Suburb prices up 65%

HOMEOWNERS who bought property in Mermaid Beach, Helensvale, Currumbin Waters, Palm Beach or Burleigh Heads five years ago are sitting on a gold mine.

Property prices in the five suburbs have skyrocketed over the period, with many homes more than doubling in value.

Aaron Wilson, the coowner of popular burger bar empire Ze Pickle, is one resident who has taken advantage of the exponential growth.

A decade ago, he paid $515,000 for a Palm Beach house on Boodera Rd as an investment with a grand plan to knock it down and build modern duplexes.

“We rented it out for a few years, moved in then did a renovation on it,” Mr Wilson said. “It was an original 1970s house.”

It wasn’t until about a year ago that the home was knocked down and duplexes started going up. “I ended up selling one side of it to someone who had watched the build from the start.”

Mr Wilson got $1.5 million for it — and is now living in the other with his family.

Latest CoreLogic data shows the median price for a house has jumped 65 per cent over five years to $820,000.

Unit prices have soared 38 per cent in the same period from $320,500 to $442,750.

Ray White Mermaid Beach agent Troy Dowker said Palm Beach wasn’t always a popular suburb — its reputation only started to improve when developers saw its potential and the cafe and restaurant scene exploded.

He said it was impossible to predict whether the market would continue to grow but confidence was “at an all-time high”.

First National Real Estate agent Rhys Wildermoth said the market was reliant on interest rates so believed it would only slow if the Reserve Bank lifted them. “I don’t think it’s going to decline in the next 12 months,” he said.

REIQ Gold Coast Zone chairman Andrew Henderson encouraged people to buy in suburbs surrounding those that had experienced massive growth as they were likely to be the next big performers — often because their prices appeared more affordable.

“That’s where most of them get the benefits from, off the back of their neighbours doing well price wise,” Mr Henderson said.