KACHING!

How Gold Coasters made $490m in just three months

GOLD Coast homeowners have chalked up more than $490 million in profits in just three months.

Figures released yesterday reveal nine out of ten sellers made a profit when they sold their property during the March quarter.

The CoreLogic Pain and Gain March report revealed the median hold period on the Coast was eight years while the median profit was $116,000 – up $6000 over six months.

Last year, almost 16 per cent of Gold Coast homeowners were selling at a loss, but the latest report revealed that figure dropped to 9.9 per cent.

Of those who sold for less than their original price the median loss was $40,000. The loss was the highest in the state while the profit was second to Brisbane’s $165,000.

CoreLogic research analyst Cameron Kusher said he expected the Gold Coast market to continue to improve.

“Internal migration to Queensland is picking up but also a lot of people from Sydney and Melbourne have got that equity in their homes and are looking for coastal properties,” Mr Kusher said.

“I don’t necessarily know that too many people are cashing out of Sydney and moving to the Gold Coast, I think they are investing in the area with a view to maybe move there in ten or 15 years’ time.”

He said the percentage of loss-making resales should continue to decrease.

“I think that is more linked to the fact that there are more investors becoming interested on the Gold Coast,” he said.

REIQ Gold Coast zone chairman John Newlands predicted the market to continue to gain momentum.

“I don’t think it’s going to boom but I think we will see solid growth for the next three to four years,” Mr Newlands said.

Homeowner Kirra Brown sold her Bonogin house in February for $920,000 through Premier Real Estate Agents.

It sold for $90,000 more than what she paid for it in 2015.

“We put a pool in and we did a little bit of landscaping and were really happy with the sale price,” Ms Brown said. “It sold really quickly, within the first week.”

The mother-of-two moved to the Gold Coast from Sydney in 2000. “I remember when I first moved here I couldn’t believe how cheap it was,” she said.