What are the Gold Coast’s million-dollar suburbs?

The Gold Coast is living up to its luxurious name more than ever lately, with six suburbs now weighing in the million-dollar range, according to CoreLogic data.

Surfers Paradise, once alone in its six-figure price tag, has since been joined by five more suburbs. But what are the real implications of a rising number of million-dollar suburb on the Gold Coast and what should property buyers, sellers and investors look out for as values climb?

The Gold Coast’s million-dollar suburbs

According to Property Value by CoreLogic, the median price of houses in the following suburbs tipped over one-million dollars in the last twelve months:

• Mermaid Beach ($1.4million)
• Main Beach ($1.6million)
• Broadbeach Waters ($1.1million)
• Clear Island Waters ($1.2million)
• Paradise Point ($1million)

This puts these five suburbs in the same league as Surfers Paradise, where the median house sits at $1.3million.

Prices have been on the rise for some time now, with many suburbs showing steady growth since 2013. For some of these suburbs, however, the last year has shown significant price growth, with rapid changes bolstering them among the Gold Coast’s elite property market.

• Broadbeach Waters – 13.92 per cent median price change
• Clear Island Waters – 21.21 per cent median price change
• Paradise Point – 20.21 per cent median price change

It’s not all about houses either – unit prices are climbing steadily in these same suburbs and more. Over the last 12 months, the median unit sale price in Queensland rose to $346,000. On the Gold Coast, however, units are selling for much more and the average sits at $360,000. Top performing suburbs include:

• Worongary ($760,000)
• Hollywell ($746,000)
• Paradise Point ($672,000)
• Hope Island ($650,000)

On average, a unit in the Gold Coast will spend just 91 days on the market, according to PropertyValue.

What does it mean to be a million-dollar suburb on the Gold Coast? 

For those looking to sell, the rise of the million-dollar suburb is great news, as such premium property has generated interest from local, interstate and international buyers alike.

One thing that distinguishes high-value property on the Gold Coast from homes with the same price tag in Sydney and Melbourne is that there’s so much more value on the Gold Coast when you consider the size, views and location of homes you’re able to snatch up.

With the 2018 Commonwealth Games approaching quickly, home values are only expected to increase, and several other suburbs are creeping their way closer to the million-dollar mark, including:

• Runaway Bay (median home value $960,000)
• Bundall (median home value $951,000)
• Currumbin Valley (median home value $920,000)
• Willow Vale (median home value $910,500)

Buyers and investors should be aware, however, that price isn’t everything. Surfers Paradise, for example, long regarded as the Gold Coast’s most elite suburb, actually saw a price decline over the year of 3.7 per cent.

Median gross yield is also worth looking at if you’re interested in purchasing an investment property. The annual return on an investment divided by the price, median gross yields can give you a good picture of how well you’ll fare from a given investment property.

With the national gross median yield  sitting at 4.24 per cent, according to CoreLogic, investors keen to purchase a property with sound rewards may want to consider looking outside of this million-dollar ranges to suburbs slated to rise in coming years. Many homes in this circle – although they’d pull excellent sale prices – wouldn’t necessarily guarantee high yields for those looking to rent them out.

At Ray White Surfers Paradise, we follow the property market on the Gold Coast meticulously so we can offer all of our customers keen insights about what’s currently happening or what’s projected for the future of the market. To find out more about buying, selling or investing in this booming area, reach out to our experienced team today.