Queensland's Townsville appeal lies in entry price point of new developments: HTW
Townsville in the north-eastern coast of Queensland was at the bottom of the market in Herron Todd White’s latest property clock, a simple broad brush means to indicate where property prices are and where they are going.
The HTW report also discusses gentrification in the area, which can help investors stay curve can prove profitable to property investors, say HTW.
Traditionally, the suburbs of Oonoonba and Garbutt bring images of older style timber-framed homes on traditional lots generally of a modest to average quality.
In 2012, a new infill land estate known as The Village commenced development in Oonoonba with another new infill land estate known as Haven recently commencing construction in Garbutt.
While these developments are not gentrification in its purest form, they are changing the landscape of these suburbs.
Both these estates are within four kilometres of the CBD, making them locationally desirable and have a high concentration of small lot sizes. Due to the higher density of these estates, construction includes a mix of single and double-storey masonry block homes. Within The Village there have also been some small complex unit developments.
The appeal of these developments is very much price point driven with entry in the high $200,000s to low $300,000s. The major benefit of this style of development is the ability to have a unit-sized home on a small low maintenance allotment close to the City and The Strand without the costs associated with body corporate fees.
Predominantly small lot, higher density land estates are a relatively new concept in the Townsville marketplace and how these estates present in the long term is yet to be tested.
The median unit price at the end of 2015 was $434,000, according to RP Data. There was no matching data for houses.
As an illustration, a three-bedroom apartment at 41/51 Stanley Street Townsville City sold for $349,000 recently.