Noosa real estate prices are 'safe'

Massive house price drops of 50-70% 'will never happen here'

SOLD: This classic beach home at 15 Piper St, Peregian Beach, had 11 registered bidders and sold at auction for $1,175,000, which was above the reserve price. Picture: contributed

MASSIVE house price drops of 50-70 per cent predicted for southern cities will never be replicated in the Noosa region, experts say.

In fact, Laguna Real Estate principal Olivier Miller predicts solid market growth of 3-5 per cent during the next 12 months.

The appeal of the region, coupled with our population cap and limited available development land, means demand for houses and units remains strong and will prevent prices from plummeting.

"Across the board, we have seen a healthy increase in some sectors, namely Sunshine Beach and Noosa Heads, an incredible 34 per cent growth over the last five years and with our prices still very affordable compared to Sydney and Melbourne,” Ms Miller said.

Universal Property's Joe Langley said television reports predicting massive falls were nothing but "scaremongering”.

"There is no such thing as an Australian property market - and what applies to Melbourne and Sydney does not necessarily apply to the Noosa market,” he said.

A recent CoreLogic report found housing values had fallen across four of the eight capital cities during the past 12 months but regional areas had "relatively healthy and sustainable growth conditions” and Sunshine Coast values (which included the Noosa region) had grown 6 per cent.

Hinternoosa's Kess Prior said Noosa buyers and sellers had no reason to feel anxious.

"We are enjoying a robust local economy, with major infrastructure projects being undertaken (such as the Sunshine Coast Airport, Sunshine Coast University Hospital, plus numerous technology hubs), creative incubator industries popping up and continuing population growth being fuelled by interstate migration,” she said.

"And let's not forget the fundamentals that have never changed - pristine beaches and rivers, national parks, clean air and a magnificent climate plus the rural countryside and hinterland communities.

"In the hinterland region in 2011-12 there were 370 properties sold with an average sale price of $578,000. Since then there has been year-on-year growth, with 756 sales in the 2017-18 year with an average sale price of $758,000.

"These figures demonstrate the underlying strength ... and we anticipate continued growth over the next two to three years.”

Meanwhile, Noosa's rental market is the tightest in the Sunshine Coast region, with vacancies of just 1.8 per cent.

Originally published as Noosa real estate prices are 'safe'