Gold Coast apartment market peaking: May HTW Clock
The Gold Coast sits at the peak of the market on the unit property clock, according to Herron Todd White’s latest report.
The property valuation firm says there are also five other locations at their peak.
Sydney is a rising once again.
Meanwhile Melbourne, Coffs Harbour and the Gold Coast remain at their peak.
Last month Property Observer reported on Sydney joining Melbourne at the peak of the housing market.
The Gold Coast new apartment market recorded 255 unconditional sales in the March 2017 quarter, according to the latest research by property consultants Urbis.
It was a decline on the previous quarter’s sales, Urbis Senior Consultant Lynda Campbell noted.
She added the Gold Coast apartment market was no longer centred on beach front locations.
“Coastal Fringe suburbs such as Robina, Varsity Lakes, Ashmore and Benowa offer buyers easy access to transport and amenity including shopping centres, university, hospitals – all within easy reach of the beaches the Gold Coast is famous for. On top of that, the lower price point makes this precinct very attractive for both investors and owner occupiers.”
The Gold Coast weighted average sale price across the four precincts decreased by $21,752 from the previous quarter, registering $632,171 – however annually a price increase of 5.9 per cent was recorded.
“The Coastal Fringe Precinct recorded the lowest weighted average sale price at $473,165, highlighting its affordability and boosting sales in the area,” Ms Campbell said.
For the fifth time in two years the Coastal Fringe Precinct has been the highest performer.
In the March 2017 quarter, 113 sales were recorded in the Coastal Fringe Precinct – this is 44 per cent of total sales.
As well as a move away from the traditionally beach front located high rise precincts, this quarter saw medium rise projects dominate, with medium rise sales out-performing high rise sales by 25 per cent. Sixty-two per cent of medium rise projects are in the Coastal Fringe Precinct.
Only 1,373 apartments remain available for sale at the end of March 2017, which equates to one year’s supply at the current annual sales rate.
“The Gold Coast apartment market is maintaining a good balance of supply and demand,” Ms Campbell said.
“In the March 2017 quarter, four new projects were launched and four projects sold out.”
Once again, two-bedroom apartments dominated the market, making up 74 per cent of total sales, she noted.
The proportion of three-bedroom-plus product dropped to 13 per cent of total sales – equalling one-bedroom product sales.