$900k profit in 19 months as QLD buyers avoid building blow-outs

A Brisbane house has earned its owners a whopping $900,000 in profit in just 19 months, as buyers turn their backs on building new homes due to spiralling material and trade costs and delays.

A Brisbane house has earned its owners a whopping $900,000 in profit in just 19 months, as buyers turn their backs on building new homes due to spiralling material and trade costs and ongoing delays.

Located at Nundah, the striking residence was bought brand new for $1.22 million in July 2019 – seven months before the start of the crazy pandemic property boom.

It recently sold at auction for a mind-boggling $2.12 million – a $900,000 profit.

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Listing photos of 113 Eton St Nundah in 2019

And the listing photos in 2022

To put that pocket-filler into perspective, that huge gain is approximately 10 times the average Aussie annual wage, and is almost double Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s yearly salary.

The image from 2019

And in 2022, with the styling changed

And the vendors only added a pool, solar, an awning and some window furnishings, with the

listing description almost identical to the one from 2019, and the same property agents employed to make the sale.

The pool is a new addition

But while property records show it spent 106 days on the market in 2019, it was sold in just 21 days – the average length of an auction campaign – this year.

Place Newmarket agent Matthew Jabs, who marketed the property alongside co-agent Ross Armstrong, said the market was very different now, with 10 registered bidders at the auction on Sunday.

“And six or seven of those were actively bidding,” he said, with the bidding starting at $1.6 million and moving up in $100,000 increments.

“Part of the appeal is that it is move-in ready and trying to build at the moment is very difficult.

“Buyers are opting to buy an established yet modern house rather than face monthly price increases for building materials and labour.”

Listing photos of 113 Eton St Nundah in 2019

Listing photos of 113 Eton St Nundah in 2022

Two of the 10 registered bidders were located interstate, but the house was snapped up by buyers based on the southside of Brisbane, Mr Jabs said.

Mr Jabs said he was seeing an increase in people who had blocks or post-war homes but they could not secure a builder,

“So they are sitting on those properties or selling them, and they want something to move into now,” he said.

Listing photos of 113 Eton St Nundah in 2022

The Nundah property has five bedrooms, three bathrooms and sits on a 443sq m block with 19m street frontage.

Listing photos of 113 Eton St Nundah in 2019

The ground level is home to an open plan living area with high ceilings, a striking kitchen, a multipurpose or guest room, a study or wine cellar, and a patio that overlooks the pool and landscaped gardens.

Upstairs is where you will find the bedrooms, including the elegant master suite and a second rumpus room.

On Monday, Master Builders deputy CEO Paul Bidwell said builders were facing enormous and unprecedented challenges in delivering new homes.

“The ongoing price hikes and trade and material delays are a serious thorn in the industry’s side, and we expect the issue to run right through 2022,” he said.

“The increase to construction costs is the worst we’ve seen in many years.

“ABS figures suggest prices have risen in Brisbane only by 12.9 per cent in the last 12 months, while anecdotal reports from the industry suggest these figures are conservative, with increases more to the tune of 20-25 per cent.”