoral $1.26m 60 38 57%

Newmarket $1.07m 42 27 55%

Murarrie $760,000 55 36 54%

Salisbury $660,000 58 38 54%

New Farm $2.68m 56 37 53%

Wilston $1.46m 39 26 52%

Moggill $710,000 48 33 47%

Upper Kedron $1.02m 46 31 46%

Seven Hills $1.24m 36 25 45%

Coopers Plains $630,000 53 37 43%

(Source: Place Advisory, based on past six months of sales)

BRISBANE SUBURBS WITH THE MOST APARTMENT SALES IN 2021

Suburb Median price Number of sales 5-year average %age increase

Highgate Hill $810,000 57 29 97%

Bowen Hills $490,000 110 69 61%

Clayfield $480,000 125 82 53%

Sherwood $450,000 82 54 52%

Spring Hill $430,000 108 73 47%

Bulimba $830,000 114 79 44%

Teneriffe $770,000 141 98 44%

Milton $560,000 70 50 41%

Carina $520,000 135 96 40%

Windsor $480,000 71 51 39%

(Source: Place Advisory, based on past six months of sales)