Real Estate Queensland - Brisbane

Real Estate Queensland Recent Trends

Regional Queensland centres continued to do well with the five major cities outside the southeast recording either modest or strong house price growth. However Brisbane's median house price declined 3 per cent over the quarter – the most dramatic fall in prices since the last housing downturn in 1994-95. Despite this, Brisbane managed 6.9 per cent house price growth over the year.

Further evidence of a downturn in Brisbane’s once booming property market can be found in the latest housing approval figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Queensland private sector housing approvals declined 4.7 per cent in the March quarter. Once townhouse and units were taken into account, the fall was 6.5 per cent. Nationally, approvals declined 6.8 per cent. 

Significantly, the proportion first home buyers and investors taking out finance has continued to slump, a consequence of low housing affordability on the one hand, and investor jitters on the other.

The good news is that fewer investors has reduced the stock of properties for rent and helped boost returns. Queensland’s rental vacancy rate in March declined to 2.5 per cent (3 per cent is considered a balanced market while 4-5 per cent signifies an oversupply). 
REIQ research manager Fiona Bergin said the 3 per cent drop in Brisbane's median house price did not signify the beginning of a price freefall.

"Given the strong growth seen in Southeast Queensland house prices in recent years, letting off a bit of steam in the form of small price declines shouldn't be unexpected. If history is anything to go by, a similar situation occurred in the mid-1990s and the subsequent slowdown was both modest and short-lived," Ms Bergin said. 

1. Real Estate Queensland - Recent Trends
2. REQV Reports
3. Brisbane’s Better Performing Suburbs
4. Brisbane’s Investment Property Market