Dirt poor: Block of land now costs $700k in Olympic city
The average price of a block of land in Brisbane has hit $700,000 as supply hits its lowest level in a decade.
The average price of land in South East Queensland has risen a staggering 17 per cent in the past year to hit a record high of $1000 a square metre as supply hits its lowest level in a decade, new figures show.
Brisbane’s median land price is now $1623/sqm or $702,000, overtaking Melbourne to become Australia’s second-most expensive capital city for land behind Sydney.
It comes as a 600 sqm vacant block of residential land in suburban Brisbane just sold for a staggering $2.38m.
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But affordability constraints in Brisbane are also flowing into regional areas, leading to a spike in land prices in markets outside of the Queensland capital, according to another land price report.
RPM Group’s South-East Queensland Greenfield Market report for June reveals land prices in the typically affordable regions of Ipswich are up 33 per cent to $1,086/sqm and Moreton Bay 14 per cent to $1,100/sqm.
A 483 sqm block of vacant land in the new Ipswich suburb of White Rock recently sold for $515,000.
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Toowoomba posted the biggest percentage gain over the past year — up 63 per cent to $603 per square metre.
The report warns the problem is compounded by a weak supply pipeline with just over 8000 vacant land lots registered across the region in the year to March, with most growth areas running on less than a month’s stock.
It also suggests infrastructure and planning complexities are adding to the supply problem and this is likely to be exacerbated by a shortage of trades resources being deployed to build Olympic Games infrastructure.
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RPM’s Queensland and New South Wales managing director Clinton Trezise said population growth and buyer demand had driven the surge in prices over the past year.
“This has pushed property prices beyond the grasp of many buyers, especially in Brisbane,” Mr Trezise said.
“Land developers report that they are struggling to get projects over the line due to infrastructure and planning complexities, leading to fewer active estates constraining land supply.
“This highlights a clear, critical need for faster planning approvals and infrastructure investment to unlock development-ready land and keep pace with future housing demand.”
In the Brisbane suburb of Camp Hill, Denis Najzar of Place Woolloongabba recently sold a 599 sqm block of land in Watson Street for $2.385m — a record for the suburb.
Mr Najzar said the property attracted seven registered bidders at auction before selling to a local builder.
Next door, a newly completed house is on the market, attracting offers over $5m.
“Watson would be in the top three streets in Camp Hill, but having a nice residence on the left hand side did help as well,” Mr Najzar said.
“What’s happening with Brisbane is we have never experienced this sort of market —which Melbourne and Sydney would have — where the market continues to go up in value because of the influx of people coming in.
“Brisbane has become an international city, and we have to come to terms that as the population grows, this will keep happening. I just feel like housing is needed, we’re getting people coming from Victoria, from New Zealand, from overseas, with money and they’re looking for a lifestyle, access to schools, and quality houses.
“They’re prepared to pay $1m more than what something sold for three doors down if they see value.”
Originally published as Dirt poor: Block of land now costs $700k in Olympic city