GOLD COAST FLOODED LIST OF QLD'S 10 MOST IN-DEMAIND SUBURBS

The Gold Coast has flooded the list of Queensland’s 10 most in-demand suburbs for apartments, in realestate.com.au’s latest Australian Property Market Report for July.

Seven of the city’s locales were the state’s top searched areas for buyers. Rainbow Bay topped the list, with Currumbin, Tugun and Currumbin Waters all in the top five.

The Gold Coast region overall had high demand on the site, with an average of 905 property views per listing. “Searches in southeast Queensland out of Sydney suggest that growth continues to come from an exodus from NSW,” the report said. “While there is a clear affordability edge, it is jobs that are making the move possible.”

The city also notched some of the highest rental demand, alongside Hobart and Melbourne, which was put down to job opportunities on the Gold Coast.

Realestate.com.au chief economist Nerida Conisbee said the Gold Coast market had started its positive shift from the downturn a lot faster than other parts of Australia.

“There’s really not much negativity for the Gold Coast market,” she said. “When we compare it to what has happened in Brisbane with enormous levels of development, to the extent of over building, we certainly haven’t seen that on the Gold Coast.”

“We are seeing high rental demand and there are obviously jobs and potential for people to start businesses. You can move to the Gold Coast and pay less for a mortgage or rent and you have more disposable income to do more things, like start a business.”

REIQ Gold Coast zone chairman Andrew Henderson said the list of popular areas was not surprising. “They are close to beaches and major infrastructure and are in that affordable (price) range,” he said. “A lot of them would have low-rise to medium-rise apartments, which are popular with owner occupiers.”