Buying property on a golf course: why Queensland buyers are spending millions

More buyers than ever are ploughing their cash into exclusive golf front properties, agents say.

On top of waterfront and city pads, homes fronting the peace and quiet of the fairways are being added to the portfolio of wealthy property owners, retirees, avid golfers and now, even young families.

At Sanctuary Cove on the Gold Coast, Ray White agent Matt Gates is marketing what he believes to be Australia’s best golf front property.

Listed at $4.5 million, it’s a state-of-the-art residence located in the Masters Enclave, a secluded island of only 20 homes literally built in to the course. With an eight-car garage basement, an award-winning kitchen and spacious designer interiors, Mr Gates expects the house will set a new benchmark.

“Homes like these are a limited commodity and this place is exceptional,” Mr Gates says. “The market here is currently really strong.”

Owners Duncan and Judy Forrest built the property at Arnold Palmer Drive 10 years ago after living in waterfront homes at Sanctuary Cove. They say golf front homes win hands down.

“The peace and tranquility here is extraordinary. It’s just so peaceful and serene and the outlook is so beautiful,” Mr Forrest says.

“Living on the waterfront can get noisy with boats and you’re often looking into other people’s homes across the other side of the water. Here, we’ve got uninterrupted views of the landscape and the local wildlife.”

Records show the highest price paid for a golf front home on the Gold Coast was in 2008, when for a luxury property only a few doors down from the Forrests fetched $4 million.

On the Sunshine Coast, golf front properties have changed hands for up to $3.1 million. That record was set in 2010 in Noosa Springs, a premier gated golf front community only five minutes from Noosa’s Main Beach.

Local Richardson & Wrench agent Jill Goode says the majority of buyers are not mad golfers but people wanting a safe and peaceful environment.

“They want to feel secure, they want to feel part of a community and they like the peace and quiet,” she says.

“The security of the gated estate is a massive factor in why so many choose to live here rather than on the river.”

Agent Lianne Wamsteeker recently sold 757/61 Noosa Springs Drive, a stunning contemporary residence asking $2,495,000, to a young couple with three children, which she says debunks the myth that golf course estates are only for retirees.

“The outlook is second to none and it’s such a safe place to bring up children,” she says.

“I’m finding my buyers are getting younger and younger.”

And the exclusivity of fronting a golf course doesn’t cool off with age, Ray White agent Susan Bardon says.

“We’ve got golf course homes at Middle Park that are 20 years old and they’re still so popular – it’s the exclusivity factor,” she says.

“At Brookwater, golf frontage homes regularly sell for over $1 million. You’ve got acres and acres of bushland, fairways, greens and sometimes even water views — what’s not to love about that?”