QLD Brisbane my top picks and why

Hi All,

First of all congratulations on a fantastic forum, been browsing awhile now, but decided to join up and contribute, as myself like many here agree that property is certainly a fantastic "vehicle" to increase your wealth.

I've noticed there's a lot of interest in Brisbane and for good reason, the weather, fantastic beach's close by, laid back lifestyle, less traffic than Sydney, and a better Origin team of course (cough cough) Myself I've lived here all my life and heavily invested into Brisbane real estate and only Brisbane, why? I'll only invest into an area I know well, also I manage all my properties myself so need to be driving distance. Brisbane has markets within markets, and by knowing these I believe you can make a more informed decision on buying a property to make most capital gain.
Some examples:

• Where I live in 8 Mile Plains 2 streets back always sells for a discounted price as it's near a creek and has power lines close by, Asian demographic don't like to live near either
• My brother owns a property in Acacia Ridge with a pool, pools generally attract a premium in price and rental in certain suburbs, however not in Acacia Ridge due to the demographics.
• Public transport nodes such as trains, I believe don't have as much price driver growth in certain suburbs, more noticeably Logan - I would argue how many Logan residents need to commute into the city?
• Contrary to popular belief here, no one from Brisbane visits Redcliffe, unless you live there
• Buying a house in Brisbane will always be the preferred option over a unit, the only exception IMO would be New Farm.

I could keep going on and on but want to keep the post short, also I will disclose I own property in the following areas: Eight Mile Plains, Rochedale South, Algester, Woodridge and Acacia Ridge.

Lastly my posts are general in nature and my opinion only, please do your own DD and research before making your own decisions, however if you need any help on ANY Brisbane suburbs feel free to ask

 

What do you think of Cleveland ?

 

Thanks for sharing and welcome to the forum @seanbrissy! For me from Sydney, it sounds like you know what you are doing.
Looking forward to more posts from you.

 

Please do go on and on!

(Didn't you notice we have a dedicated thread for Brisbanites spruiking their own backyard? )

Thanks for contributing

 

Hi Steady,
Cleveland is nice, close to the bay with a few retirees. However it is quite far out from the CBD , and it's hard to access by any major freeways. If your looking at the bayside area IMO Wynnum west would be a better buy which is much closer with similar prices, and is close to the Gateway freeway.

 

Don't worry I intend to

 

Thanks for the welcome

 

Interesting to hear your take on Logan, @seanbrissy , especially about the locality to public transport. From reading here for a while, it seems most people have bought based on cash flow i.e. CF+ properties and those with a potential quick equity add e.g. 2 storey legal height that can be built in underneath.

For anyone considering buy and hold and some good CG, what's your take on Logan gentrifying to the point where public transport locality will command a premium? Also, I notice there's a bit of a shopping strip near the station with fast foods and the like; is this convenient and utilised or a bit of a ghost town?

Cheers

 

Hi Jeah,

I totally agree Logan is fantastic from a yield point of view, as I have one in Woodridge myself which is dual let. I know my tenants both have cars and are employed locally, for them the train line has no bearing or significance, don't get me wrong as there are many who would use it, but you also got to understand trains in Brisbane service only certain areas which unless they pass through the particular suburb you need to get to, you don't use them. I lived here all my life and rarely would I use a train. As for the shops near the train line, they've been there for years.

 

Why the distinction for New Farm?

 

Cool, thanks. I'm kind of done buying at the moment anyway due to moving and having to fund a new PPOR build, but I have a work colleague looking. Once the new place is built I'm going to need a creative broker. The servicing part won't be a problem but the equity will.

 

Put simply lack of land, and what new developments take place usually attract a premium price. Have you seen Moray street of late? all the old brick veneer units have been knocked down to make way for premium unit blocks, most of these command upwards of 1mil plus. Head 5 minutes into the CBD or the valley and you wouldn't touch any of these new developments.....

 

Great insight you are giving us @seanbrissy. I own an old unit in Balmoral what do you think of the area? I recently new the military barracks in Bulimba (suburb next door) are going to be transformed into a lifestyle area with low density buildings being built an exit to the water.

 

Hi RM 1827,

I'm defiantly not saying a unit in Brisbane is a bad investment, if you were to chose one I'd look at the following features:

• Balcony - an absolute must in Brisbane with our weather and lifestyle, without one you feel claustrophobic
• Avoid new developments in the CBD and valley
• Older style is much better, the larger the better
• Unique style or art deco style units (depending on location) Woolstore development in Teneriffe is an example, and some terrace houses in New Farm

You certainly can't go wrong in Balmoral from a location point of view, and yes I like the new developments going on there.

 

Nice post and glad you have crossed the river Styx from lurker to poster.
Regarding your last point, I would partly agree and partly disagree. Historically, yes the preference for brisbanites has been houses, but there is a greater acceptance and push to accommodate unit living as can be seen by this article:
http://www.domain.com.au/news/more-brisbane-residents-are-choosing-apartment-living-20150911-gjj5c4/
As the article suggests, its not just young singles considering these...
The embracement of apartment living is a trend and one that whilst not advanced/far along as Sydney, will continue in Brisbane.

...and as @Bran said, we have a hype Brisbane thread, just made it to 100 pages. We feel that 100 pages is an unsatisfactory number and call on brisbanites to contribute to that thread.

 

I'm with @seanbrissy on going for a house over unit. Because in the future, there will be relatively few well located houses compared to the number of apartments. New apartments can keep coming onto the market with relative ease, pushing down the price of units (more to choose from), but new well located houses on good land, less so. Plus those houses may be removed to make way for the apartments. So I'd go house over unit if you can afford a good location.

 

thanks Sean, agree with your comment on Cleveland. east side of bloomfield road, there are lots of old houses been knocked and rebuilt, looks like the area is going through gentrification some sorts. bought into the area, hope I could do well.

 

Hi JDP,
I agree, there is a shift within some parts the community to unit living, and there will always be profits to made if you buy well. I'm sure when I turn 50 and don't want to mow lawns I may be inclined to think this way as well however I'm still in acquisition phase and capital gains is my priority, and in my opinion buying houses in the Brisbane market is the better "driver" to these means.

 

In the short term- I would say houses will show the higher CG. In the medium- long term, better located units- location usually wins in the long term. Its all constrained by budget of course.
In the accumulation phase, my suggestion would be not to sacrifice too much location for land. I would try and get a bit of both rather an a lot of either for the budget.

 

I would also point out most in SEQ really try to avoid public transport as much as possible, and numbers have been falling over the last couple of years due to fare increases. Usually its pretty similar costs to drive + park as catch p/t (especially if you can share with a partner who works in the same area). For the most part driving is also quicker..

Things aren't quite as bad as Sydney or Melbourne where driving is no longer much of an option on the morning commute for most people.