Queensland buyers look further afield
Broadly across Queensland, young buyers have been increasingly active in recent years, with owner-occupier purchases by 20–29-year-olds up 67% between FY21 and FY26 compared to a 46% increase nationally.
Markwell said one of the most interesting shifts in Queensland was the growing role of buyers purchasing properties in outer-metro and regional areas beyond the state’s traditional population centres.
“This points to a home buying market that is opening to a broader mix of buyers across more parts of the state,” she said.
“Houses also account for a larger share of owner-occupier purchases in Queensland than they do nationally. Together, these trends suggest many buyers are looking further afield in search of affordable detached housing, which highlights the importance of delivering the right housing in the right locations to meet growing demand.”
Queensland’s strong population growth has supported housing demand, with the state adding 582,000 people between the December quarter of 2019 and the December quarter of 2025. While population growth is moderating, housing construction remains comparatively strong. Queensland dwelling investment rose 16.8% over the year to the June quarter, while trend dwelling approvals increased 18.2% over the year to August.
Belinda Allen, Head of Australian Economics at Commonwealth Bank, said: “Queensland’s strong population growth has been an important driver of housing demand since the pandemic. Housing construction is responding, with the state leading the country for dwelling investment and recording strong growth in building approvals. However, the sharp rise in prices has reduced affordability and the housing market is now easing.”
Affordability remains a draw in Cairns
Twomey Schriber residential sales agent Karl Latham said his agency believed the Cairns property market peaked late last year, when buyers’ agents buying on behalf of investors left the market.
He said the buyers’ agents were just starting to come back now, attracted to the 0.7% vacancy rate, but in general houses were taking a bit longer to sell than previously.
On the affordability front, he said there were “multiple properties you can buy in Cairns under $650,000”, referring to houses, while units were still quite affordable.
“Units have kicked off, so the entry level half-duplexes, villas, units are quite popular at the moment,” he said.
“That’s very hot because you can purchase sub-600, even sub-500 still. And if you’re lucky, you can still get a two bed, one bath unit for under $400,000.”
Latham said he believed there was a two-speed economy operating in Cairns at the moment, with tradespeople doing very well, while discretionary spending was down, impacting businesses such as restaurants and car dealerships.
This article is part of The Home Front series supported by Commonwealth Bank and was first published by The Courier Mail.
