HOW 2022 WILL CHANGE THE gc PROPERTY MARKET
Happy New Year everyone! What a great start to the year with several news articles emerging highlighting the continuation of the Gold Coast property market boom into 2022!
More jobs, more interstate migrants and the 10-year insurance policy of hosting the world’s biggest sporting event will send Southeast Queensland property prices to record heights, industry experts say, with the current housing boom tipped to burn into the early months of 2022.
Despite an astonishing year of price hikes that saw median house prices rise by up to $2400 a day in some Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast suburbs, a decade of catching up for lost time coupled with a tidal wave of southern migration is predicted to keep the real estate revival in motion, with the re-opening of international borders expected to soften the blow of future interest rate hikes.
The seachange and treechange will continue as Aussies bring forward their retirement plans and continue flexible work. Homebuyers desperate to escape the city post-lockdown decided to make the move to both the coast and regional areas. The bid entices people away from the city and also brings less traffic and creates more jobs in regional areas with a more flexible life balance. The pandemic made people rethink their living situations and seek a better lifestyle sooner. We saw people try different tactics to achieve retirement earlier by downsizing or investing. It’s not a new trend - it simply became supercharged during lockdowns – and will continue at higher than previously seen levels.
Borderless buying will also become the norm as investment decisions increasingly become driven by data. Being well informed about markets helps investors spot opportunities quickly. While there will always be opportunities in capital cities to make a profit, savvy investors are getting outside their comfort zones and looking further afield. The concept of virtual buying has been around for some time, but it has accelerated during the pandemic and through greater professional presence of buyers’ agents to make it easier to buy outside one’s own city or state and ease buyer’s concerns.
Domain chief of research and economics Nicola Powell said, out of all the capital cities, Brisbane would be the one to watch in 2022, with the Gold Coast market also firing at a velocity that was simply too fast to falter in the near future.
“What we’ve seen is much stronger rates of growth in Brisbane than Sydney and what we’ve got – particularly in Southeast Queensland – has been this shift in migration, and that adds to the fact that it offers lifestyle and job prospects as well as the Olympics (in 2032) and all the infrastructure projects that are being completed,” Dr Powell said. “That’s going to continue to put demand on housing, particularly when you put it on the backdrop of the fact that house price growth has gone sideways for a number of years. Brisbane has under-performed compared to other capitals, so there’s more room for growth. And it hasn’t had a massive upswing, so there’s still strong growth to come.”
“At the start of the year we saw nine per cent house price growth in a quarter, which is a phenomenal rate of growth,” she said. “But affordability will also be affecting buyers now and that will take away some of the demand. That said, some out-of-state buyers will see these prices as affordable when you look at the Sydney median. We’ve also got a rising number of investors who are really looking to the ‘Sunshine State’ because they are expecting capital growth in property, so while there’s obviously some headwinds with rising interest rates and also further moves from APRA (the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority) to contain lending growth, overall affordability is still there – especially for buyers coming from Sydney.”
Dr Powell said houses and townhouses would continue to be the standout performers next year as buyers continue to crave space and a backyard, with units expected to nevertheless enjoy slight price rises as investors and international students wade back into Southeast Queensland.
The 2000 Olympics put Australia on the map and we’re already seeing investments into upgrades here, so Brisbane is well positioned to become a global city, attracting significant attention to the Gold Coast. Infrastructure spending and the lure of a beachside lifestyle will keep the Gold Coast’s market fire simmering, and there will be a strong demand leading up to the Olympics.
With sea-change lifestyles becoming more and more popular with homeowners seeking properties that offer both lifestyle and liveability, don't miss out on some of the most sensational new waterfront developments on the Gold Coast.
Sources: News.com.au Sydney Morning Herald