Queensland will become Australia’s boomer hotspot by 2046.
Queensland will become Australia’s boomer hotspot as explosive growth sees over-65s populations surge by more than 10,000 in key suburbs over the next two decades.
The country’s ageing population is predicted to shape the future workforce, infrastructure and local business needs as suburbs dominated by young families evolve into age-diverse communities.
Caloundra Cay over 50s lifestyle village at Little Mountain’s Hemingway Country Club.
But it comes at a cost, with rental stress among retirees surging at nearly twice the rate of population growth.
Research company Informed Decisions crunched the numbers to reveal the suburbs set to record the biggest surge in over 65s with Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast leading the charge.
The beachfront suburb — currently home to 8,016 over-65s — was predicted to surge to 18,762 over-65s by 2046.
Retiree Ross Horsburgh and Shan Huang have recently bought an apartment in Jewel Private Residences in Surfers Paradise.
Maroochydore on the Sunshine Coast came second, predicted to jump by 9,732 retirees by 2046 to 15,279.
Third was Morayfield in Moreton Bay with a predicted population of 13,000 over-65s by 2046 — that’s 9,645 more than the current population.
Other suburbs tipped to be inundated with over-65s include Sunshine Coast hotpots Bells Creek and Landsborough as well as Caboolture, north of Brisbane.
“When you look at the suburb lists a lot of these places have existing populations — people attracted to the areas in the 1990s and they stay there and age in that place,” said Informed Decisions’ chief economist, Rob Hall.
“Then you’re also attracting retirement migration — people are casing out of these more expensive markets (including coastal Sydney) to take advantage of a better lifestyle in Queensland.”
MORE NEWS: Albo orders $3bn ADF sell off of 64 sites
Up to 400 new homes planned for Brisbane’s north
Tragedy to triumph: Why I hired a buyers agent
The suburbs set to record the biggest surge in over 65s in Queensland is Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast. Pictured is Jewel Private Residences.
With the predicted influx in retirees, the Retirement Living Council (RLC) has called for urgent Commonwealth Rent Assistance (CRA) reform as new data revealed rental stress among Queenslanders over 75 jumped by 118 per cent since 2013.
There is now 15,580 retirees struggling to pay rent, which far outpaces the cohort’s population growth of 59 per cent over the same time frame.
“This isn’t a red flag – it’s a siren, and even with CRA, 55,000 older Australians remain in rental stress, while without it, that figure would triple to 180,000,” RLC executive director Daniel Gannon said.
“This data reveals a deepening crisis in suburban Australia, where rental stress and housing shortages are colliding with an escalating care challenge for older Australians.”
New data reveals 15,580 retirees are struggling to pay rent in Queensland.
Mr Hall said as the over 65s age group surged in southeast Queensland, there would be more demand on health care services, health infrastructure and home care.
But, he said, there was a risk there wouldn’t be a workforce to provide the services needed.
“If you don’t have the workforce and local infrastructure, you see those places at risk,” he said.
“That’s a big challenge in many coastal areas, particularly the eastern seaboard since Covid and the escalation of house prices across those regions.
“That’s making it really hard for lower and moderate income groups in the health sector to be able to afford to move to those locations.”
Surfers Paradise, Maroochydore and Morayfield will be home to thousands of retirees by 2046.
While the retiree boom points to a lack of services, there is a silver lining with many new businesses opportunities set to keep pace with surge in over 65s, Mr Hall said.
“The upside that’s not spoke about are the new opportunities — health businesses, local tourism, financial services, pet services and pet insurance.
“The business mix starts to change and evolve to meet the changing demographic in the area.”
business mix starts to change and evolve to meet the changing demographic in the area.
Retirement Living Council executive director Daniel Gannon.
Mr Gannon said over 65s were choosing Queensland for lifestyle, climate and connection.
“These hotspots tell a clear story – older Australians are choosing walkable, well-serviced communities with beaches, connection and access to care.
“From Surfers Paradise to Cleveland, what unites these places is liveability.
“The real question isn’t whether these suburbs will age – it’s whether they’ll be planned well enough to cope.”
We can either plan for ageing now, or pay for it later, says Retirement Living Council executive director Daniel Gannon.
Mr Gannon said if housing, health and planning weren’t aligned, the system clogs and older Australians pay the price.
“When older populations cluster without the right housing and services, pressure lands squarely on aged care and hospitals.
“So, we can either plan for ageing now, or pay for it later through aged care bottlenecks, overcrowded hospitals and conga lines of ramped ambulances.
“We need planning systems that treat age-appropriate housing as essential infrastructure – not an afterthought.
“The reality is ageing isn’t the problem – failing to plan for it is.”
Informed Decisions’ research program considers overseas and internal migration patterns, birthrates and life expectancy, and current and future housing development as a local determinant of population growth patterns.
English (US) · 