Gladstone now one of the cheapest locations in Queensland: HTW

The landscape of the Gladstone property market in Queensland has changed dramatically in five short years, the valuation firm Herron Todd White (HTW) said in a recent report.

During the boom, the market was dominated by investors trying to cash in on the hype that surrounded Gladstone, it advised.

"Value levels and rents were the highest Gladstone had ever seen, vacancy rates were essentially 0%, motels were running at 150% occupancy," the report said.

"Fast forward five years and the property market could not be more different!"

HTW suggest you would be hard pressed to find a property owner who has not suffered some sort of loss in the past few years.

"On the other hand, the buyer’s market we currently find ourselves in has attracted many different types of home owners to the market," it said.

"The affordability of property in Gladstone has turned us from one of the most expensive places to live in the state to one of the cheapest.

"Value levels have not been this low for nearly two decades.

"We have seen a large contingent of first home owners enter the market."

First home buyers appear more active in the sub $400,000 market for both existing and newly constructed homes, however if purchasing existing homes they are generally looking to buy at a lower price point, it said.

A three-bedroom house at 9 Eden Street, South Gladstone (picture above), close to the Gladstone CBD, recently sold for $230,000. It sold in 2010 at $385,000.

In another sale, a five-bedroom house at 16 Norris Street, West Gladstone recently sold for $197,500. The price point meant that it was well suited to first home buyers.

It last sold for $348,000 in 2010. It's price was just above its 2004 sale at $195,000.

It noted upgraders are also taking advantage of the current affordability with buyers typically looking for detached housing with space for the children, both internally and externally.

"Proximity to infrastructure such as schools and shopping play an important role in these buyers’ decisions," the HTW report advised.