Cheap and cheerful houses in Brisbane
CHEAP and cheerful homes are the driving force behind an upswing in Brisbane's property market.
CHEAP and cheerful homes are the driving force behind the Brisbane property market with the number of houses selling for under $350,000 on the increase.
The majority of house sales in Brisbane are contracts under $500,000, according to the Real Estate Institute of Queensland.
Its figures reveal that of all the home sales in the state during the March quarter, properties under $350,000 now account for 35.8 per cent of the deals.
The number of properties trading for between that price and just under $500,000 remained steady accounting for almost 39 per cent of sales during the same period.
It was mid-range properties and those over $1 million which dropped off.
The number of properties selling for more than $2 million remained steady, although they only accounted for about 0.2 per cent of transactions in the state.
Real Estate Institute of Queensland CEO Anton Kardash said between $300,000 and up to about $500,000 seemed to be the point at which most activity was happening at the moment.
"We are seeing some quite good buys there,'' Mr Kardash said.
He said first home buyers had started to return to the market - about 20 per cent of all buyers currently active at the moment are first home buyers - and that was a manageable price point for them.
As rents go up investors were also buying within that same range.
Brisbane only had two suburbs with a median house price below $350,000 - Inala and Acacia Ridge, both south of Brisbane.
But within the Brisbane statistical division which encompasses nearby councils, there are 48 suburbs with medians below that level, two of them on islands, Russell Island and Macleay Island in Redlands.
While lower interest rates and soft property prices in since the start of the year have made housing more affordable many are still buying at lower price points so as not to overextend themselves financially.
According to RP Data figures four suburbs in the top ten suburbs for sales transactions have medians lower than $350,000.
All suburbs were in Brisbane's northern suburbs.
Kallangur fourth on the list with 259 sales in the year to June, followed immediately by Deception Bay with 235 sales and Caboolture with 233 sales.
Morayfield came in at number nine with 224 sales during the year.
Homes prices in Brisbane in increased an average of 1 per cent in June - in line with Sydney and Melbourne , according to the RP-Data-Rismark Home Value Index.
The RP Data survey found Hobart recorded the sharpest increases, with prices climbing 2.7 per cent, followed by Perth and Canberra where prices rose 2 per cent.