The Gold Coast’s luxury home market is moving beyond the $10 million mark as wealthy interstate and international buyers fuel momentum for the prestige residences.
Industry insiders believe 2017 will build on prices achieved in 2016 for the high-end market, which recorded landmark transactions that returned to the multi-million-dollar sales figures fetched before the global financial crisis.
Sotheby’s Queensland owner Paul Arthur says confidence and the fall in the Australian dollar had led to welcome steady progress on the Gold Coast.
“When you look at our trophy homes, they’re still excellent value compared to elsewhere in the world,” he said.
“For Sotheby’s our view is that 2017 should be very strong. (Last year) was the first time in a long time that we have seen seven-figure sales.”
In 2016, trophy homeowners were buoyed by the $25m sale of former Billabong chief Scott Perrin’s waterfront mansion Tidemark to Melbourne toy manufacturer Manny Stul. The deal has yet to settle.
Top sales for the waterfront suburbs of Surfers Paradise and Main Beach last year included a $15.5m mansion across four blocks, an $11m sale on Southern Cross Drive and an $8.2m house on Main Beach Parade.
A single $14m contract for the Northcliffe Residences penthouse to retired New Zealand entrepreneur Nick Gordon and his wife Andrea was committed last year in what was believed to be the strongest off-the-plan sale since the global financial crisis.
The market will face its first major test with a mega-auction of properties on January 29.
Ray White Surfers Paradise’s The Event will attempt to sell 131 homes and apartments at its annual auction, including expected seven-figure homes from the hinterland of Tamborine Mountain to the beachfront at Q1.
Agency chief executive Andrew Bell says the Gold Coast’s market has undergone a strong recovery throughout 2016, spurring more listings.
“A notable trend, especially out of Melbourne, is greater numbers of retiring people who are selling homes in the $2m-plus price bracket and buying on the Gold Coast for about $1m, allowing them to invest the difference into their retirement fund,” he says.
“Chinese investors might be driving the Sydney and Melbourne markets, but the profits are spilling over to the Gold Coast, which has shown time and again to be Australia’s top aspirational destination.”
The Gold Coast suffered during the GFC when out-of-town buyers sold off assets, but Mr Bell said the coast was again “back in vogue”.
One home under the hammer will be an architect-designed, five-bedroom multi-living room home at Sanctuary Cove on Riverside Drive. Set on 904sq m, it also features 36m of water frontage.
For those seeking a coastal mountain retreat, the four-bedroom, four-bathroom Eagles Retreat is described as a “contemporary masterpiece”. It offers panoramic views from Moreton Bay south to Byron Bay.
Back on the water at Conifer Crescent, Broadbeach Waters, a five-bedroom residence on Main River offers a prestige home on 1300sq m of north-facing land in a cul-de-sac. With 46m of frontage, the property also features a large swimming pool and outdoor entertaining area.
Industry analysts Herron Todd White says the Gold Coast housing market is rising, pointing to RP Data figures that reveal an increase in the median house price of 16.2 per cent and 8.9 per cent for Nerang and Carrara last year to November.
“The volume of sales has decreased, however, due to a lack of stock,” the HTW report says.
“Most agents who consistently work these areas are all reporting low stock, with properties appropriately priced selling within 14 days of being listed on the market.”
Prices are being fuelled by the multi-billion-dollar infrastructure investment ahead of the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games adding to the influx of international investment into residential and tourism developments.
About $320m worth Games infrastructure is being poured into the region — following the $420m light rail transport network — and the city’s international airport is being upgraded at a cost of $200m.
The Star gaming company is busy with an $850m seven-tower apartment and hotel development that will overhaul the Broadbeach destination.
Along the beachfront, Chinese mega-developers Wanda and Ridong Group have started construction on the high-profile $1 billion Jewel high-rise, Forise Holdings is ploughing ahead with its 89-level Spirit tower and builder and developer Qingjian, also known as CNQC, has started on Northcliffe Residences.
Originally Published: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/