Why Kearneys Spring is the suburb on many investors’ lips

According to data from CoreLogic, the suburb, which lies just south of central Toowoomba, has performed exceptionally in a number of key investment metrics. Despite interest rates rising for much of the last 12 months, causing a market downturn that was at one stage compared to the global financial crisis, home prices in Kearneys Spring soared 20.1 per cent.

Alongside this increased value uptick, investors have enjoyed gross rental yields of approximately 4.6 per cent, while median rents in the region sit at just under $500.

While 9,000 residents call Kearneys Spring home, its position within Toowoomba means it can expect an influx of new residents in coming years, with the region’s population expected to skyrocket to around 230,000 by 2050.

Speaking to SPI earlier this year, Toby Sandell, property partner at The Agency Toowoomba, revealed supply in the region is failing to match current demand, with a major influx of the city’s newest residents arriving from NSW and Victoria, where they’re “priced out of the market”.

“It [the Toowoomba market] is acutely understocked with a disproportionate amount of buyers to sellers, driven by a lower price point and a tight rental market,” he said.

Adding to this interstate interest is a steady stream of South-East Queensland buyers flocking to the region two hours shy of state capital Brisbane from the state capital, the nearby Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast, and “country buyers from western Queensland selling their farms and retiring or moving professionally to Toowoomba”, noted Mr Sandell.

His message is clear, insisting that “supply is not keeping up to demand”. According to CoreLogic, the median home value in the region is approximately $528,000, placing it at the higher end of the regional price point spectrum in SPI’s Fast 50 report, while SQM Research has the city’s vacancy rate at 1 per cent for April 2023.

Not only is Toowoomba a “quality town to live in and a cheaper alternative to the likes of Brisbane”, as Mr Sandell put it, but it also boasts a number of key commercial infrastructure projects that increase its appeal to investors and prospective residents.

According to Hotspotting, Queensland’s second-largest regional economy will be strengthened in coming years due to an influx of major projects that will further cement Toowoomba’s position on the national radar.

The region’s inclusion in Brisbane’s successful bid to host the 2032 Olympics and the presence of Wellcamp Airport already make it an attractive proposition; however, Hotspotting director, Terry Ryder, noted the $1.6 billion Toowoomba Second Range Crossing and $15 billion Inland Rail Link are “helping to cement the city as a national recognised intermodal transport hub”.

For these reasons, as well as the sturdy, lengthy performance of the region’s property market, Kearneys Springs was included in the prestigious Smart Property Investment Fast 50 ranking for 2024, making it one suburb on every investor’s watch list.

To see which others made the Smart Property Investment Fast 50 2024 report, click here.