A growing number of southerners are flocking to regional Queensland’s beachside towns in search of the next real estate hotspot

• Despite rising house prices in the Wide Bay region over 80 percent since 2020, experts say they’re still comparatively affordable.
• Regional house prices and rental markets are under pressure due to migration.
• Where do we go from here? People are looking for “the next Sunshine Coast” and discovering “hidden gems” like Bargara, Moore Park Beach, and Burnett Heads.

Property prices in a sleepy beachside town have soared by more than 80 percent in four years, but an analyst says it’s still “extraordinarily cheap” compared to those in capital cities.

Moore Park Beach in Bundaberg is five hours north of Brisbane, nestled between cane fields and the ocean.

Following a lifestyle change last year, Ms King, 28, and her husband are among the area’s newest residents.

Their mortgage in Brisbane was swapped for an “oasis” complete with kookaburras and a private beach.

“We found this beautiful little town at Moore Park Beach, just 20 minutes from Bundaberg, and found this beautiful house,” she said.

Price comparison

According to PropTrack data, regional Queensland is experiencing the strongest market since the pandemic onset, with home prices surging by 66.5 percent since 2020.

Wide Bay between Gympie and Bundaberg topped the list with values soaring by 80.5 percent.

More than 70 percent of house values rose in Ipswich, Logan-Beaudesert, and the Gold Coast as well.

The median house price in Bundaberg is $522,607, Gympie is $629,775 and Maryborough is $484,153, according to Corelogic.

There is a median price of $1,461,581 in Noosa, and a median price of $817,564 in Greater Brisbane.

As a result of the pandemic, coastal areas have experienced extraordinary growth, according to CoreLogic research director Tim Lawless.

There has been an increase of 82.5% in home values at Moore Park Beach – one of the more affordable coastal suburbs in the Wide Bay region.

In spite of the increase, Mr Lawless said coastal homes in the region were still affordable.

The median or house value at Moore Park Beach or Bargara or Innes Park is still well below $750,000, he said.

“Compare that to a coastal market around south-east Queensland and you’ll see that it’s extremely inexpensive.”

Increasing prices

Migration was a major factor putting pressure on the regional property market, as well as the rental market, although it had slowed in the wake of the pandemic.

Mr Lawless said Queensland is seeing a very strong influx of migrants from interstate as well as overseas.

Despite the fact that regional Queensland is mostly driven by interstate migration, overall population growth is still very strong in the region.”

According to him, there is not enough housing supply to meet demand.

According to Mr Lawless, the number of new homes being built is insufficient to accommodate the number of people moving to the state.

“This means we are seeing … constraints both in the purchase of homes, as well as in the rental of homes, since rental rates are also rising consistently and rapidly.”

A Bundaberg real estate agent said the local market was attracting buyers who had sold and made profits elsewhere, and were seeking a beachside lifestyle at a lower cost.

He said they were looking for the next Sunshine Coast.

The little hidden gems of Bargara, Moore Park Beach and Burnett Heads are starting to gain popularity.”

A traditional characteristic of the region is its “slow and steady” market pace, which appears to be returning after the pandemic boom.

Hotspot of the future on the coast

The Sunshine Coast’s James Jenkinson has purchased land at Bundaberg’s Innes Park and plans to build a house and relocate with his family.

Coastal lifestyle and planned infrastructure projects, including the new $1.2 billion Bundaberg Hospital, attracted the owner of a pipeline plumbing construction company.

In the early 1990s, he compared Bundaberg to areas along the Sunshine Coast.

Initially, we intend to move to a rental and then start building.

The only negative I can mention is finding rentals in Bargara can be a little challenging.”

Beaches instead of Brisbane

They built their first home in Mango Hill before the pandemic and sold it last year to move to Moore Park Beach.

The experience of living here has been absolutely amazing, she said.

My backyard does not normally have turtles laying eggs, but I saw them laying eggs last December.

Through a “security swap”, Ms King said they were able to transfer their mortgage with their lender.

Mortgagees can keep their existing loan structure by changing the property used as collateral.

Our mortgage was not changed, but since the property we bought in Moore Park Beach was at a lower value than what we sold in Mango Hill, we were able to keep the same mortgage,” she said.

Despite the fact that we are not better off financially, we are in a better physical, mental, and emotional place.”