Regional QLD’s property price growth stars revealed

From coastal hamlets to acreage suburbs and city locales, more than two thirds of Queensland’s top spots for growth were outside of Greater Brisbane. See every QLD suburbs new median price!

From affordable coastal hamlets to acreage suburbs and regional city locales --- more than two thirds of Queensland’s top spots for growth in the March quarter were outside of Greater Brisbane.

And that number explodes when 12 month price growth is factored in, with over 400 suburbs across regional Queensland recording house price growth between 10 per cent (Mareeba, Kirwan, Sarina) and 45.4 per cent (Ninderry).

But new data from property researcher CoreLogic shows the sheer extent of the home price explosion across the Queensland during the two-year boom, with top performers located in every region.

Wide Bay was the strongest region, with 18 suburbs recording double-digit growth north of 50 per cent in the 24 months to March this year, led by The Palms (+73.2%), Kandanga (+71.3%) and Gympie (+68.2%).

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100 Knobby Glen Road, Kandanga, sold for $1.35m in February

Pie Creek and The Palms also recorded March quarter growth of 12.5 per cent, according to the data.

10 Ann Street, Gympie, sold for $505,000 in February

Century 21 Gympie agent Brodie Weir said demand had increased for small acreage properties in the Gympie region, particularly in Pie Creek, with developers building new estates with average block sizes was around 1ha.

He said the trend had led to an influx of buyers selling out of southern markets and moving to the region, while also downsizing their mortgages.

5 Tarragon Road, The Palms, sold for $700,000 in January

Nearly 90 suburbs across the Sunshine State recorded median house price growth north of 10 per cent in the March quarter, with just six suburbs, out of 836, recording zero or negative price growth.

And of those suburbs, the biggest decline was located at Habana in the Mackay region, where prices declined by just 2.6 per cent.

CoreLogic’s head of research Eliza Owen said that unlike the softening conditions across Sydney and Melbourne, major cities in Queensland continued to show growth of around 2 per cent in March.

“Across the 1147 house and unit markets analysed (in Queensland), only 19 saw a decline in value through the quarter,” she said.

Up north, Herberton was the top performer in the Cairns region during the March quarter, with median house values up 8.7 per cent, followed closely by Peeramon (+8.6%) and Malanda (+8.3%).

Every Cairns suburb saw median house values increase in the March quarter, with only one unit market, Edge Hill, declining by just 0.3 per cent.

Over the two year pandemic property boom, unit markets in Holloways Beach (+43.4%) and Smithfield (+41.4%) led the charge, followed by houses in Cardwell (+37%).

More than a decade after Cyclone Yasi smashed into North Queensland, towns like Cardwell are seeing house values rise as a result of the great pandemic migration to the regions. AFP PHOTO / Paul CROCK

Further south, Forrest Beach saw the biggest median house price in the Townsville region during the March quarter, up 8.1 per cent to an incredibly affordable $246,408.

It was followed by Shaw, up 7.3 per cent.

Rosslea units recorded the biggest rise in median prices during the two-year property boom – up 47.8 per cent to just shy of $200,000, followed by houses in Home Hill (+36.5%), Forrest Beach and Belgian Gardens (+30.8%).

Median house values in Townsville’s most expensive suburb, Castle Hill, climbed 3.6 per cent over the quarter, and 18.4 per cent over 24 months, to just over $1 million.

Twenty-two suburbs saw median house values rise by more than 10 per cent in the past 12 months, with that number more than doubling over a 24-month period.

Explore Property agent Giovanni Spinella said Townsville prices were still down on the previous peak over a decade ago, but the recovery was underway.

“Prices are starting to normalise, and if things continue as they are, I suspect the next quarter will be even better,” he said.

Prices are still down on the previous boom, but values across Townsville are rising.

On the Gold Coast, three of the top five performing suburbs during the March quarter were units – Oxenford (+14.3%), Coomera (+12.6%) and Upper Coomera (+11%), with houses in Pacific Pines +11.3%) and Molendinar (+10.7%) rounding out the top five for the region.

All have a median value below $1 million, with the Gold Coast now home to 41 million dollar-plus house and unit suburbs.

8 Laysan Crescent, Oxenford, is listed for offers over $869,000

Adam Hall, of The Gold Coast Mortgage Broker, said inquiry had halved since Christmas as the pandemic’s frenzied activity from interstate buyers eased, but also as local buyers adjusted their price expectations to meet the market.

“I still think there’s some real competition in the market … it hasn’t turned to be a buyers’ market at all yet,” he said.

The top three suburbs for price growth in the March quarter on the Sunshine Coast were all unit markets – Noosaville (+11.3%), Nambour (+10.6%) and Sunshine Beach (+9.3%), while for houses, Bokarina and Marcus Beach posted 9.3 per cent growth.

The Sunshine Coast now boasts 62 house and unit markets with a median price north of $1 million, with just two unit suburbs – Sippy Downs and Nambour – having a median value below $500,000.

Even Collinsville, Queensland’s cheapest house market with a median value of $122,121, has clocked some significant price growth – up 0.8 per cent over the quarter, 17.1 per cent over 12 months and 28.7 per cent over 24 months.

Greater Brisbane also clocked a new record median house price of $828,175, with an annual growth of 32.8 per cent.