The surprising impact of southern buyers on the Gold Coast property market

From the Winter 2024 issue of Kanebridge Quarterly magazine. Order your copy here.

Thirty years ago, the idea that South East Queensland — and in particular the Gold Coast — would be one of the hottest prestige property markets in the country would have raised more than a few eyebrows.

But a new level of affluence led by the post-COVID domestic migration from the southern states means the cultural cringe once associated with the region is all but gone, with a deluge of luxury developments complete with top-end features and inclusions creating what is fast becoming a high-end, high-median market.

Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show that between June 2020 and June 2021 — the height of COVID lockdowns in the southern states — more than 90 percent of net interstate migration (or around 31,000 people) was to Queensland. And the population growth is showing no signs of slowing down. Queensland’s Department of State Development and Infrastructure expects the state’s population to boom during the next 20 years, from 5.4 million to an estimated 8 million by 2046.

This influx of people has, unsurprisingly, meant a distinct change in the state’s property market with research from Ray White showing the top five percent of Brisbane’s housing market – homes priced at $1.8 million or more – have grown by 213 per cent in the past 10 years, outperforming the growth of an average-priced house in that time.

An hour down the Pacific Motorway, things aren’t much different. In the space of a generation, the Gold Coast has gone from quaint (and quiet) beachside strip to family holiday destination and now, according to the figures from the Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ), one of SEQ’s million-dollar addresses.

Previously only a position held by Brisbane and Noosa, the Gold Coast took its place on the podium late last year, hitting the million-dollar median mark for house prices for the first time in the December 2023 quarter.

“In lifestyle locations like the Gold Coast, that just surpassed a $1 million house median, most of the stock coming to market is set to cater to luxury living, further perpetuating a high-end, high median market,” says REIQ CEO Antonia Mercorella.

“Interstate buyers are moving to Queensland to chase a better lifestyle and as such, they’re seeking homes that are reflective of the outdoor Queensland lifestyle, with exterior living areas such as balconies, patios and verandas, ideally with the property having a pool on site.”

The Gold Coast is home to Queensland’s three most expensive streets with data from Ray White revealing Hedges Avenue in Mermaid Beach (nicknamed Multimillionaire’s Row by locals), Edgecliff Place in Hope Island and Admiralty Drive in Surfers Paradise, hold the top three spots with median buy-ins of $10.5 million, $6.675 million, and $6.119 million respectively.

Following significant gains during the pandemic, the belief was the South East Queensland property market would tail off significantly, as demand, particularly from the southern states, waned.

But contrary to expectations, there’s no sign of demand slowing down, with interstate buyers still heading north in droves, enticed by five-star features and a beach lifestyle, as Sydney and Melbourne luxury beachfront properties are perceived as increasingly high-cost options. SEQ and northern NSW developers and architects have responded in kind with some of the country’s most exciting and luxurious new residences popping up along the glitter strip including the billion-dollar Jewel Residences at Broadbeach; Burleigh Heads’ much-anticipated Mondrian Residences, and the 38-level Royale in the heart of Surfers Paradise, due for completion in 2025 and featuring six-star lifestyle amenities across the first two floors of the development.

Brent Thompson’s Siera Property Group, who have projects on Chevron Island and further south in Bilinga, are developing Enderley which features 54 apartments across a 25-level, BDA Architecture-designed tower in Surfers Paradise, with a maximum of three apartments per floor.

“The forecast for 2024 in the Gold Coast looks promising, as there is a projected sustained demand,” says Thompson.

“This surge is fuelled by a specific demographic: homeowners aiming to enrich their way of life. These buyers typically seek hassle-free accommodation, like premium apartments, that complement their pursuit of a higher quality of living.

Brent Thompson says homeowners moving to the Gold Coast want the best of both worlds.

“The allure of the Gold Coast lies in its abundant natural attractions such as beaches, eateries, and seamless transportation options, combined with artificial amenities like wellness centres, rooftop pools, and exclusive dining venues, making it an enticing choice for these purchasers.”

The Enderley development will span 25 levels with three apartments per floor.

On the Gold Coast’s northern fringe, veteran developer Lewis Land Group are behind Harbour Shores, a $1.5 billion masterplan in Biggera Waters which has already secured a 6 Star Green Star Communities V1.1 rating from the Green Building Council of Australia, making it the Gold Coast’s highest-rated Green Star Community.

“There’s more cranes on the Gold Coast at the moment than I’ve ever seen before,” says Amir Mian, principal and managing director of Gold Coast-based luxury real estate agency Amir Prestige.

Mian, who recently sold a $24 million tri-level penthouse in Burleigh Heads’ Glasshouse development, says buyers — particularly those moving to the region from Sydney and Melbourne — are increasingly looking for high-end inclusions such as wellness features and work-from-home amenities that go beyond a spare bedroom-turned-office space.

“What we’re finding is that buyers coming into the northern NSW and Gold Coast markets are looking for those luxury inclusions, whether they’re buying an apartment or a house,” he says.

“In homes, we’re seeing Palm Springs and Hamptons-inspired designs with amazing gardens, high-end finishes and, of course, pools and huge outdoor entertaining areas to take advantage of our climate.”

