House prices tripled in five years in Queensland’s Sunshine Beach

These high-profile sales gave buyers confidence in the suburb, said listing agent Kathy Wise of Sunshine Beach Real Estate. However, it was the increase in demand, the low supply and the privileged location, surrounded by the beach and the national park, that had been the driving force of the market.

“The demand for sea changers and the demand for vacation homes increased, [buyers] I just wanted a piece of Sunshine in whatever format they could get their hands on,” he said.

There was also a lot of local movement and homeowners looking to cash in on rapidly rising prices, Wise said. He sold three houses twice during the pandemic, one of which was a three-bedroom apartment that he sold for $805,000 in 2020 and then recently resold for $2 million. It was renovated between sales.

While a $3 million budget once guaranteed a home with an ocean view, buyers were now likely to get a tear-down or fixer-upper home, with ocean views, near the village, Wise said. Or a renovated property further from the beach but within walking distance.

The market had slowed down a bit, Wise said, but was still seeing strong demand from local and interstate buyers. She expected the market to see a good end to the year, before leveling off.

Charging

“It’s not 2021 … but honestly I don’t know how long both buyers and real estate agents were able to keep up that pace, it was very hectic,” he said.

Prices across the Noosa region have fallen back, with an average drop of 4.8 per cent during the June quarter. Powell noted that while cash buyers were less likely to be affected by rapidly rising interest rates, higher price markets tended to cause recessions and have larger price swings.

Sales agent Tom Offermann of Tom Offermann Real Estate said demand for homes in Sunshine Beach continued to outstrip supply and had not yet been affected by rising interest rates.

“We have a backlog of buyers who are still waiting … but the number of available properties is extremely low,” he said. “Most people say if they sell they won’t come back in, or ask where they would go. It’s very much a final destination for a lot of people, something they’ve aspired to for a long time.”

The suburb was no stranger to rapid price growth, Offermann said, with prices typically doubling every five years. But the rise of remote work increased demand from out-of-area buyers, who make up about 60 percent of buyers. More sea changes left fewer empty houses, although holiday homes were also in strong demand.

“The proportion of discretionary properties has been reduced. You see more lights on at night, and there aren’t as many empty houses as more people buy properties and move into them permanently, but it’s reducing the properties available to rent,” he said.

About 31 percent of people in the suburb were renting last year, according to the latest census data, down from 42 percent in 2011. Meanwhile, the share of vacant homes fell from about 41 percent to 35, 5 percent.

Rents have risen rapidly, with the median rent for a home rising by nearly two-thirds to $900 a week over the five years through June, Domain data shows. Unit rents increased about 51 percent to $650. On census night, 46 percent of rental households spent more than 30 percent of their income on rent, and the proportion more than doubled in five years.