McGrath Estate Agents to expand into Brisbane market

Ahead of an expected turnaround in the Brisbane market, John McGrath will extend his real estate business into the Queensland capital city, with five new offices set to open over the next 12 months.

A McGrath Estate Agents company-owned office will open in the inner-Brisbane suburb of Paddington on May 21, followed by another four franchised Brisbane offices over the next 12 months.

Currently McGrath has offices at Surfers Paradise and Palm Beach in Queensland, plus two in the ACT and about 40 in NSW.

A fourth Queensland office will open in Toowoomba next month to service regional and outer Brisbane areas.

McGrath’s chief executive John McGrath says the expansion into Brisbane had been planned for two years, with the decision contingent on finding the right location and team.

“I firmly believe that the Brisbane real estate market is trending upwards,” he says. “The past few years have been tough but there is plenty of evidence that a healthy recovery is underway.

“The time now feels right to make our move into Brisbane. There is a new State government, the financial benefits of the resource boom are filtering through to the commercial sector and the impacts of the Global Financial Crisis and floods are beginning to recede.

In November John McGrath announced plans to open two new offices in Canberra, with branches in Dickson and Woden.

It entered the ACT market in 2010 with an office in Gungahlin in north ACT.

However McGrath has yet to establish a foothold in the Victorian market, with no agents or real estate branches in Melbourne or other locations.