Queensland is the only state to see a surge in people planning to buy investment property, according to a study conducted by Nielsen Media Research.
The research for the Wizard Home Loan’s Tomorrow’s Property Investors series shows the number of people in Queensland planning to buy investment property jumped by almost 40 per cent in the March 2005 quarter.
This goes against a national trend which has seen the number of people across the country planning to buy investment properties slump 11 per cent in the March quarter compared with the December 2004 quarter.
Wizard executive chairman Mark Bouris said the Queensland increase in demand was apparent across all age groups but was spearheaded by those aged between 25 and 39 years.
“This survey shows that Queensland is going against the national trend on the age count, with young people taking the lead when it comes to plans to invest in property,” Mr Bouris said.
He said strong fundamentals in employment, wages and interstate migration had combined to drive the growing interest in property investment.
Mr Bouris said he did not believe there would be another interest rate rise for a long time.
“My sense is that there is an equal chance of rates reducing or going up,” Mr Bouris said. “We need to stimulate growth here (in Australia) because we have capacity constraints that can hold back growth.
Mr Bouris said Queensland investors’ appetite for property had not yet been quelled.
“The place is more affordable. You would have to pay 50 per cent more in New South Wales for an investment property,” Mr Bouris said.
He said the rental market was also strong in Queensland.
Recent figures by the state’s Rental Tenancies Authority showed median weekly rents had risen throughout the state in the 12 months to March 2005.
Rents for three-bedroom houses increased from $245 to $260 across Brisbane.
Some regional areas saw particularly strong growth with Mount Isa’s median rental increasing from $200 to $240 and Mackay from $200 to $250.
Two-bedroom units also saw rents firming with a median of $240 across Brisbane, up from $220 the previous years.
Mackay saw unit rentals increase from a median of $140 a week to $160.
Thuringowa near Townsville saw two-bedroom unit rentals at $160 compared with $140 in the 12 months to 2004.
Mr Bouris said the overall picture to emerge from the Tomorrow’s Property Investors research was that the investor market had eased back to levels of two years ago.
“This survey shows clearly that there is not a single market of property investors,” he said.
“People are responding individually to their own particular requirements when it comes to plans to buy investment property.
“The mad rush is over.”
