REGIONAL PROPERTY
Internal migrants to drive growth
REGIONAL Queensland is tipped to be one of Australia’s top performing property markets in 2023, and it is internal migrants who are set to lead the exodus away from the overcooked southern markets.
Canstar’s annual Rising Stars Report, powered by Hotspotting, identifies the most promising locations for capital growth across Queensland in 2023 using a series of forward-looking indicators including sales activity, vacancy rates, rental growth, and infrastructure spending.
Brisbane was ranked second behind Adelaide but ahead of Perth, with regional Queensland (4th) and regional Western Australia (5th) rounding out the top 5.
Queensland overall outranked NSW, Victoria and Tasmania in both capital and regional markets, the report revealed.
“Regional Queensland has dropped slightly from second to fourth but the outlook is still promising,” Hotspotting property analyst Terry Ryder said.
“As the nation’s leading recipient of population growth from internal migration, it continues to benefit from the Exodus to Affordable Lifestyle trend.
“Places like Bundaberg South, Caloundra, Newtown and South Toowoomba made the list among others.”
Regional Queensland scored high across all five metrics – sales volumes (6th), quarterly price growth (7th), vacancy rates (7th), rental growth (8th) and infrastructure spending (4th) to secured its fourth place ranking.
“Outside of Brisbane, the growth has been led by the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast, but internal migrants have been venturing to regional centres throughout Central Queensland and North Queensland,” the report said.
“More than half of the locations across regional Queensland have rising sales activity at a time when nationally markets are weak.
“There are locations with growing buyer demand right across the state, including Cairns and Townsville suburbs in the far north, central Queensland towns like Emerald and Blackwater, coastal markets in southeast Queensland and towns in the west like Dalby and Chinchilla.”
In terms of quarterly price growth, the report said regional cities such as Toowoomba, Townsville and Rockhampton looked poised for ongoing price uplift.
For rental growth, six out of the 10 locations across regional Queensland have recorded price growth above 10 per cent, with that likely to continue or increase as vacancy rates remain tight.
“Regional Queensland is a target for buyers of all kinds because it offers lifestyle at affordable prices – particularly beyond the iconic (and increasingly expensive) Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast markets,” the report said.