How prestige buyers shaped the Gold Coast's record-breaking property boom
Two years ago, prestige property prices across the Gold Coast were all but becalmed on a stagnant sea that left luxury mansions sitting like flotsam and jetsam in the listings following a decade of static growth.
But just when it felt like the city’s gleam could fade, the perfect storm of COVID-19 and low interest rates propelled luxury home prices to unprecedented heights to cement a year of record-breaking growth that saw Surfers Paradise and Southport named two of the country’s top-selling suburbs.
Fuelled by a mammoth sea-change trend, home prices in primely positioned pockets across the ‘’glitter strip” rose by up to 44 per cent and shot 11 suburbs into the million-dollar-median club – a club that consisted of just Mermaid Beach and Surfers Paradise 12 months earlier.
The figures, lifted from Domain’s September House Price Report for 2021, revealed buyers converged on the luxury property sector like moths to a flame with Miami house prices shooting beyond 44 per cent to $1.205 million in a year and Mermaid Waters house prices rising by 41.9 per cent to $1.22 million.
In neighbouring Mermaid Beach, a colossal 32.4 per cent hike sent house prices to a historic $2.075 million.
But while the voracious growth decimated stock levels and burst the seaside dream for thousands of buyers hoping to bag a bargain by the beach, Ray White Surfers Paradise Group CEO Andrew Bell said after almost 24 months of price hikes the fever was breaking.
“Twenty months ago, you couldn’t have imagined the prices we’d achieve. This is the greatest boom in the history of the country … and the last thing I can remember that was close to this was 1988 and ’99 after the stock market crashed,” Bell said.
“People pulled their money out of shares and ploughed it back into real estate but it was short-lived. This boom is even stronger.
“The difference now is the cheap money. People are more cavalier with it and it’s so affordable.
“But all markets, whether it’s gold or oil, go through cycles and property is so aligned to the economic cycle. So, we were due for a boom … and if you follow the cycles, two years of a boom market is about as long as they last.
“Now there are signals out there showing the brakes are being applied whether that’s the regulations into borrowing [announced on November 1], chats about interest rates rising and then affordability being tested. You get half a dozen of those things like this and it’s like putting an anchor out.”
While the anchor might have been dropped, the city moved up the search rankings to top place for overseas buyers, according to PropTrack’s Overseas Search Data Report released last month, with units in Surfers Paradise topping the national list for sales value, according to figures found in the Domain House Price Report.
The mass return of expats could also see the anchor lifted in early next year, with the city’s annual auction – called The Event – tipped to be the best yet for the Ray White Surfers Paradise Group when it kicks off on January 23 at RACV Royal Pines Resort in Benowa.
Looking back over the past year, prestige property specialist Michael Kollosche, of real estate agency Kollosche, said the depth of the market was astonishing and had resulted in the firm collecting just over $230 million in unconditional sales in October alone.
The team also achieved a handful of jaw-dropping sales such as 159 Hedges Avenue, Mermaid Beach, which recently fetched $15.75 million.
“There have been a lot of sales in that $10 to $16 million range this year and a large portion of them were to locals with a few coming out of Sydney and Melbourne,” Kollosche said.
“I sold a block of land alone [900 square metres] at 139-141 Hedges Avenue for $17.5 million [in August].
“I think the market will remain reasonably stable over the next 12 months because the Gold Coast is well-positioned with the [Brisbane 2032 Olympics] and there’s a lot of infrastructure spending.”
For the team at Amir Prestige Property Agents, the year was equally fruitful, after principal and director Amir Mian collected a suburb-record-smashing $23.75 million for the spectacular 5 McMillan Court, Southport, in March this year.
The sale came hot on the heels of yet another record-breaking sale for the firm at 187-191 Hedges Avenue, which achieved $22.5 million in the latter half of last year.
“The Gold Coast is poised for a pretty good decade between now and the Olympics … and I think it’s to do with the number of buyers who want clean air, a nice environment and a nice back yard,” Mian said.
“A highlight sale for us was 41-45 The Promenade, Isle of Capri, which sold for $26.998 million … all our top sales were pretty much suburb record-breakers … and people are more than just getting caught in the Gold Coast movement – they are putting their kids in the school here, and they are changing their jobs to live here.”
Top three Gold Coast homes on the market:
2585 Gracemere Circuit, Hope Island
Versace-inspired seven-bedroom, seven-bathroom mansion on a sprawling 5371-square-metre block with river and hinterland views.
Additional features include a swimming pool, spa and a king-sized pontoon.
Claire Dai from Kollosche is selling the home with a guide of $16.8 million.
5681 Anchorage Terrace, Sanctuary Cove
Meticulous six-bedroom, six-bathroom waterfront estate on a 2360-square-metre block.
Luxury additions include marble floors, a gold-class style home cinema, a billiards room and a double-length pontoon.
Amir Mian from Amir Mian Prestige is selling the home with a guide of $12.85 million.
22-24 Admiralty Drive, Paradise Waters
A prime 1351 square metres of one of the Gold Coast’s most elite pockets with striking architectural finishes throughout the five-bedroom, seven-bathroom home that features a media room, an enclosed indoor swimming pool, and a riverfront pontoon.
Robert Graham from Ray White Surfers Paradise takes the home to auction on January 23.
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