Landbankers sitting on goldmine in South East Queensland
A desperate search by developers for land in areas where there are growth-friendly councils means some Queenslanders are now sitting on a gold mine.
It’s seeing Queenslanders make millions off land tracts banked by families for generations across South East Queensland, with developers converging on properties to insure against dwindling land supply for new estates. Depending on location, properties could fetch as much as $18.15m for 3.36ha of land, as 315 Gardner Road, Rochedale, did in a multi-sale.
Property industry analyst Michael Matusik said new land supply was very tight across South East Queensland.
“There is under two years of actual potential new land supply across SEQ and the supply is tightest on the Gold Coast, Brisbane and in Redland. This supply is way too short.”
His analysis of uncertified lots with operational works approval in major SEQ municipalities found just 1.8 years of supply across the south east, a factor that could trigger big dollars for families with large tracts of land in tight council zones.
Of the council areas, the Gold Coast had the tightest supply at just half a year’s worth, followed by Brisbane (0.7 years), Redland (0.9 years), Moreton Bay 1.5 years), Sunshine Coast (2.2 years), Ipswich (3.1 years) and Logan (3.5 years).
Land supply status across SEQ:
Sunshine Coast 2.2 years
Moreton Bay 1.5 years
Brisbane 0.7 years
Redland 0.9 years
Logan 3.5 years
Ipswich 3.1 years
Gold Coast 0.6 years
South East Qld 1.8 years
(Source: Matusik Missive: Data: Matusik + Queensland Government)
New land development approvals have fallen substantially across SEQ over the last five years,” Mr Matusik said. “The fall in new future land supply is most marked in several municipalities including the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Moreton Bay and Ipswich. There has been a fall in the number of new approved projects in Logan.”
One of the country’s largest residential developers, Stockland – which currently has eight new residential estates on the outskirts of Brisbane through to the Gold Coast – looks for land that would allow future residents to have “ready access” to jobs, recreation, public transport, schools and amenities.
Stockland general manager, David Laner, said there were many considerations that came into the decision to create a new community including “location, scale, planning and infrastructure, aspect and orientation, topography, the list goes on”.
But, he said, “in addition to these more technical considerations, it is critical to evaluate local amenity, demographics, housing supply and demand.”
“This means reviewing the lifestyle attributes, existing and future housing choice, customer preferences, and projected population growth.”
Among two of the newer Stockland estates are Newport and Promenade Rothwell, both located close to Redcliffe, in greater Brisbane’s northern edges where a new train line was opened four years ago.
“We understand that purchasing a home is a big commitment and that the location of the property must suit our customers’ long-term needs, so we encourage all potential buyers to remember that they’re not just making a purchasing decision for themselves now, but for their future selves as well,” Mr Laner said.
For those with big land holdings in SEQ close to good amenities, or where new infrastructure has been targeted, this could mean a major windfall at sale time.
Mr Matusik’s analysis found “just under 70 per cent of the new urban allotment registrations across SEQ are held in just 30 suburbs”.
“These suburbs also dominate land development within their respective municipal areas. That market share ranges from 43 per cent in Brisbane to 83 per cent in Ipswich. New land subdivision activity across SEQ is now limited to a few development corridors.”
The fall in supply coupled with boosts for home builders was expected to put greater pressure on prices, with Dr Diaswati Mardiasmo, chief economist of PRD Nationwide, finding that Greater Brisbane was already inching towards higher prices, despite COVID-19 – with the biggest dollars going to properties with large land holdings.
“There is a possibility of southern investors in the market, however the local Greater Brisbane market is stimulated as well with many choosing to build or entering estates in higher priced suburbs that are well served by shops, infrastructure, great schools.”
This article from The Courier Mail originally appeared as “Landbankers set to make millions as supply tightens across SEQ”.
