Queensland Home Values Rise Strongly, With Townsville Leading the Charge
Queensland home values soared by up to 43.1 per cent in 2024, with affordable suburbs once avoided by buyers now leading the charge.
Exclusive analysis by PropTrack showed that house prices increased in 639 Queensland suburbs during the December quarter, while 94 suburbs recorded price drops and eight suburbs remained unchanged.
PropTrack economist Anne Flaherty said that even in suburbs where prices fell, the drops were marginal.
“First of all, there weren’t many of them, and when you compare the drops against the growth over the past few years, it was not enough to shift the dial and make them more affordable,” she said.
“That’s why we are seeing a bigger share of buyers looking at properties further out from the Brisbane CBD and into the regions.”
Townsville Suburbs Record Strong Growth
That flow-on effect is pushing up values across the state. Fourteen suburbs recorded double-digit house price growth over the past three months, with nine of those in Townsville, four in Central Queensland and one in the Mackay-Isaac-Whitsunday region.
The top five suburbs for house price growth were all in Townsville and included Heatley, up 11.5 per cent; Charters Towers, up 11.1 per cent; Currajong, up 11 per cent; Thuringowa, up 10.9 per cent; and Vincent, up 10.6 per cent.
The data showed that Vincent also recorded the biggest yearly increase for houses, up 39.1 per cent compared with the same time last year.
It was followed by Heatley, up 36.7 per cent; Cranbrook, up 36.5 per cent; Rasmussen, up 36.5 per cent; and Rockhampton, up 35.8 per cent.
Townsville Attracting Buyers and Investors
Maidment Group Managing Director Glen Maidment said first-time homebuyers, growing families and investors had flocked to their Sanctum estate at Mount Low, with 50 lots, starting from $209,000, sold in just four weeks.
The median house price in Mount Low, which is about 25 minutes north of Townsville, is now $605,012, up 8.2 per cent over the quarter and 28.9 per cent in 12 months.
“With land prices far below those in south-east Queensland and a growing local economy, Townsville has become an attractive alternative for buyers and investors,” Mr Maidment said.
Mr Maidment also said half of the 18 luxury apartments offered at Marina Residences had sold within a month of launching.
“Townsville is undergoing a transformation,” he said.
Affordable Markets Continue to Draw Interest
Meanwhile, Brisbane’s top-performing house suburbs over the year all had median prices below $650,000, led by Lowood, Brendale and Dinmore.
The state’s top-performing suburbs for the year were dominated by unit markets in Woodridge, up 43.1 per cent; Logan Central, up 43 per cent; Slacks Creek, up 41.7 per cent; and Durack, up 40 per cent, followed by houses in Vincent.
Ray White AKG CEO Avi Khan, whose team looks after many of Brisbane’s southside suburbs, said some areas were considered “sort of no-go zones” for buyers about five to six years ago.
However, he said as prices continued to rise and councils embarked on works to improve and beautify areas, the demographics were changing.
“We have had this perfect storm of buyers looking between $400,000 and $700,000 over the past few years, so that price bracket has been very congested,” he said.
Mr Khan said there had also been an influx of investors competing with first-home buyers.
“They are mostly first-time investors out of Sydney and Melbourne,” he said.
“Where first-home buyers might have previously looked at land and houses in the area, many can’t afford to buy anymore. So we have buyers competing with investors due to the rental yields.”
Affordability Pressures Continue
Ms Flaherty said that with more suburbs pushing into the $1 million-plus club, buyers were having to make compromises on where they lived and the dwelling type they purchased.
“When you consider things like wages, cost-of-living pressures, home values continuing to rise and rates remaining high, it is becoming increasingly challenging to save for a deposit,” she said.
Brisbane’s home prices dropped for the first time in more than two years in December, falling by 0.04 per cent.
However, the regions powered ahead, recording combined growth of 0.05 per cent, according to the PropTrack Home Price Index for December.
Median house prices in Brisbane were still up 11.35 per cent year-on-year, and a staggering 78 per cent since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.
House values fell in just four suburbs over the year, including Healy, down 1.9 per cent; Macleay Island, down 0.8 per cent; and Sunshine Beach, down 0.7 per cent. Only Port Douglas recorded a fall in unit values over the same period, down 1 per cent.
Townsville Expected to Remain a Strong Performer
Ms Flaherty said she expected Townsville to be the “outperformer” again this year.
Real Estate Buyers Agents Association of Australia Queensland representative Joanna Boyd said many clients, including investors and owner-occupiers, were seeking assistance around realistic pricing, with buyer demand still outweighing available homes.
“In that investor bracket, they are looking for properties around $650,000 to $850,000,” she said.
Meanwhile, the Gold Coast, which has been a magnet for interstate migration, saw home values rise by up to 17 per cent in 2024, with beachfront suburbs leading the charge.
Kollosche agency principal Michael Kollosche predicted “modest to strong” growth for the city over the next 12 to 18 months.
Sunshine Coast home values increased by up to 16.5 per cent over the year, led by units at Sippy Downs.
The latest Propertyology 2025 Property Market Outlook revealed price increases were expected across Queensland again this year.
Source: Townsville Bulletin, Saturday 11 January 2025
