Australia’s sixth largest city and the home of the 2018 Commonwealth Games, the Gold Coast is one of Australia’s emerging markets. The Gold Coast enjoyed several fruitful years because of significant investment in the region in preparation for the Commonwealth Games. In the past the performance of the Gold Coast property market was very segmented. The Surfer Paradise region became very volatile, with sharp spikes in over and under-supply reflecting peaks and troughs in median prices.
Through strategic infrastructure planning and the creation of new jobs the Gold Coast is transitioning away from a tourism-reliant economy towards one of more diversity. Health care is now the largest employment sector on the Gold Coast. With the Health and Knowledge Precinct establishing itself as a biomedical research hub employing over 12,000 people, researchers suggest that in ten years it will become a world-leading research precinct. The Gold Coast now has an economy valued at $25.2 billion, Queensland’s second largest regional contributor.
The population of the Gold Coast is growing rapidly, with projections suggesting that it will double by 2050 to 1.2 million. The City of the Gold Coast has had a five-year annual growth rate of 2.3%. Over the past ten years the growth rate in the Gold Coast has been higher than both Queensland and Australian figures.
There is over $13 billion worth of infrastructure being delivered that will improve transport systems and create employment and on completion benefit the Gold Coast economy. Some key projects include:
- $200 million athletic and sporting facilities including a new private hospital.
- $365 million Gold Coast Cultural Precinct.
- $1.6 billion Gold Coast light rail: 13 kilometres of light rail linking Griffith University and Broadbeach.
- $6.8 million Gold Coast Chinatown.
The northern region of the Gold Coast has seen an expansion in residential development in response to growing demand; it is also set to benefit from more direct infrastructure spending. Our focus has been on the Coomera region, which is benefiting from over $9 billion worth of projects in its immediate vicinity.
In 2017, the Gold Coast grew by nearly 8%, with the median house price reaching $615,000. The current vacancy rates across all Gold Coast regions sits between 0.9% and 1.8%, representing an imbalance in supply and demand in favour of the latter.
Outlook for 2018
This year’s highly anticipated Commonwealth Games has created a vibrant hub of sporting activity. The property market, which has already benefited so much from the lead up, is likely to remain strong. The hype around the Commonwealth Games may have resulted in slightly inflated growth rates, however, long-term growth fundamentals remain strong. In 2018 we are likely to see continued price growth in the Gold Coast. Our focus will remain on the northern region, which benefits from access to both the Brisbane and Gold Coast economies.
It sounds like its ready to explode.