‘Haven’ seekers go online

TODAY’S border closure is unlikely to deter tech-savvy southern buyers who are turning to the Gold Coast as a safe haven during the COVID-19 crisis.

Agents across the city are reporting a surge in transactions made sight unseen by buyers interstate, with no signs of slowing down.

Ray White Surfers Paradise Group chief executive Andrew Bell said the crisis had made the Gold Coast most attractive.

“With the outbreaks in Melbourne, and NSW doing all it can to keep things under control, for people down south the Gold Coast looks like a safe haven,” he said.

While the border closure would restrict the ease of doing business, Mr Bell said buyers had become more confident making virtual transactions.

“The weekend before last we sold nine properties to people in Sydney, ACT and Melbourne who bought sight unseen,” he said. “With greater use of technology, people are not prevented from buying.”

Five of the nine parties bidding on a Broadbbeach apartment on Wednesday were from Sydney and Melbourne.

“Four of them hadn’t viewed the property personally but had done a private FaceTime inspection and were more than happy to proceed on that basis,” said Harcourts Coastal agent Tolemy Stevens.

“If you take that back to the numbers two or three months ago, the trend is doubling, if not tripling, with buyers in the marketplace happy to do business via FaceTime.”

While the residential real estate sector is in a strong position to weather the border blockade, holiday accommodation providers might bear the brunt.

“Hospitality and holiday rentals will feel the majority of the impact,” said Andrew Henderson, Real Estate Industry of Queensland Gold Coast zone chair. “If the border isn’t open for the next school holidays, it could hurt a lot of operators.”