The best suburbs for investment opportunities in Australia in 2025

If you’re a first homebuyer, owner/occupier or investor, you might feel that the property market is slim pickings in some of your favourite city suburbs. Either there’s no supply or the reserve is well above your budget threshold. However, for those property-savvy individuals prepared to look harder, there’s a growing number of suburbs in Australia’s major cities that are proving to be great investment opportunities…

—…you just need to know where to find them.

Independently-owned real estate agency, Little Real Estate, has released its annual report for the best Australian suburbs for investing. Investors searching for affordability, cash flow, and capital growth potential are being encouraged to consider regional locations, including four in Queensland.

“In 2024, we anticipate a surge in property prices fuelled by the relentless demand for housing outpacing the available supply,” says Little Real Estate executive general manager of sales, James Kirkland. “An exceptionally strong rental market, coupled with a shortage of housing, continues to exert upward pressure on house prices nationwide.”

Real estate analyst Hotspotting’s National Top 10 Positive Cashflow Hotspots echoes the findings of Little Real Estate’s annual report. Its analysis found that Queensland locations showed exponential capital growth, with the Sunshine State securing half of the top 10 locations.

“Cash flow has become increasingly important over the past two years, given the much higher mortgage repayments in play,” says Hotspotting director, Terry Ryder. “It is imperative that investors seek out areas that also offer capital growth prospects, often due to their booming local economies across a diverse range of industries.”

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Which location is best for a property investment?

It depends! According to Little Real Estate, in 2024, the Sydney suburbs of Wiley Park and Kensington come out on top, along with Caloundra West and Southport in South East Queensland, and Carlton and Moonee Ponds in Melbourne.

What is the most in-demand suburb in Sydney?

The property market is certainly inflated in Sydney in comparison to other states but investors can still find some gems in certain pockets of the city. Take Penrith, for example. According to REA data, the average cost of a unit in Penrith costs $540,000, with a rental yield of 4.3%.

Which state is best for investment property in Australia?

It’s hard to go past Queensland as one of Australia’s best states for investment properties. With four out of ten suburbs in Queensland appearing in Little Real Estate’s annual report—including Southport, Caloundra West, Coomera and Bulimba—Queensland and its surrounding suburbs, typically regional, are presenting as great investment opportunities.

“Whether you’re an investor, a family looking for a new home, or a professional seeking the ideal work-life balance, these suburbs are the ones to watch for growth and potential in the upcoming year,” says Kirkland.

What is the fastest growing suburb in Australia?

According to Smart Property Investment, the fastest growing suburb in Australia is Chelmer, Queensland – a south-western suburb in the city of Brisbane, with a quarterly price growth of 29.33 per ent. This is followed closely by Frenchs Forrest in NSW, and Greenmount in Queensland.

Byron Bay’s most compelling homes have always taken their cues from the climate. They open to the breeze, dissolve the boundary between inside and out and use tropical landscaping to create privacy without shutting out the natural world.

At 17 Kendall Street, those familiar coastal ideas have been elevated into something more architectural.

The five-bedroom residence is designed around a spectacular open-air courtyard, creating a private internal landscape where glass, stone, timber and water meet. Floor-to-ceiling glazing draws natural light into the interiors while framing the heated swimming pool and established tropical gardens from multiple points within the home.

The home was originally built in 2016, but underwent a major renovation last year following its $5.3 million sale in 2023. Sotheby’s Byron Bay agent Will Phillips has a $15 million price guide.

The transformation focused on both the home’s scale and its level of detail. Soaring voids and bold architectural forms create drama, but the material palette keeps the atmosphere warm. Rich timber, natural stone and handcrafted finishes temper the contemporary lines, allowing the residence to feel calm rather than imposing.

A sculptural spiral staircase forms the architectural centrepiece, connecting the home’s different spaces while providing a strong visual counterpoint to the horizontal lines of the courtyard and pool.

The planning is centred on connection. Multiple living and entertaining areas open to covered terraces, enabling the house to expand and contract according to the occasion. Smaller spaces support quiet family life, while the principal living zones and alfresco areas can accommodate considerably larger gatherings.

At the centre, the courtyard operates as more than an impressive arrival feature. It brings light and garden views deep into the plan, provides separation between the home’s different wings and creates a protected outdoor environment for year-round living.

Accommodation comprises five generously proportioned bedroom suites supported by five designer bathrooms. Their distribution through the residence gives family members and guests a greater sense of privacy, while the tropical outlook maintains a consistent connection between rooms.

Wellness Wing

The home’s most distinctive inclusion may be its dedicated wellness wing.

A private sauna, gym, Zen room and traditional Japanese soaking bath combine to create a retreat within the retreat. Rather than treating wellness as a single-purpose gym placed in a leftover room, the design gives it a dedicated sequence of spaces intended to support exercise, recovery and quiet.

The Japanese soaking bath is especially appropriate to the home’s broader architecture. Compact, deep and designed for immersion rather than conventional bathing, it complements the restraint of the Zen room and the calming views into the garden.

Outside, the heated pool and covered dining terraces provide the more social side of resort living. Tropical landscaping creates privacy around the residence, while the courtyard design allows greenery to remain visible throughout much of the interior.

Belongil Boom

The location adds another dimension to the property. Kendall Street sits near the Belongil side of Byron Bay, within walking distance of Belongil Beach and local dining including Belongil Bistro, Treehouse, Féu and the town centre’s broader collection of cafés, restaurants and boutiques.

That northern pocket is increasingly emerging as a prestige counterweight to Wategos and the tightly held Marine Parade strip at the opposite end of Byron Bay.

Much of the most visible investment has centred on nearby Border Street and the Belongil beachfront. Hospitality billionaire Justin Hemmes has assembled four residential holdings in the neighbourhood at a reported combined cost of about $45 million. His acquisitions include a beachfront holding bought for $16 million in 2023 and a subsequent creek-front purchase.

The Block judge and interior designer Darren Palmer and his husband, Olivier Duvillard, have also moved into the precinct, paying $4.2 million for an original home with creek views.

Luxury developer and builder GRAYA has made an even larger commitment. The Brisbane group acquired a substantial Border Street beachfront site for about $20.65 million in 2024, with plans for a major trophy-home project. Part of that holding was subsequently sold in a transaction that underlined how dramatically land values have moved.

The strongest evidence came from Chemist Warehouse director Damien Gance and his wife, Sasha Robertson. The couple paid $33.5 million in cash for the beachfront residence Malia, setting a Byron Bay house-price record and surpassing the $30 million sale of Watermark at Wategos in 2023. They then reportedly spent another $20 million securing the neighbouring vacant parcel, taking their combined Belongil investment to $53.5 million.

Those transactions do not make Kendall Street directly comparable with absolute beachfront property. They do, however, illustrate the growing weight of capital and attention shifting towards Byron Bay’s northern edge.

For decades, Marine Parade at Wategos has been the region’s clearest shorthand for trophy property. Border Street and the wider Belongil precinct are now building a comparable identity, supported by larger holdings, beachfront scarcity and an expanding concentration of prominent owners.

Property details

Address: 17 Kendall Street, Byron Bay, NSW
Location: Near Belongil Beach and Byron Bay town centre
Original construction: 2016
Last sale: $5.3 million in 2023
Renovation: Major renovation completed in 2025
Current price guide: $15 million
Bedrooms: Five
Bathrooms: Five
Key features: Central open-air courtyard, heated swimming pool, tropical landscaping and multiple indoor-outdoor living areas
Wellness facilities: Sauna, Zen room, gym and traditional Japanese soaking bath
Nearby: Belongil Beach, Belongil Bistro, Féu and Treehouse