Greenbank defies housing crisis with ‘greenstyle’ luring families out of city squeeze

A growth corridor south of Brisbane has been hailed as the state’s newest ‘greenstyle’ destination and is attracting families who are looking for bigger backyards at half the price of a city block.

Omar and Rachel Shaick with kids Noah and Yasmin are new buyers within Greenbank’s Covella community. PHOTO: Sarah Keayes/The Photo Pitch

Families seeking the ultimate “greenstyle’’ – green space and lifestyle – are turning to semirural residential suburbs in the state’s growth corridor between the Gold Coast and Brisbane.

Census data shows the area in Logan’s southwest, bordering the Gold Coast and Ipswich, had a 25 per cent population explosion from 2016 to 2021.

And that is expected to continue after changes Logan City Council made to its planning rules this week.

The new laws ease off on the average lot size requirement, which was often used as a loophole by developers who increased housing density by including one larger lot in an estate.

Previous low-density zonings had 350sq m average lot size rule but under the new rules, estates will have mixed lot sizes.

Buying property in the growth zone made financial sense to business owners Rachel and Omar Shaick, who have bought three properties in Greenbank, a southwestern suburb of Logan.

Queensland government population projections predict Greenbank’s future growth will be second only to the Ipswich suburb of Ripley.

The Shaick family bought their third Greenbank property, a 2000sq m block of land in the Covella estate, at auction in June 2022 with the aim of building “a home where we always feel like we’re on holidays”.

Families are moving out of the city to a growth corridor south of Brisbane where they can afford a back yard.

Ms Shaick said the family of four wanted a large open-plan home with a pool, barbecue area and plenty of yard space to stay active.

She said it was a refuge from the state’s heated housing market.

“We work hard on our business, so we love our down time and cherish the days we spend with our two children, swimming and spending time outside in nature,’’ Ms Shaick said.

“This estate is family friendly with heaps for the kids to do, excellent parks and great schools in proximity.”

Family households make up 86 per cent of the booming suburb, which is well above the Queensland average of 71 per cent.

Greenbank’s other endearing factor for the Shaick family was that 76 per cent of the houses in the suburb had four or more bedrooms, which Ms Shaick said compared favourably to the state suburban average of 39 per cent.

The area’s popularity has been backed by developer AVID Property Group, which plans to build an expected 800 new houses in Greenbank in its Covella Estate in the next five years.

AVID Property Group general manager Bruce Harper said “greenstyle estates” were attracting families out of the cities where they could have large homes close to schools, transport and amenities but also have a backyard.

Greenbank has green space but also the Greenbank RSL. PHOTO: Greenbank RSL Facebook

He said Covella blocks ranged in size from 294sq m to more than 2300sq m with the larger blocks more than five times the size of an average residential lot in greater Brisbane.

“One of the larger lifestyle blocks, which featured a five-bedroom home with pool, sold at the end of 2022 for $1.37 million,” he said.

Mr Harper said more than 800 blocks had already been purchased in the four-year-old estate, which he said had made a positive contribution to the federal government’s Housing Accord target of 1 million new well-located homes over the next five years.

“One third of Covella’s sprawling 150-hectare development footprint is dedicated to green space, with walking trails, fitness stations, parks and two dog areas,” he said.

“With more than 40 per cent of Australians now working from home in some capacity, buyers can prioritise where they want to live based on the type of lifestyle they want.’’