Gold Coast property market: Lack of trust in developers and builders as chronic undersupply bites

Confidence in developers and builders has plummeted on the Gold Coast as the city is gripped by a “chronic undersupply” of housing. FIND OUT MORE.

A leading real estate figure has warned there is a “lack of trust” in developers being able to deliver projects and rapidly dropping stock levels.

New research by real estate firm Colliers International revealed there has been “consistent inquiry volumes” throughout 2022 and 2023 despite a shortage of available housing.

Despite hundreds of towers and thousands of apartments being approved in the past five years, David Higgins, of Colliers, warned two thirds of respondents to survey said they didn’t know if they could trust developers to bring the project while fears were growing over the rapidly dropping number of available units.

“The chronic undersupply on the Gold Coast that has been getting worse for years and with a drop in confidence in builders and developers unable to deliver the much-needed supply only adds to the problem,” he said.

David Higgins, Colliers International director of residential.

“It seems the lack of trust of builder developer is the number one current issue with off the plan buyers, in fact it’s almost now secondary to be sold on the apartment configuration or the price, the buyer needs to be sold on the fact the project will be built, and to a high quality.”

“Less than a third of respondents said a barrier for entry was finding value for money in the market, which is incredibly surprising given the Gold Coast’s boom in recent years.”

Mr Higgins said only a quarter of respondents said they were struggling to find an apartment that fit their needs.

The market is unsettled. Picture by Richard Gosling

“The next two biggest barriers were also both tied to the builder, with 60 per cent of respondents citing a barrier to purchase was the uncertainty of move in timelines, while 50 per cent of the respondents said they were concerned with what the build quality would be like come completion,” he said.

“The positive for the market is that builders and developers who can demonstrate certainty, and has earned the trust of the buyer, will be supported by strong buyer ongoing demand from both the end user and investors,”

High construction costs, material shortages, interest rate rises and a lack of tradies have slowed the construction sector in the past 18 months, while the city’s population growth has only accelerated.

The 2023 Gold Coast Dwelling Supply Study, released last year, warned a large number of the houses proposed for the Gold Coast are unlikely to ever get built for economic reasons and other solutions will be needed to ensure housing catches up with the population growth.