Australia’s luxury housing market has undergone a dramatic geographic shift over the past decade, with Queensland’s coastal cities overtaking traditional powerhouses as the country’s fastest-growing high-end property markets, according to a new analysis by Ray White Group.
Ray White Group economist Atom Go Tian, whose analysis measured luxury through the 95th percentile of property prices – the point at which only 5% of homes in a given market trade higher – found the national luxury house threshold now sits at $2.75 million, up 80% over the past decade.
The report found Queensland’s coastal markets led the nation’s growth over 10 years. The Sunshine Coast recorded the highest luxury house price growth at 159%, bringing its threshold to $2.93 million, followed by the Gold Coast at 152% to $3.29 million, and Brisbane at 133% to $2.49 million.
In the unit market, the Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast also topped the table, growing 130% to $2.27 million and 125% to $2.13 million, respectively – both surpassing Sydney’s luxury unit threshold of $2.23 million.
Sydney remains the country’s most expensive luxury house market, with the top 5% of homes trading above $4.79 million. The city recorded 78% growth in luxury house prices over the decade.
Melbourne, however, recorded the weakest performance among the major markets. Its luxury house threshold grew just 42% over 10 years, from $1.82 million to $2.58 million.
In 2016, Melbourne’s luxury threshold sat roughly 70% above Brisbane’s and 46% above Perth’s. Today, Brisbane stands at $2.49 million, Perth at $2.48 million, and Melbourne at $2.58 million, leaving the three cities separated by less than $100,000.
The analysis attributed the fastest-growing markets to a shift in buyer values. “Lifestyle became a legitimate substitute for proximity to a CBD,” the report stated, noting that buyers from interstate and overseas arrived seeking not just a property, but a pace of life.
Go Tian’s report also noted that the shift in buyer preference was reflected in individual transactions, citing cases where buyers moved from higher-priced Sydney properties to lower-priced Queensland homes, describing it not as trading down but as a deliberate lifestyle choice.
Adelaide closed the gap rapidly, with luxury house prices rising 123.6% to $2.08 million, matching Canberra. Darwin recorded minimal change, with its luxury unit price rising just 1% over 10 years to $810,000.
Data used in the report was sourced from Neoval.
