A suburb we are targeting at the moment is The Gap in Brisbane, a leafy blue-chip residential suburb on the foothills of the Mt Coot-tha National forest and just 10kms from the Brisbane CBD. Why? It is best explained by an excerpt from an Urbis Research Report on the suburb:
“The Gap’s shortage of new residential supply may continue because of the limited new supply (154 dwellings) delivered over the past five years. This, paired with only 50 new dwellings currently under construction and 150 new dwellings identified in future supply, has positioned The Gap as one of Brisbane’s more under-supplied residential markets”
In short, high demand with limited past, current and future supply. Vacancy rates for the postcode of 2.9% according to SQM Research. As of writing this review, one research house puts the vacancy rate at 0.78% and from my research into rentals, I would tend to think this is more accurate for the suburb.
The Gap has many premium private and public schools. Why do I mentioned government schools? There is a major demographic shift happening. We are experiencing higher rates of immigration from Asia, particularly China and also India. Recent citizens and also those here on the new 10 year student visas have a preference for quality government schools. When I immigrated to Australia as a 1 year old, my parents sought out quality Catholic Schools for myself and my siblings. Although private schools are still in demand, there are massive premiums being paid in suburbs for properties within the catchment of quality government schools. For the Sydney siders, think Cherrybrook Technical College and the premiums paid for smaller house and land package type homes compared to more premium properties in the surrounding suburbs. James Ruse Agricultural College is another example and my home suburb of Carlingford. A recent announcement in Melbourne is the reopening of a government school in Preston. That is another suburb I have my eye on at the moment which has potential for substantial gentrification in addition to excellent transport services. More about that another time.
When we look at the demographic makeup of Preston, it shows a prevalence of white collar couples with children (small family size as the average household size is 2.6 persons) and childless couples. To match this, I would look for 3-4 bedroom properties that are low maintenance for professionals. In short, 3 bedroom apartments (almost non-existent in the suburb), 3-4 bedroom townhouses with a minimum of 2 car garage and existing detached houses. Yes, an apartment would rent its socks off, but for capital growth and desirability on resale, owner occupiers and investors will desire the products types mentioned above.
Vacancy Rates for Postcode 4061 – Source SQM Research
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