Prices for homes on Brisbane riverfront expected to avoid flood damage
Prestige agents selling homes along the edge of the Brisbane River are confident floods will not heavily impact the market’s momentum.
Prestige agents selling homes along the edge of the Brisbane River are confident last week’s floods will not have too much of an impact on the strong momentum underpinning the Brisbane market.
Last weekend’s deluge dumped about 80 per cent of the city’s annual rainfall in a matter of days, which inevitably caused the swollen river to burst is banks and streets to fill like pools. But those on the ground say buyers have shown great resilience, with few deals having fallen through in the past week.
Eliza Owen, head of research at property researcher CoreLogic, said that, in terms of what the future may hold for the luxury market, it was difficult to compare to the history of 2011 due to the stark difference in circumstances. At the time of the last major flood event more than a decade ago, the market was already in a downturn off the back of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, with negative buyer sentiment.
It is a huge difference to the current conditions, where high-net-worth individuals are clamouring to the Sunshine State, with fierce competition pushing prices 1.5 per cent higher last month alone.
“Flood-prone areas had a deeper decline from pre-flood values, but on average these waterfront suburbs recovered their value within a little over three years,” Ms Owen said.
Data from CoreLogic examining how the riverfront market responded to the 2011 disaster found it took 43 months on average for the 13 hardest-hit suburbs to recover, with those closest to the city improving at a faster rate. In the years since, prices have increased in those locations 51.5 per cent above pre-flood prices.
“It’s hard to isolate the loss of value from flooding alone because there was a series of rate hikes that had put downward pressure on the market from mid-2010,” Ms Owen said. “Similarly, the recovery in the housing market coincided with a series of cash rate reductions from November 2011, so we don’t really know how quickly the market would have ‘bounced back’ after that without the changes in cash rate settings.”
The vendors of a striking riverfront home at East Brisbane are willing to test the market conditions, with their listing going live on Monday as the clean-up began.
Place Kangaroo Point agent Michael Bacon – who is marketing the property – said videos showing the floods unable to reach the property’s edge had been the greatest tool to quell concerns of potential buyers. “A common question from buyers on the river is still ‘what happened in 2011?’,” Mr Bacon said. “The vendors were very fortunate not to have been affected – the pontoon is still there and the grass in the back yard was untouched.”
The bold, artfully crafted home at 29 Laidlaw St stands like a piece of art on the river’s edge. Designed and styled by multi-award-winning designer Greg Natale, the property offers the charm of the last century with top-of-the-line modern amenity.
Loud, high-end wallpaper is expertly used throughout and is highlighted by black and gold pallet and mid-century furnishings.
The furniture, worth more than $1m, is being sold with the property, which cost about $8m to build. No price guide has been provided.
“There is still so much hype in the market,” Mr Bacon said. “We are selling more high-end homes than ever before.”
While the river area is likely to bear the brunt of any impact on confidence, leading prestige agent Jason Adcock believes buyers may look to trade water views for hilltops and look to the hills of Hamilton and Ascot in the north, Paddington to the west and Balmoral in the east.
“Parts of the market will continue to boom due to demand,” the principal of Adcock Prestige said.
“The focus in the short term will be on those high and dry properties.”
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