Sunshine Coast property boom: New research shows office vacancy rates halved

The ‘remarkable’ part of the Sunshine Coast’s property boom has been revealed with new research showing the region is defying national trends and ‘coming of age’.

The Sunshine Coast has defied national office trends in what researchers have described as a “remarkable boom”, said to be strong in Maroochydore CBD.

The Sunshine Coast has defied national office trends in what researchers have described as a “remarkable boom”.

With Covid-19 forcing many to work from home office vacancy rates declined across the country with the exception of the Sunshine Coast where demand is at its highest.

Property Council of Australia research shows the Sunshine Coast’s office vacancy halved over 12 months from 13.2 per cent at the start of 2021 to seven per cent in January 2022.

The Office Market Report showed the Sunshine Coast outperformed the rest of the country and defied the odds during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Queensland executive director Jen Williams said the region’s market was not only growing but in the midst of a “remarkable boom”.

“With our data, we often find that demand is concentrated in one particular segment of the market. However, across the Sunshine Coast, there is extraordinary demand for all space, from premium stock as well as the lower end of the market,” Ms Williams said.

“The data reinforces the amazing momentum that the region is experiencing, with people moving to the Sunshine Coast not only for its lifestyle, but the raft of economic opportunities it presents.

“It also shows that rumours of the demise of the workplace have been greatly exaggerated with vacancy rates across South East Queensland holding up despite the challenges of the Covid pandemic.”

CBRE director Brendan Robins said the results showed the tourism reliant region was coming of age with interstate businesses looking to invest.

But the high demand is hurting some businesses particularly those in need of warehouse space.

Ray White Commercial Northern Corridor principal Michael Shadforth said ongoing industrial land shortages could deter private investment from businesses inside and outside the region.

“In the short to medium term industrial land is at a critical nature, there’s very limited choice,” Mr Shadforth said.

Mr Robins said vacant stock was rapidly snapped up and there was limited stock available for lease, particularly in Maroochydore.

“There has been a switch in the way people and businesses view the Sunshine Coast,” he said.

“This is not only being driven externally by record levels of interstate migration, but by the array of groundbreaking projects in the pipeline and the lure of doing business on the Coast.

“The new Maroochydore City Centre is a perfect example of that. Projects like 50 First Ave will set a new benchmark for commercial office space on the Sunshine Coast and show that the region is growing up and ready to compete with the bigger cities.”