Terry Ryder urges caution on Gold Coast highrise

With Queensland's Sunshine Coast expected to overtake the Gold Coast’s in property market growth, investors are being urged to spend cautiously.

“The trend suggests the Gold Coast is winding down – it surged throughout 2015 and the early part of 2016, but the number of growth suburbs has dropped from 25 six months ago to 20 three months ago to 14 now,” the latest Terry Ryder Price Predictor suggests.

“We continue to urge caution about the Gold Coast high-rise apartment markets because of the alarming history of boom-bust scenarios, poor capital growth record and looming prospect of oversupply.”

The report suggested investors should head for the hills.

The report predicts prices in Upper Coomera and Nerang will rise faster than in beachfront suburbs, based on trends in sales volumes.

Ryder told The Gold Coast Bulletin that the Gold Coast was a “tale of two cities”.

“(It’s) the high-rise suburbs and genuine residential suburbs,” the report states.

“We urge investors to avoid the former and concentrate on the latter.

“Many of the inland housing areas of the Gold Coast have strongly-growing markets and will deliver price growth.

"Our Top 30 list includes Ashmore, Carrara, Highland Park, Nerang and Upper Coomera.”

REIQ Gold Coast zone chairman John Newlands agreed Ashmore, Carrara, Highland Park, Nerang and Upper Coomera still offered affordable housing noting buyers can secure a house for $450,000 to $550,000

But Newlands was surprised by the predicted trend on the beachfront prediction.

“I really do feel that the Gold Coast is growing,” Mr Newlands said.

“We rely heavily on tourism and hospitality but we also have construction and manufacturing to the west of the Coast. Tourism is growing and we’ve also broken into the healthy industry.”