More homes were bought and sold in Queensland over the last quarter than in either NSW or Victoria for possibly the first time in history, new research has revealed.
With COVID-jaded Sydneysiders and Melburnians buying up big in the Sunshine State, as well as locals buying for their own sea and tree changes, $42 billion worth of Queensland property was settled from July to September – up 93% on last year.
“This is so rare to see, but Queensland hasn’t experienced the extended lockdowns that have affected Victoria and NSW,” says Mike Gill, the head of research at online property exchange network PEXA. “They’ve both had a lot of disruption to their real estate markets, but Queensland has powered through to become the standout performer and shows no sign of slowing down. So many people have been looking for lifestyle changes and now they’re acting on them.”
The latest PEXA quarterly Property and Mortgage Insights report on home sales from July to September this year found that more than 210,000 sales, worth $183 billion, were settled nationally during the quarter. The number of sales was up 34% on last year, with the dollar value growing 78%.
“We’re seeing a lot of interstate migration into Queensland which has pushed up the sales figures there,” says Gill. “When we look at the top 10 suburbs nationally for sales, Surfers Paradise made that list, and Greater Brisbane experienced 62% growth year-on-year for the month of August.”