Top Queensland Spots for Interstate Buyers

It looks like people from Sydney are waiting for the borders to open to move to Queensland and buy up property, with Noosa the most in-demand location.

Research shows 66 per cent of property enquires for the sunshine state are from NSW, according to Domain.

Those aged between 25 and 44 were looking to move from interstate to Brisbane while older people were looking outside the state capital.

The most popular house configuration was four bedrooms, two bathrooms and two car spaces while units needed two bedrooms, two bathrooms and one car space.

A Pexa Insights report also showed Queensland was the only mainland state to record quarter-on-quarter growth in property settlements.

Settlements were up 3 per cent on the previous quarter and 42 per cent on last year.

There were more than 59,000 settlements worth $42 billion in Queensland, compared with NSW at 58,000 settlements—down 4 per cent—and Victoria at 56,000, down 5 per cent.

Top Queensland locations for buyers

^{_{^Domain Queensland Spotlight Report}}

PEXA Insights head of research Mike Gill said NSW and Victoria were hampered by lockdowns, while SA and WA seemed to have hit their peak.

“Queensland was certainly the standout performer of the September quarter for Australian property, showing no signs of slowing down,” Gill said.

Gill said the number of new loans also declined since 1 July however it was still up 39 per cent on last year, suggesting consumer demand was still strong.

Domain chief of research and economics Nicola Powell said flexibility in work arrangements, particularly for high earners, was driving the move in property trends.

“Significant shifts in the population like this don’t occur often. What we’re finding is that people are fast-tracking their decision to move, taking the opportunity to live and work with flexibility and where they choose,” Powell said.

“While there is no questioning that cities will always be home to the biggest population, we’re witnessing a surge towards regional and less metropolitan areas which are experiencing the biggest impact of internal migration.”

The Domain chief of research added the Olympics would further drive housing demand in south-east Queensland with 91,000 full-time jobs created in the lead up to the games and an influx of capital.

“As a part of this cash injection we will naturally witness significant demand for housing, especially as we prepare to welcome skilled workers to the state,” Powell said.

“What we can forecast is an increased demand for rental properties to host short-mid term workers, which naturally presents opportunities for investors to capitalise on the strong rental demand.”