$300k drop: Qld regions where homes are selling for less than list price

Half of all properties in nine Queensland regions are selling for below asking price, with some buyers saving hundreds of thousands of dollars in some of the hottest locations.

Half of all properties in nine Queensland regions are selling for below asking price as vendors and agents adjust their expectations in the current market.

Exclusive new data shows that buyers can save hundreds of thousands of dollars if they play hardball in some of Queensland’s emerging buyers markets, with analysis finding examples where houses have sold for $300,000 less.

This Buderim house sold for $300,000 less than its first list price of $3m

PropTrack economist Anne Flaherty said the market was very different to a year or two ago, with rapidly rising interest rates putting downwards pressure on borrowing capacities.

“The average borrower has seen their borrowing capacity decrease by 30 per cent since rate hikes began,” she said.

“In growing markets, sellers tend to underestimate their property’s worth, but in falling markets it can be the opposite.

“What this data shows is that expectations need to change.”

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PropTrack economist Anne Flaherty

Buyers have the best chances of getting a bargain in the Darling Downs-Maranoa region, which includes places like Warwick, Dalby, Stanthorpe, St George and Roma.

The PropTrack data shows that almost 74 per cent of properties listed in the region sold below asking price in June.

Properties that sold above or at asking price were even at 13.1 per cent each, with year-on-year data showing that the percentage of properties selling below asking price had climbed 27 per cent.

In second spot with 68.32 per cent of properties selling below asking price was the Mackay-Isaac-Whitsunday region, which takes in Mackay, Airlie Beach and Moranbah.

This Blacks Beach house was listed for offers over $1m and sold for $932,000

But on the flip-side, 20.79 per cent of buyers paid above asking price for acreage and waterfront homes.

In the Central Queensland region, 67.79 per cent of properties sold below asking price – up 11.88 per cent year-on-year.

Nearly 64 per cent of properties in Townsville sold for less than the vendors first asking price, while in Cairns 55.04 per cent failed to hit the mark.

A house on Townsville’s Castle Hill recently sold for $1.92 million – $78,000 less than its list price.

This Castle Hill house sold for $78,000 less than the first list price

And on the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast – the darlings of the pandemic property boom – the percentage of properties that failed to achieve their asking price was 43.45 per cent and 61.86 per cent respectively.

Two properties in Buderim recently sold for $300,000 less than their initial asking price, with one selling for $2.7 million and the other for $2.9 million.

This Buderim house was listed for offers over $3.2m and sold for $2.9m

A house at Bundall on the Gold Coast sold for $1.7 million – $275,000 less than its initial list price.

This Bundall house was listed for $1.975m and sold for $1.7m

In Greater Brisbane, more properties sold below asking price than above in Brisbane East and Moreton Bay North, the analysis shows.

A house in Wynnum West recently sold for $20,000 less than asking price, while a house at Newport in Redcliffe sold for $52,500 less.

This Newport house sold for $52,500 less

Universal Buyers Agents director Darren Piper said the trend either way often came down to price point.

“Really, anything sub-$1 million in Brisbane is getting close to seller expectations,” he said.

“Turn-key properties are also performing well.”

Mr Piper said that good deals were being done for buyers, but in most cases they had to be patient.

“Stock is still tight,” he said. “And the buyer pool is still quite large.

“But vendor expectations have also become more aligned with buyer capabilities.”

Mr Piper pointed to a recent sale at Windsor that sold for $535,000, a saving of $30,000 for the buyer.

This Jacobs Well house sold for $3.35m but was listed for $3.49m

Regions where more than half of properties are selling above asking price included Brisbane North, Ipswich and Logan-Beaudesert.

Sales at asking price were strongest in Brisbane South at 29.41 per cent.

The biggest increases in the number of sales below asking price in 12 months was recorded in Toowoomba (+71%), followed by Moreton Bay North (+59.82%), Brisbane West (+55.55%) abnd the Sunshine Coast (+54.65%).

Brisbane South saw the biggest decrease in sales below asking price, down 40.97 per cent.

Ms Flaherty said buyers were looking at more affordable areas, so those areas were often holding firm.

She said places like the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast, which were magnets for cashed-up NSW and Victorian buyers, had cooled, but that was more of a reflection of the market finding some balance.

We are seeing more hesitancy than 12 months ago,” she said.

“Until buyers and sellers have some certainty, it is likely many will just bide their time.

“Sellers also have to find a new property in the same market.”

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ABOVE AND BELOW

Region, less than asking price, more than asking price, same as asking price

Brisbane East 52% 41% 7%

Brisbane North 41% 52% 7%

Brisbane South 22% 50% 29%

Brisbane West 44% 39% 17%

Brisbane Inner City 37% 41% 22%

Cairns 55% 29% 16%

Central Queensland 68% 23% 9%

Darling Downs/Maranoa 74% 13% 3%

Gold Coast 43% 42% 14%

Ipswich 37% 53% 10%

Logan/Beaudesert 40% 50% 10%

Mackay/Isaac/Whitsunday 68% 21% 11%

Moreton Bay North 56% 34% 10%

Moreton Bay South 43% 46% 11%

Sunshine Coast 62% 24% 14%

Toowoomba 35% 60% 5%

Townsville 63% 29% 8%

Wide Bay 55% 32% 13%

(Source: PropTrack

Originally published as $300k drop: Qld regions where homes are selling for less than list price