Adrian Parsons, managing director of Gold Coast-based project marketing firm Total Property Group (TPG), has seen buyer demand for high-calibre luxury homes erupt recently.

He says the post-COVID migration has had a dramatic effect on the quality of properties coming to market in SEQ and, for developers, has even changed the direction of their development, with a focus on more space.

“Traditionally developers would be building smaller apartments here to suit investors, but we’ve well and truly transitioned from that with spacious, high-end luxury apartments designed for interstate residents and their families moving here permanently,” he says.

Adrian Parsons says demand for high quality homes has erupted in recent years.

“One of the things we’re seeing in new developments are these next level work-from-home facilities — we’re talking co-working spaces and business centres so people can still work from home, but they’re not confined to a home office space or spare bedroom.”

Not surprisingly, wellness features such as pools, saunas, steam rooms, gymnasiums and cold plunge pools are also on the must-have list.

“Many of these new leading landmark developments in SEQ are taking a lot of their cues from luxury hotels when it comes to amenities — think wellness zones, private dining rooms, residents’ bar areas and rooftop pool and BBQ areas,” says Parsons.

“The Gold Coast is maturing; it’s not embarrassing to want to live here anymore.”

Many luxury hotels only build on their gilded reputations with each passing decade. But others are less fortunate. Here are five long-gone grandes dames that fell from grace—and one that persists, but in a significantly diminished form.

The Proto-Marmont |

The Garden of Allah, Los Angeles

A magnet for celebrities, the Garden of Allah was once the scene-making equivalent of today’s Chateau Marmont. Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner’s affair allegedly started there and Humphrey Bogart lived in one of its bungalows for a time.

Crimean expat Alla Nazimova leased a grand home in Hollywood after World War I, but soon turned it into a hotel, where she prioritised glamorous clientele. Others risked being ejected by guards and a fearsome dog dubbed the Hound of the Baskervilles. Demolished in the 1950s, the site’s now a parking lot.

The Failed Follow-Up |

Hotel Astor, New York City

The Astor family hoped to repeat their success when they opened this sequel to their megahit Waldorf Astoria hotel in 1904. It became an anchor of the nascent Theater District, buzzy (and naughty) enough to inspire Cole Porter to write in “High Society”: “Have you heard that Mimsie Starr…got pinched in the Astor Bar?”

That bar soon gained another reputation. “Gentlemen who preferred the company of other gentlemen would meet in a certain section of the bar,” said travel expert Henry Harteveldt of consulting firm Atmosphere Research. By the 1960s, the hotel had lost its lustre and was demolished; the 54-storey One Astor Plaza skyscraper was built in its place.

The Island Playground |

Santa Carolina Hotel, Bazaruto Archipelago, Mozambique

In the 1950s, colonial officers around Africa treated Mozambique as an off-duty playground. They flocked, in particular, to the Santa Carolina, a five-star hotel on a gorgeous archipelago off the country’s southern coast.

Run by a Portuguese businessman and his wife, the resort included an airstrip that ferried visitors in and out. Ask locals why the place was eventually reduced to rubble, and some whisper that the couple were cursed—and that’s why no one wanted to take over when the business collapsed in the ’70s. Today, seeing the abandoned, crumbled ruins and murals bleached by the sun, it’s hard to dismiss their superstitions entirely.

The Tourism Gimmick |

Bali Hai Raiatea, French Polynesia

The overwater bungalow, a shorthand for barefoot luxury around the world, began in French Polynesia—but not with the locals. Instead, it was a marketing gimmick cooked up by a trio of rascally Americans. They moved to French Polynesia in the late 1950s, and soon tried to capitalise on the newly built international airport and a looming tourism boom.

That proved difficult because their five-room hotel on the island of Raiatea lacked a beach. They devised a fix: building rooms on pontoons above the water. They were an instant phenomenon, spreading around the islands and the world—per fan site OverwaterBungalows.net , there are now more than 9,000 worldwide, from the Maldives to Mexico. That first property, though, is no more.

The New England Holdout |

Poland Springs Resort, Poland, Maine

The Ricker family started out as innkeepers, running a stagecoach stop in Maine in the 1790s. When Hiram Ricker took over the operation, the family expanded into the business by which it would make its fortune: water. Thanks to savvy marketing, by the 1870s, doctors were prescribing Poland Spring mineral water and die-hards were making pilgrimages to the source.

The Rickers opened the Poland Spring House in 1876, and eventually expanded it to include one of the earliest resort-based golf courses in the country, a barber shop, dance studio and music hall. By the turn of the century, it was among the most glamorous resort complexes in New England.

Mismanagement eventually forced its sale in 1962, and both the water operation and hospitality holdings went through several owners and operators. While the water venture retains its prominence, the hotel has weathered less well, becoming a pleasant—but far from luxurious—mid-market resort. Former NYU hospitality professor Bjorn Hanson says attempts at upgrading over the decades have been futile. “I was a consultant to a developer in the 1970s to return the resort to its ‘former glory,’ but it never happened.”