Gold Coast development: $750m unit sales in six months despite fears of property market 'implosion'

Developers who decided to fast-track the building of 10 towers to meet the property explosion have lined their pockets, with $750m worth of units changing hands in less than six months. But leading property figures warn housing prices could cause a market "implosion". Here's why.

DEVELOPERS who decided to fast-track the building of 10 towers to meet the property explosion have lined their pockets, with $750m worth of units changing hands in less than six months.

However, latest figures show the boom has slowed this month, prompting a warning from one of the city’s prominent real estate agents.

Scores of developments have sold out in record time on the back of an “insatiable appetite” for high-end units, primarily from Victorians and New South Welshmen relocating north in the wake of border closures and the long COVID-19 lockdowns.

Brisbane developer Paul Gedoun has embarked on plans for a second upmarket apartment building at Rainbow Bay after his $74million Flow Residences project sold out off the plan to buyers including surfing world champs Joel Parkinson and Mark Richards. Picture Supplied

Part of the $750m buy up include: $70 million in sales at Flow Residences at Rainbow Bay; Cabana Palm Beach ($80m); Cru Collective's Siarn Palm Beach North tower ($40m); Mosaic’s Dawn ($90m), Natura ($77m), Imperial Square ($22.5m) and 88 Burleigh ($55m).

“The urgency around off-the-plan sales has been fuelled by the lack of supply in the market,” Harcourts Coastal managing director Dane Atherton said.

“The southern and interstate migrant buyers are looking for higher-spec luxury units and the appetite has been absolutely insatiable.

Dane Atherton. Picture: Jerad Williams

“There has been a scramble from developers in the past nine months to secure greater signs and bring them to market quickly.”

Data released in March by consulting firm Urbis revealed a lack of available units because the number of apartments built between 2018 and 2020 dropped.

In 2020, 22 new projects launched containing a total of 1411 apartments.

In 2019, 24 projects were built with 2164 units.Mr Atherton said many developers were creating code-assessable projects, meaning they could be fast-tracked through the council’s approvals process and brought to the market to capitalise on the booming sales.

Imperial Square, Southport

The development boom has also coincided with a rapid rise in property prices: Tamborine Mountain recorded a 36.6 per cent rise in the December quarter, and Labrador (30.2 per cent), Burleigh Heads (27.5 per cent) and Carrara (20.5 per cent) all notched up increases of more than 20 per cent.

But one of the Gold Coast’s leading real estate agents warns the market could implode if property prices continue to rise dramatically.

While CoreLogic data released this week reveal that price growth in the Gold Coast market slowed slightly from 2.5 per cent to 1.7 per cent in the 28 days to April 25.

Andrew Bell. Photograph : Jason O'Brien

Ray White Surfers Paradise boss Andrew Bell welcomed the dip, saying the city’s market would face difficulty if asking prices continued to boom.

“Sales in recent weeks have remained at the elevated numbers we’ve seen for the past six months, but there have been some signs that buyers are resistant to the big prices, saying it has gone too far and the property costs too much,” he said.

“When things go up too fast you run the risk of there being an implosion.”

‘Robust yet vibrant’: Plans for site next to $500m development

A LONG-empty site in central Southport next to one of the city’s biggest developments will be transformed into a sleek modern office complex.

Developer Bennon and Dickie Investments has unveiled plans for a five-storey complex on Lawson street, just metres from the $500 million Queen Street Village precinct.

Gold Coast development: Azzura Group to fast-track 108-storey Imperial Square supertower

Artist impression of a proposed five-storey office building planed for Lawson Street, Southport

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The 1996 sqm project will have four levels of offices, a cafe on its ground floor and a single-level podium with space for 25 cars.

Because of its location in the heart of the council’s priority development area (PDA), it is expected to be approved.

Development Gold Coast: Solution to Southports empty shops and failed towers

The building is in the heart of the Southport PDA area.

A planning report on the project said it had been designed to “provide a robust, yet vibrant” commercial development in the city’s core which would “capitalise on the opportunities associated with being within the core of the city’s highest order centre”.

The building is planned for an empty site.

It is the latest revitalisation of the area, which began last year with construction of Queen Street Village, the first stage of which will be completed by Christmas.

A review of the PDA scheme by council is currently underway and is expected to be completed by July.