Internal migration spurs Brisbane property boom

As a result of the city’s appealing nature, Lauren Jones, a local buyer’s agent, shared she’s “getting several calls per week from people based in Sydney and Melbourne who are thinking of moving to Brisbane”.

Brisbane remains highly seductive among Australian buyers, particularly those from southern neighbours NSW and Queensland for several reasons. A key driver of the city’s increased migration is its affordability, with Ms Jones noting cheaper housing has been the biggest driver of increased interstate enquiries.

According to CoreLogic’s September Home Value Index (HVI), the Queensland capital is the nation’s fourth most expensive housing market with a median price of around $761,000.

“Brisbane’s median property price is 31 per cent cheaper than Sydney’s,” Ms Jones noted. “These days, Brisbane is only 1.9 per cent cheaper than Melbourne, but you can get significantly closer to the city centre for the same budget.”

On top of saving a few pennies, she believes there are several lifestyle factors drawing southern residents north like steel to magnets.

“The other big reasons Sydney and Melbourne buyers give for wanting to move to Brisbane are weather and lifestyle,” she said. Adding buyers from these regions “love the fact they can have more space and spend more time outdoors”.

“The rise of work-from-home is also a factor because some of these relocators are able to keep their Sydney and Melbourne jobs and salaries when moving to Brisbane,” she added.

Ms Jones detailed how rising migration has impacted the city’s housing market, with “relocators injecting a lot of demand into the Brisbane property market”. According to CoreLogic, the city’s median home value jumped 3.9 per cent in the September quarter.

She labelled this as “enormous growth for a three-month period”. Moreover, she noted: “The city’s rental market is also feeling the pressure, with the vacancy rate at just 1.1 per cent and annual rental growth at 8.1 per cent.”

Taking a long-term view, and with the city set to host the 2032 Olympics, several reports have indicated population growth, whether through interstate or international arrivals, will continue in the coming years.

PRD’s chief economist Dr Diaswati Mardiasmo recently wondered how the city would be able to accommodate a projected 3 million population in five years’ time, especially considering current market conditions have “supply and demand deeply out of proportion”.

In August, Queensland Deputy Premier Steven Miles outlined the state government’s plan to tackle population growth.

“Because our population is growing, we need to get ready to build more of the Queensland we love,” he said. Put simply, the Palaszczuk government intends to construct more homes, including additional units, townhouses and terraces, to create more housing options.

“We are in our decade of opportunity. We have a strong economy. We have a 10-year pipeline of infrastructure projects in the lead up to and beyond Brisbane. And we are creating good, secure jobs in the key industries that will help us decarbonise,” Mr Miles added.

There are exciting times bubbling away in the Sunshine State, and while Ms Jones noted: “Interstate migration isn’t responsible for everything that’s currently happening with Brisbane prices and rents,” she concluded, “it’s certainly a significant contributor.”