Redundant Council Properties Beef Up Brisbane Land Supply

Surplus council land acquired through “congestion-busting” projects in Brisbane will be sold to increase the city’s housing supply.

According to the State Government, the Coordinator-General can compulsorily acquire land with any type of tenure, including freehold, for infrastructure works and other purposes.

But based on the zoning, size and shape of each lot, the market listing of the blocks could add more than 50 homes to the tight Brisbane market.

According to CoreLogic’s Hedonic Home Value Index for August, Brisbane’s listings are more than 30 per cent below average for this time of the year while its median home values have increased 16 per cent across the past 12 months to $873,987.

The Brisbane City Council sites included high, medium and low-density residential building options for buyers.

The council acquired the blocks through transport projects such as the $257-million Moggill Road Corridor Upgrade Project in inner-western Brisbane, and intersection upgrades at Wakerley, Nundah and Inala.

The council explained that the sites’ release back to the market was a standard process for surplus land following a project’s delivery.

“This land was surplus to our needs, which is why we are releasing it back into the market to support the creation of housing,” a council spokesperson said.

The council did not specify how it planned to utilise the property sales’ revenue but said it would be reinvested back into the suburbs.

The council has indicated it would consider selling similar land to help support Brisbane’s swiftly growing population.

However, if the buyers of the existing or future potential sites have a different proposal for the blocks, then the State Government will consider such ideas.

“The State Government requires councils to assess all development proposals on their merits,” the spokesperson said.

“Hence, any proposals to change the zoning of the lots would need to be considered on a case-by-case basis.”