Qld property sales see highest quarterly growth since 2022
Sales volumes for Queensland property surged over the last quarter of 2024 indicating continued buyer demand heading into 2025, according to the latest data from the Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ).
The latest median sales data from the institute revealed that the median sale price for houses across Queensland increased by 5.9 per cent over the December quarter of 2024.
This uplift brought the median sale price for Queensland houses to $810,000, and marks quarterly growth that has not been seen in the state since early 2022 during the post-pandemic surge.
For units across Queensland, the median sale price increased 2.38 per cent to $645,000 which, despite being solid growth, was described as a departure from the significant growth spurts in the 5 per cent range that were observed over the first quarters of 2024.
While REIQ CEO, Antonia Mercorella, said Brisbane’s median house price notched up by a modest 1.25 per cent, she noted that the large gains were “scattered across the Sunshine State”.
“What is evident from the data is that the growing local economies of areas such as Ipswich, Moreton Bay, Logan, Toowoomba, Townsville, Rockhampton, Gladstone and Mackay, among other regional areas, are sustaining strong housing markets,” Mercorella said.
The CEO shared her belief that the stronger price growth in Brisbane’s surrounding regions suggests that demand is gravitating towards more affordable housing, as buyers search for value outside of the capital city.
“While Brisbane’s ‘Cinderella story’ is far from over, the regions and Greater Brisbane LGAs are proving to be Queensland’s property powerhouses,” she added.
Queensland sales hold strong over Q4 2024
The institute’s data showed that the highest volume of house sales across the quarter were recorded in Brisbane (3,438), then the Gold Coast (2,013), Moreton Bay (1,715) and Sunshine Coast (1,321).
Over the final months of 2024, the strongest house market for quarterly growth was Rockhampton, which rose 7.14 per cent to a median sale price of $525,000, followed by Mackay (6.19 per cent growth to $600,000), Townsville (5.66 per cent growth to $560,000), and Gladstone (4.9 per cent growth to $535,000).
The length of the average sales campaign for houses took 21 days in Queensland, and was 20 days long in Brisbane.
The REIQ noted that Gladstone saw a sizeable drop in average days on market over the quarter, speeding up by 23 days to an average of only 12 days on market.
The longest annual median days on market were recorded in Noosa (47 days), Fraser Coast (33 days) and the Sunshine Coast (29 days), while Rockhampton and Townsville were once again the fastest moving markets at 11 days and 12 days, respectively.
For units, the highest sales volumes over the quarter were seen in Brisbane (2,408), the Gold Coast (1,430), and the Sunshine Coast (508).
Looking at unit growth over the quarter, the REIQ cautioned that the data can be challenging to interpret as volumes are lower in regional areas, and that figures can be driven by specific unit developments that come onto the market.
Nevertheless, the institute observed that the highest quarterly growth for units was seen in Gladstone, which increased 15.12 per cent to $354,000, followed by Townsville (11.76 per cent growth to $380,000), and Fraser Coast (8.83 per cent growth to $530,000).
The state average for unit sales campaigns reduced to 18 days over the quarter, with the fastest market being a three-way tie between Ipswich, Moreton Bay and Toowoomba, which all took an average of only 13 days to sell.
Mercorella broadly commented that Queensland’s property market had demonstrated “unwavering resilience” due to strong housing market fundamentals such as persistent buyer demand.
“Queensland has consistently strong economic and demographic fundamentals which underpin our state’s property market performance,” she said.
She highlighted that Queensland’s population growth of 2.3 per cent outpaced the nation’s 2.1 per cent increase over the year to June 2024, and noted that the state’s interstate migration gain of nearly 30,000 people was the highest boost among the states.
“This high net migration as part of our population mix is significant because it’s made up of more adults, compared to more families from natural increase, and this means a higher proportion of people seeking their own households,” Mercorella said.
With the Reserve Bank of Australia recently issuing the first rate cut in over four years, Mercorella said that she expects the momentum in Queensland’s property prices to continue over 2025.
“Queensland property prices held firm despite higher for longer interest rates, and we expect they will be invigorated by the recent cash rate cut and associated confidence,” she concluded.