Brisbane market bubbling along

By SALLY SCOTT

The Brisbane property market continues to putter along at a gentle pace, with a 2 per cent increase in the median house price in the 12 months to the end of March, according to statistics released by the Real Estate Institute of Queensland this week.
The report highlighted a continuation of stable conditions across southeast Queensland and solid growth in other parts of the state.
REIQ Chairman Peter McGrath said these results mirrored market conditions generally over the past two years.
"Queensland has been very fortunate to have maintained healthy sales activity and limited price volatility which other major states have experienced over the past couple of years," he said.
He said there were a number of key factors to explain the optimism in the marketplace.
"Investors are more active in Queensland than most other states; and our migration levels are strong, both contributing to ongoing demand," he said.
"Affordability is the key reason we're not seeing more substantial price growth in the southeast region.
"After price growth over the past five years in the order of 100 per cent in many cases, prospective first-time buyers - who should make up 30 per cent of the market - have been hit again by interest rates and high petrol prices.
"The absence of many first homebuyers in the market certainly is impacting prices.
"The state's continued high level of interstate migration is picking up some of the slack caused by lower-than-average numbers of first-home buyers. This is one of the reasons why sales activity levels remain healthy."
Across a landscape of general flatness throughout the southeast, some suburbs and market segments stood out as above-average performers.
"As a rule it was the affordable suburbs across the southeast, particularly in Brisbane, which managed good price growth over the 12 months," Mr McGrath said.
Darra, Fitzgibbon, Nudgee, Rocklea, Jamboree Heights, Hemmant, Aspley, Doolandella, Acacia Ridge, and Algester - all with a median house price under $350,000 - experienced more than 5 per cent growth over the past year.
Ipswich and Logan area also experienced healthy growth in the median house price over the 12 months (7 per cent and 5.1 per cent respectively) on the back of comparatively affordable prices.
The other shires saw more modest growth, with Redcliffe recording 1.7 per cent, Pine Rivers 0.8 per cent, and Redland 2.9 per cent over the 12 months.
The most impressive price gains over the year and the March quarter were seen in the mining districts in central Queensland.
Emerald shire posted an incredible 38.6 per cent increase in the median house price while Banana shire - home to Moura and Biloela - recorded a staggering 44 per cent over the 12-month period. Mount Isa experienced 37.9 per cent house price growth.
Nearby Rockhampton saw house price growth of 27.5 per cent over the same period. Mackay recorded 30.9 per cent growth.
"The commodity boom has extended the high-price growth cycle, particularly in the Bowen Basin area," Mr McGrath said.
Mining towns and the nearby service industry centres performed very strongly due to the sharp increase in demand for dwellings.
Other major centres across Queensland saw mixed results over the 12 months to the end of March 2006. Cairns saw an increase in the median house price of 11.4 per cent; Townsville saw 12.8 per cent; and Hervey Bay recorded 5.7 per cent. In recent months Mackay and Cairns continued to perform well with growth around 5 per cent for the quarter.
"The healthy house price growth over the March quarter in Cairns is also related to this shortness in supply of properties for sale and the increased demand caused by strong population growth in the region," Mr McGrath said.