Baby Boomers & Gen Y Compete For Inner-Brisbane Housing Stock

Baby Boomers and Generation Y are locked in tight competition with each other for apartment stock in and around the Brisbane CBD, according to Place.

Place managing director Judy Goodger said factors such as being more active, being closer to work and entertainment, and the desire to leave the car at home were combining to spark a surge of demand for inner-Brisbane high-density living from the opposite generations.

“Baby Boomers have always represented a strong portion of the market in the inner city, but in the past 18 months I’ve seen a noticeable upswing in the amount of people in this generation seeking CBD living instead of settling in the suburbs,” she said.

“What we have seen – and will continue to see in the coming cycle - is that Baby Boomers have raised their children, the kids have moved out, and now these couples are selling the suburban home they’ve been holding onto to move into an inner-city dwelling.

“There is a new wave of buyers now though, with Gen Y also having a very strong desire for the inner-city lifestyle, resulting in a two-pronged surge of demand for high-density housing in these areas.”

Ms Goodger said in the past Gen Y and Baby Boomers had opposing living criteria, with the former looking for suburban homes further from the city, but it had changed in recent years with young couples desiring smaller one and two-bedroom apartments to be closer to work and play.

“We see this anecdotally, but it is also reflected in the data with the huge buyer interest for inner-city units from both generations reaching an unprecedented level,” she said.

Place statistics show that 98 per cent of sales recorded in the Brisbane CBD during the June 2015 quarter were one and two-bedroom apartments, with Consolidated Properties’ ‘Spire’ bolstering transactions for this period with 287 sales recorded in the June quarter.

Ms Goodger said it was evident that the strong demand for apartments from both Baby Boomers and Gen Y extended not just to the CBD, but to surrounding suburbs including New Farm, Newstead, Teneriffe, West End, Highgate Hill, Fortitude Valley and Hamilton.

“These areas provide the ultimate lifestyle that everyone desires – they are close to the city, they have excellent amenity and access to public transport, and they have that trendy feel."Ms Goodger said high-density housing created communities where residents could easily access public transport and walk to work, shops and amenities, avoiding the daily traffic.

She said while both Baby Boomers and Generation Y desired this close proximity to everything, older buyers also required very high-quality - and often prestige product - with high levels of security.