Sold: Hundreds of blocks sold in just weeks on island haven
The real estate market of a quiet island paradise has exploded in recent weeks, with hundreds of properties selling to excited buyers.
Redlands Coast
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Blocks of land in a Queensland island paradise are selling faster than ever as families snap up properties at prices cheaper than a car.
Russell Island Real Estate agent Ted Byrne said “hundreds” of properties had sold on the Southern Moreton Bay Island after news broke five weeks ago about plans for Redland City Council to shed cheap vacant blocks of land by offering them to adjoining neighbours.
While the council-owned blocks would be offered exclusively to existing neighbours to allow them to expand their holdings, the news highlighted the affordability of other privately-owned land on the island — 45 minutes from Brisbane on the Redlands Coast.
Excited investors, keen to take advantage of the tourism destination’s 300km of coastline and growing city, have sought out local agencies in droves as they try to bag a bargain.
Mr Byrne said the market had boomed, with the sale of non-council-owned blocks accelerating rapidly.
While blocks already built upon are being listed for between $200-300,000, vacant blocks can be bought for as little as $18,000.
“Where else can you buy a block... cheaper than you can buy a car?” Mr Byrne said.
Mr Byrne said many of the buyers lived interstate, as far away as Melbourne and Sydney.
He said some were parents and grandparents looking to secure land for their families.
“They buy it and they are going to give it to their grandkids,” he said.
Others heading to the island were new home buyers looking to take advantage of the Federal Government’s $25,000 HomeBuilder scheme and the State Government’s $15,000 First Home Owners’ Grant.
“It’s a good opportunity for new home buyers to receive $40,000 off their new build,” Mr Byrne said.
“I think I sold 22 (blocks) in a couple of weeks,” he said, adding that business as usual saw around one house and two to three blocks of vacant land sell per week.
“I listed three blocks of land yesterday.”
He said of those three blocks, two boasted water views and were “good value” listed for around $79,000 and $65,000 respectively.
He said most of the blocks still needed to be cleared before development works and all vacant blocks needed septic systems installed.
It comes as one celebrity couple made almost at 50 per cent profit on a cleared block they bought just 12 months ago.
Former The Block contestants Norm Hogan and Jess Eva purchased the block of land on Channel St from Ted and Karen Byrne at Russell Island Real Estate for $17,000 around June last year and sold it, also through Mr Byrne, earlier this month for $25,000. The sale was made in record time, with the block sitting on the market for just one week.
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