Pandemic sparks land sales surge in South East QLD

Staying at home in social isolation has done wonders for land sales, which surged during lockdown to their highest level since mid-2018, latest figures show.

Latest South East Queensland data from property services group Oliver Hume showed sales at 150 projects across Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Logan, Ipswich, Moreton Bay and Redland grew 24 per cent in the March quarter, over the same time last year.

More than 1,500 lots were sold during that time, which was 10 per cent higher than the long term average and the highest sales result since mid-2018 – “outside of the irregular figures recorded in September 2019”.

The median price of a block of land also defied the coronavirus gloom, rising 0.9 per cent during the March quarter. That saw the median price of a block of land now 3.4 per cent higher annually than the same period through to March 2019.

SEQ had been set for a bumper year before COVID-19 hit the country, and Oliver Hume’s national research head George Bougias said a lot would now “depend on the borders reopening and a recovery in key sectors including tourism”.

“While there are still many uncertainties around the national and global economies, the Queensland land market is well placed to recover and resume its trajectory once movement and consumer spending return to normal.”

He said the Brisbane and the broader SEQ markets had good long-term fundamentals including affordability, liveability, a large and growing population and good economic prospects driven by a diverse range of industries.

The most popular place to buy into was Ipswich, overtaking Logan which had led the last two quarters off its sales of larger blocks of land.

Almost half (49 per cent) of all land sales in SEQ were in Logan and Ipswich, the data showed, with 23 per cent in Moreton Bay – its highest percentage since March 2016.

“Ipswich and Logan will continue to dominate the market for the foreseeable future until we see more affordable offerings in those other local government areas.” Source: realestate.com.au

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