The Brisbane suburbs where home buyers pay a premium for space

Brisbane officially offers more home buyers bang for their property buck than Perth and Hobart, with new data revealing the city boasts a cheaper house and unit price per square metre than more than half the capitals despite home medians hurtling to record heights.

The Queensland capital’s median price per square metre for houses soared by more than 58 per cent over the past five years to $1341. Yet, it fell to fifth-cheapest capital this year behind Perth, where house buyers now pay an average of $1410 per square metre.

Teneriffe house buyers paid the highest price per square metre of land in Brisbane last year.Credit: Jamila Toderas

The figures, released today in Domain’s Price Per Square Metre Report 2024, showed that even though Brisbane offers better value than most, buyers pay a premium for space in key inner-city suburbs.

Teneriffe topped the list at $7537 per square metre for houses – a figure that rose 2.4 per cent in 12 months.

Nearby New Farm was second at $5960 (up five per cent year-on-year) and West End was third at $5173 despite dropping 0.9 per cent over the same period.

Domain chief of research and economics, Dr Nicola Powell, said the figures reveal the difference in perceived value and how far your property dollar stretches across the Queensland capital, even amid medians climbing to record heights earlier this year.

But actual affordability plays the most compelling role in the property game, she warned, compared to somewhere like Perth.

“What Perth has is a much smaller land parcel and this is helping the city to contain the overall price being paid,” said Powell.

“If Perth hadn’t seen the shrinkage the median house price would be well over $900,000, so this is the function land size has.

“It showcases what density can do. It’s not just about smaller blocks – it’s about offering a diverse array of housing to make sure that we are meeting the needs of housing overall.”

Powell said as land size decreases, price per square metre increases, but it actually creates more opportunities for home ownership.

“Australia has some of the world’s least densely populated cities and is home to some of the most expensive property markets,” she said.

“And (yet) without the shift towards greater density and smaller land sizes over the past two decades, house prices would be vastly higher than they are today.”

Powell said Brisbane house medians would be around $60,000 (just over seven per cent) more than they are today without the block shrinkage of recent years but added that land sizes still need to reduce to counter the affordability crisis.

New Farm is drawing deep-pocketed home buyers. Credit: Dan Peled

Ray White Collective principal Haesley Cush said it was small surprise the Brisbane suburbs close to the city with a charming high street and a strong community were where buyers placed the most value, but said the data also showed the incredible value the city boasts compared with Sydney and Melbourne.

“The other day I was in a car with an agent from Double Bay in Sydney, and he said he sold a unit for $8 million bucks and it’s 15 years old. That equates to about $40,000 a square metre,” he said.

“Even our most expensive off the plan apartment doesn’t come close to costing $40,000 a square metre.

“The average house price in Sydney’s Bellevue Hill is about $9 million. Now compare that with Bulimba, which is about $2 million – both suburbs are the same distance from the city.”

Despite that, Cush said prices were bound to rise further and said a greater mix of high and median density homes is precisely what Brisbane needs.

“The unit market right now is hotter than the sand on Sunday and there’s not enough developers building more,” he warned.

Cush said Teneriffe and New Farm’s chart topping prices per square metre were a direct indication of how much buyers valued location, a village feel and access to good shops and restaurants – and said a handful of other suburbs are now hot on their heels.

“Hamilton actually boasts the two sections of the market with the most growth right now – the prestige market and the apartment market … East Brisbane, Spring Hill and Dutton Park are also areas (with lots of growth to come).

Brisbane offers better value than many other capital cities.Credit: Dan Peled

“I think the big next hot spots though will be Herston and Kelvin Grove. They’ve got the university there, football stadium and a lifestyle location that was once a golf course which might be Olympic infrastructure.”

LJ Hooker Annerley, Yeronga and Salisbury agent Nick Bowen said he’d spied enormous growth in some aspects of the local market, particularly among townhouses and prestige family homes.

“I just clocked the second highest sale ever for 97 Lillian Avenue in Salisbury at $1.61 million. That same house sold in August 2021 for $962,000,” he said.

He said the four-bedroom home sits on a 622 square metre block and had been renovated but said buyer demand was high and stock remained low.

“I think it’s still good value in the area … and no one wants to leave,” said Bowen.

“And that’s absolutely pushing up the price per square metre.”