Young couple fleeing Sydney's high prices buy Mount Gravatt East home

Young first-home buyers fleeing Sydney’s expensive property market have snagged a Brisbane home at auction.

The young couple, who abandoned the NSW capital because of prohibitively high prices, bought 30 Nurran St, Mount Gravatt East on Saturday morning.

Ray White Mount Gravatt principal Grant Boman said bidding was between seven parties, many of whom were young families.

He said it was little surprise the winning bidders were Sydneysiders who could see the value in the Brisbane housing market.

“They were in a one-bedroom unit five kilometres from the Sydney CBD and a two-bedroom in the same complex, a shoebox, sold for $830,000,” Mr Boman said.

“They just wanted a nice house for their family to grow up in and that wasn’t an option in Sydney.”

Mr Boman expects more Sydney residents will migrate north of the border in the next year.

“In terms of interstate migration, we haven’t seen a lot of it,” he said. “But it is something we’ll see more of in the next 12 months.”

After sharp bidding and a brief stall, the three-bedroom home sold for $630,000.

Mr Boman said the home had wide appeal. “It’s a really good first home or investment property. Even for a downsizer, it’s quite nice as well.”

Renovated properties in Mount Gravatt and the surrounding areas were common, but Mr Boman said this home had some extra flair.

“It was a ’60s chamfer board house,” he said. “It’s a little bit different because it has raked ceilings and a bit of mid-century charm to it. It’s beautifully renovated.”

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Mount Gravatt’s supply of older, detached homes was dropping, Mr Boman said, resulting in a spike in demand.

“It’s undersupplied. Multi-unit dwellings have taken houses out of the area,” he said. “Other suburbs have got more expensive as well.”

Meanwhile, in Boondall, an older brick home passed in at $1.11 million.

The home at 122 Roscommon Road sat on 2616 square metres of flat, usable, land and auctioneer David Treloar said it had great development appeal.

Buyers were keen to snag the property, with about a dozen bidders registered. After kicking off at $800,000, the price reached $1.11 million quickly but lengthy negotiations couldn’t seal the deal.

“It’s ultimately just about if it’s enough for the seller to feel comfortable making the move,” Mr Treloar said.

Local developers had shown the most interest and Mr Treloar said they might be willing to pay more for the large block, outside auction conditions. “With a development piece of stock, if developers could have a bit of flexibility it can alter the scenario,” he said.

Ray White Albion agent Zac Tully said developer interest stemmed from Brisbane’s continued urban sprawl. “Everything’s coming out this way,” he said. “Nundah’s been built out, Wavell’s been built out.”

Those buyers were still keen despite the vendor’s plans to stay in the property for another five months. “She’s actually going to be staying there until February 2018, it’s in the contract,” Mr Tully said. “It’s just good land, mate. You don’t get land like this much, it’s got dual street access.

“I guess land like this in Boondall is hard to find; like a good heart,” he said, laughing.