The QLD suburbs where buyers can still party like its 2011

There are 162 suburbs across Queensland where buyers can still purchase a house or unit (or both) for less than the median price a decade ago. But you had better act fast! Find out where.

From hinterland suburbs to rural towns and regional beachside havens, there are 162 suburbs across Queensland where buyers can still purchase a house or unit, or both, for less than the median price a decade ago.

While the property boom has forced up values in many southeast Queensland locations, there are still a few spots where buying a home won’t completely break the bank.

And for those willing to downsize to a unit, a low-maintenance apartment in a sought-after suburb could also still be in reach, even in the red-hot beachside markets.

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This three-bedroom house in Inala recently sold for $370,000, almost $140,000 less than the 2011 median house price for the Brisbane LGA

In Brisbane, which had a median house price of $507,695 in 2011, there are five suburbs where you can still buy a house for less than that – Inala, Durack, Richlands, Darra and Rocklea.

But there are 14 suburbs where unit prices are cheaper now than a decade ago.

On the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast, which have been magnets for cashed-up Covid escapees from interstate, finding a house or unit at 2011 prices in any suburb is now a thing of the past.

But there are some suburbs where you can downsize to an apartment and still have some cash leftover from the 2011 median house price.

For example, you may get lucky and beat the fierce competition to land an apartment in Surfers Paradise for less than the 2011 Gold Coast median house price of $475,378.

There are 20 suburbs where buyers can still buy a unit for less than the median house price a decade ago, according to the Core Logic data.

While Nambour might be the Sunshine Coast’s cheapest house suburb, this residence recently sold for a suburb record of $1,181,500

But it is slim pickings on the Sunshine Coast, which has seen extraordinary price growth, with just two suburbs – Nambour and Sippy Downs – still boasting median unit values less than the 2011 median house price.

While it is slim pickings on the Sunshine Coast, this surprise package at Baringa is being targeted at first home buyers and is listed for $469,000

For bargain hunters, the best places to find a house at 2011 prices can be found in the regions, with 23 suburbs in Townsville still offering affordable housing options at or below 2011 house or unit values.

Those suburbs include Balgal Beach, and the family-friendly suburbs of West End, Aitkenvale, Mundingburra, Pimlico, Railway Estate and Kirwan.

There is quite a few houses to choose from in Townsville, including this four-bedroom house with a pool in Kirwan. It is listed for $339,000

Mackay has 15 suburbs where median house values are still cheaper than they were in 2011, with the region still recovering from the blistering mining bust a decade ago.

This South Mackay house sits on a 490sq m block and is listed for offers over $369,000

There is also 10 suburbs in Gladstone and Bundaberg where househunters should be looking now, according to the CoreLogic data.

Only one suburb is Queensland had a median house price below those in 2001 – Collinsville in the Whitsunday region, a suburb often referred to as a “danger” market by property experts.

“Over the past ten years, Queensland house values have risen by 42.9 per cent ($177,000) and over the past twenty years values are 201.9 per cent ($393,000) higher,” CoreLogic’s head of research Tim Lawless said.

Places like Airlie Beach and the Whitsundays have been magnets for interstate buyers looking for a holiday home. Supplied.

Looking at Townsville, the region with the most affordable suburbs, Mr Lawless said house values remained 21.9 per cent below their 2007 peak.

But he said the market was back on an “upwards trajectory”, with house values 8.2 per cent higher over the past 12 months, suggesting the list was likely to become progressively shorter as the months progressed.

REIQ Townsville zone chair Ben Kingsberry said the region still offered plenty of value, but warned that prices were rising.

He said the city had seen rents growing faster than values, but that was changing.

“That price (2011 median house value) is very attractive to investors, who are targeting properties that are cashflow positive and have good prospects for capital growth,” he said.

”But properties at that price are becoming harder to come by, with investors, including interstate investors, much more active, and local buyers also more active in the market.”

Located in Gordonvale in the Cairns region, this four bedroom house could be yours for $337,000 – about $3000 less than the 2011 median house price for the Cairns LGA

In Cairns, Mr Lawless said there was only suburb with house values lower than the 2011 house median a decade ago.

But there are three suburbs - Manoora, Manunda and Woree - where buyers can purchase a unit for less than a decade ago.

“The median house value at Babinda was just under $227,000 in August 2021, which was $113,200 lower relative to the Cairns median house value in 2011,” he said.

“The median house value in Manoora ($347,711) was only slightly higher than the Cairns median in 2011, while White Rock ($354,407), Manunda ($376,718), Woree ($383,335), Bungalow ($386,066), Edmonton ($396,524) and Gordonvale ($397,703) all showed a median house value less than $400,000.”

Momentum is also building in the Mackay market, Mr Lawless said.

“The past 10 years has seen some volatility in Mackay housing values, with housing values finding a peak relatively early in the decade (July 2012) before slumping by 25.2 per cent,” he said.

“The market found a floor in September 2018, and since that time values have increased by 20 per cent.

“Local housing values are up 10.2 per cent over the past 12 months and the market looks to have some momentum, implying there are likely to be fewer suburbs with such an affordable price tag a few months from now.”

CoreLogic head of research Tim Lawless.

The latest Property Price Index for Spring by Terry Ryder of Hotspotting revealed there were now 171 rising markets across regional Queensland, with 96 per cent of all locations recording price growth in the past year.