SPRING fever is gripping the Gold Coast property market, with the city going through an unprecedented bloom.
Cashed-up interstate buyers are swarming to the city, with locals hot on their heels in the hunt for their prized new home.
Harcourts Coastal managing director Dane Atherton described the boom as the “perfect storm”, with buyer demand on a par with pre-global financial crisis levels.
“This is by far the busiest spring I’ve ever seen on the Gold Coast,” he said.
“I think previously the Gold Coast hasn’t been as seasonal as other markets.
“Some of my colleagues in Sydney and Melbourne would say spring was their best market but our numbers up here never correlated.’’
Interstate buyers were bringing a new buyer mentality to the Coast.
“They’re bringing the mentality that spring is the best time to buy,” he said.
“You pair that with locals upgrading and you’ve got the perfect storm.
“You’ve got interstate buyers and local buyers fuelling the market.”
Mr Atherton called the auction of a three-bedroom renovated Miami home which sold for $900,000 at the weekend.
“It started very strong with a potential knockout bid at $850,000 before it got to $900,000,” he said.
“We stopped at $875,000 and increased to $900,00 before it sold under the hammer to a Sydney buyer who was on the phone.”
Among the spectators was swimming star Cameron McEvoy, who blended into the 100-plus crowd.
“The crowd was indicative of the changing dynamics in Miami and Burleigh,” Mr Atherton said.
“It was an ultra-trendy, younger crowd.”
Mr Atherton said he expected his agency to record more than $100 million in sales this month, smashing all records.
“It’s momentum that we should see going strong right up until Christmas,” he said.
REIQ Gold Coast zone chairman John Newlands said the Coast’s property market was heating up, with major events including the Commonwealth Games pushing it.
“We’ve got very low interest rates, low tenancy rates and we’ve got a revival in tourism, especially with the lead-up to the Commonwealth Games,” he said.
“With the Commonwealth Games, there’s a lot of infrastructure to support that and then we’ve got the extension of the light rail out to Helensvale.
“Not only are those events helping the Coast mature every year, but the growing population will also be a big driver in years to come.”
Original article published at www.goldcoastbulletin.com.au by Aleisha Pidgeon 26/9/16