QUEENSLAND’S first homeowner hot spots have been revealed as young buyers look set to continue to dominate the real estate market in 2021.
Experts say COVID-19 has created prime conditions for many young people to get a foot on the property ladder, while Real Estate Institute of Australia figures show first-home buyers make up a greater percentage of property owners than they have since 2009.
Realestate.com.au has revealed the most popular suburbs among first home buyers in the state, based on email inquiries, and the Gold Coast and Greater Brisbane suburbs come out on top.
Upper Coomera, Coomera and Pimpama on the northern Gold Coast are the most in-demand among first home buyers when it comes to houses, according to the data.
In the Greater Brisbane region, Springfield Lakes, Redbank Plains and North Lakes are the most popular.
Springfield Lakes is part of Greater Springfield, the largest, privately owned masterplanned city in Australia.
One of the country’s fastest growing developments, Greater Springfield is home to more than 45,000 residents, with projections forecasting a population of 80,000 by 2030.
Springfield City Group managing director Raynuha Sinnathamby said first home buyers were taking advantage of federal and state incentives to enter the Greater Springfield market.
“We’re finding these grants are encouraging and assisting home-ownership in Greater Springfield, and for eligible borrowers, it can be a helpful bridge towards life as a property owner,” Ms Sinnathamby said.
She said about 10 per cent of buyers were coming from interstate.
“They are coming from not just Victoria and New South Wales, but the Northern Territory and WA as well,” she said.
“We’re finding the scarcity of land is a big issue, particularly in the Brisbane market — as there aren’t a lot of opportunities for people to purchase land so close to the CBD, so we definitely help fill that gap.
“We have home sites ranging from 400 sqm to 870 sqm, so our price points present something for everyone.”
Realestate.com.au chief economist Nerida Conisbee said first homebuyer activity had accelerated since COVID-19, with federal and state government incentives encouraging more first time buyers into the market.
Ms Conisbee said suburbs like Pimpama on the Gold Coast had become popular because of the large amount of house and land packages available.
“HomeBuilder switched a lot of people who were looking at units to houses, and as a result, we saw a lot of first home buyers looking at new home locations, so they’ve become more dominant than they were before,” Ms Conisbee said.
“It’s definitely having a big impact on the new home sector and house and land.”
Lower interest rates, relaxed lending restrictions, declining home prices — particularly units — and the desire for more space and a better lifestyle was also driving first homebuyer activity, she said.
But Ms Conisbee said one of the other factors could be the lack of investors in the market for first home buyers to have to compete with.
“They seem to be picking up a lot of the investor-type apartments that were built with investors in mind,” she said.
When it comes to units, first home buyers are looking to get in to Surfers Paradise and Southport on the Gold Coast, and the inner city suburbs of Nundah, Coorparoo and West End in Brisbane.
“Surfers Paradise tops the list for units,” Ms Conisbee said.
“There are a lot of apartments there and they’re pretty cheap.
“It could also be a lifestyle choice.”
AVID Property Group general manager Queensland Bruce Harper said he noticed a shift in the types of homes first homebuyers were looking for in the past six months.
“They’re now wanting to purchase larger blocks of land and larger homes,” Mr Harper said.
“There’s been a recent significant decrease in the desire to buy three-bedroom houses, for first homebuyers and investors alike, and an increased desire for four-bedroom homes.
“With the government incentives on offer, buyers want to stretch their money that extra distance, so instead of accepting a 300 sqm block of land, they’re looking for at least 450 sqm.”
Mr Harper said demand from first homebuyers for house and land in AVID’s projects on the Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast had been particularly strong.
“AVID has 12 communities across southeast Queensland and we’ve seen our strongest sales and highest percentage of first homebuyers in the Sunshine Coast at our Harmony community,” he said.
MOST IN-DEMAND QLD SUBURBS FOR HOUSES AMONG FIRST HOME BUYERS
1. Upper Coomera
2. Coomera
3. Springfield Lakes
4. Redbank Plains
5. North Lakes
6. Rochedale South
7. Pimpama
8. Morayfield
9. Forest Lake
10. Narangba
11. Caboolture
12. Kallangur
13. Griffin
14. Capalaba
15. Nambour
MOST IN-DEMAND QLD SUBURBS FOR UNITS AMONG FIRST HOME BUYERS
1. Surfers Paradise
2. Southport
3. Nundah
4. Brisbane City
5. Coorparoo
6. Morningside
7. Carina
8. Palm Beach
9. West End
10. South Brisbane
11. Maroochydore
12. Robina
13. Annerley
14. Mermaid Beach
15. Clayfield
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