Gold Coast property market: Where units are available to buy or rent

There’s been a huge change to the Gold Coast’s property market, with new data revealing something surprising which will have major implications for buyers.

THE pressure valve has been released on the Gold Coast property market, with more units available than at any time in the previous two years.

A new report by property consulting firm Urbis reveals the number of sales have more than halved in the past quarter in the back of a slowing market. However, they remain comfortably above pre-Covid levels.

Surfers Paradise Hi Rise buildings, part of the Gold Coast Skyline. Picture Glenn Hampson.

The Urbis Apartment Essentials report found:

* 336 new units were sold between July and September, down from 690 during the same period in 2021 and from 742 during the January-March quarter.

* There were 983 new units for sale at the end of September, up from 517 at the same time the previous year.

* At the current rate, the city has 8.8 months of housing supply in the market, up from 2.2 months earlier this year.

Urbis senior consultant Lynda Campbell said the Gold Coast market was still experiencing “undersupply” as many developers slowed plans for new projects amid economic uncertainty.

“It’s a tug of war at the moment between what we see as strong underlying fundamentals and the risk aversion being demonstrated by both buyers and developers,” she said.

Lynda Campbell. Picture by Scott Fletcher

“Rising construction costs have led many developers to put their projects on the sidelines, while buyers are also being swayed against purchases by rising interest rates and cost of living pressures.

“However, in talking to our clients, astute and reputable developers still see plenty of opportunity in the local market. It’s just a matter of timing.

“The underlying factors that developers believe continue to support the apartment market on the Gold Coast are low supply, consistent demand, strong investment in infrastructure over the next decade, population growth, solid rental yields, and extremely low vacancy rate.”

Of the units which did sell during the quarter, 77 per cent were in Southport, Surfers Paradise and Broadbeach.

Gold Coast skyline. Picture: NIGEL HALLETT

Nearly 85 per cent of those units which remain on the market are in these suburbs, while only a handful remain available in the far north, ­taking in Runaway Bay and Hope Island and the south between Mermaid Beach and Coolangatta.

The data shows 11 new apartment projects were launched to the market during the three-month period.

Ms Campbell warned she expected more developments would be put on hold in 2023.

“However, the factors currently driving caution in the market, such as construction costs, supply chain issues and interest rates, will ease at some stage,” she said.

“We’ve been looking at the general apartment market, particularly buildings in central areas that have been completed within the last 10 years.

“These properties have recorded significant increases in sales numbers which shows that demand is still very much present – an important factor with a large portion of new product settling over the next 3-6 months.”

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