State of Markets – QLD December 2011

QUEENSLAND

Fast Figures

• $307,500 – median house price, Ipswich
• $440, 000 – median house price, Brisbane

Property sales plummet in Queensland
Queensland failed to strike a chord with buyers in the past financial year.

The state experienced a 27.5 per cent drop in the total value of dwelling transactions last year, according to RP Data, while Western Australia experienced a 22.6 per cent decline.

Total dwelling sales in 2010/2011 stood at $193.5 billion. While that may sound impressive, said RP Data’s research analyst Cameron Kusher, the figure indicated an 18.2 per cent drop from the previous financial year.

Houses accounted for $141.8 billion and units for almost $51.7 billion, with total house sales now worth almost three times as much as that of unit sales.

The figures also reveal transaction volumes have consistently been a key driver of total sales value; however, the value at which properties are transacted has become just as important, according to Mr Kusher.

The annual number of home sales has returned to levels not seen since June 1997, while the total value of sales remains slightly higher than that recorded during the depths of the global financial crisis.

Cairns developer on the rise
Cairns’leading prestigious residential development has reported its best sales in 12 months, with families and southern investors buying into the estate.

Brookfield Residential Properties, developers of Bluewater at Trinity Beach, have recorded the best sale figures during August and September with six blocks of land sold, compared with only three sales for the same time in 2010.

The news comes after a period of heavy decline in the Cairns residential property market.

Median house prices in the local government area (LGA) have fallen by 5.4% over the 12 months to July 2011 and median prices are currently 10.0% below their peak.

“Population growth and the shift to coastal markets have slowed ever since the onset of the GFC,” RP Data senior analyst Cameron Kusher told Smart Property Investment. “The weak tourism market to Australia is also impacting the market.”