Brisbane is now tougher for first homebuyers to break into than Sydney, with fewer properties under $500,000 than the world’s second most expensive city.
In a stunning reversal for a ‘big country town’ that was once the great escape for priced-out Sydneysiders, new data reveals just 3.2 per cent of homes sold for less than half a million dollars in Greater Brisbane over the past year, compared with 4 per cent in Greater Sydney.
The figures from property data firm, Foundit, found Sydney may be more expensive overall, but Brisbane is now the harder city to break into at the bottom end of the market — a reality almost unthinkable just a few years ago.
This house at 1/12 Arac St, Woodridge, is on the market for offers over $499,000.
More than 37 per cent of Brisbane homes now sell for over $1 million, according to Foundit’s analysis of agent-advised residential sales recorded in 2025.
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Of the few sub-$500,000 homes that are available, most of them are apartments or townhomes, with standalone houses at that price point having all but vanished.
Of the suburbs with the most stock under $500,000, Brisbane’s CBD accounts for more than one in eight sales.
A studio apartment in this building in Margaret St in Brisbane’s CBD is on the market for offers over $270,000.
Woodridge and Beenleigh follow due to their supply of older, affordable houses, and then Macleay Island, which points to lifestyle-driven affordability.
Foundit head of research Kent Lardner said even he was surprised to discover how unaffordable Brisbane had become for entry-level buyers.
“I remember when I could buy a property up there for $115,000,” Mr Lardner said. “When you look at the numbers, it does slap you in the face.
Foundit head of research Kent Lardner.
“Historically, you could buy something for 20 per cent — worst case — to 50 per cent less than Sydney property. Obviously, that gap has gone.”
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Mr Lardner said Brisbane had the least amount of properties priced under $500,000 of any capital city in the nation because of slower levels of unit construction and “rampant investor demand”.
“The only path Brisbane really has out of this situation is to do what Melbourne did and shrink lot sizes and build a lot more units,” he said.
“This will take time. Melbourne did this 20 to 30 years ago and there are now a lot more opportunities to get into the market for cheaper. In the meantime, Brisbane will remain much more unaffordable.”
This four-bedroom house at 8 Amaroo St, Morayfield, is on the market for offers over $800,000.
It was particularly problematic for Brisbane first homebuyers, who were facing fewer low-priced choices than those trying to crack the Sydney market.
“The under $1m market is very, very much overheated,” he said. “All the government incentives, and heavily driven by wages, not wealth, so it’s a vulnerable market.
“The biggest problem I’ve got is there’s an abundance of suburbs that have crept up to the $750,000 price point, where in reality, they probably should be at $600,000 or lower. We’ve found this rush into the market at the affordable end is creating a very different heat.”
PRD chief economist Diaswati Mardiasmo said the days of Brisbane being more affordable than Sydney to buy property were over — for units at least.
Dr Diaswati ‘Asti’ Mardiasmo, chief economist with PRD.
Dr Mardiasmo said the median unit price in Brisbane had risen six times that of Sydney’s in just the past 12 months — 18 per cent compared to 3 per cent.
“We have lost our edge when it comes to affordability and the reason why is simply supply,” she said.
“We don’t have enough houses, so everyone’s running to units. It’s also become more acceptable for families to live in units.
“Sydney has more units at a cheaper price and its market softened in 2024 while our market kept going up and up and up.”
This four-bedroom house at 46 Tindle St, Redbank Plains, is on the market for offers over $859,000.
Dr Mardiasmo said about 90 per cent of the new housing stock being built in Brisbane comprised units or townhomes — not detached houses, so the house undersupply would continue.
And, she doubts this month’s interest rate hike will make a difference to affordability at the lower-end of the market.
“If we’re talking three or more (hikes), we’ll start to see that (price) band pull back,” she said. “At two (rate rises), people will still say; ‘it’s either now or never, so we’ll take our chances’.”
Some good news to emerge from the data was that Brisbane is the strongest performer nationally at the $750,000 level, with 34 per cent of homes sold in the past year priced below this threshold — opening access to a broader suburban market that still includes some detached houses.
This four-bedroom house at 35 Grace Cres, Narangba, is on the market for offers over $900,000.
The suburbs with the most stock priced between $750,000 and $1m include Redbank Plains, Morayfield, Narangba and Springfield Lakes.
“This is Brisbane’s core market,” Mr Lardner said. “Unlike Melbourne, where sub-$750,000 buying often keeps buyers close to the city in smaller dwellings, Brisbane trades distance for space.”
Even in the $1m to $1.5m price bracket, which Mr Larder describes as Brisbane’s “true middle market”, the suburbs with the most stock are 15km to 25km outside the CBD, such as Narangba, North Lakes, Shailer Park, Moorooka, and Albany Creek.
This four-bedroom house at 13 Medinah Circuit, North Lakes, is on the market for offers over $949,000.
Above $1.5m, activity tightens sharply around Brisbane’s inner and middle-ring prestige suburbs.
“Camp Hill stands out across both the $1.5m to $2.0m-plus brackets, indicating consistent depth rather than isolated high-end sales,” Mr Lardner said.
“Bulimba, New Farm and Tarragindi round out the top end, underscoring Brisbane’s preference for character homes and land-backed value.”
REA Group economist Angus Moore said Brisbane had become “a lot less affordable” than it used to be.
“Queensland is now the third least affordable state in Australia, coming from being one of the most affordable states coming into the pandemic,” Mr Moore said. “That really just reflects the fact that prices have doubled since the start of 2020.”
This five-bedroom house at 24 Lancewood Dr, Albany Creek, is on the market for offers over $1.75m
Mr Moore said net interstate migration into Queensland was continuing, which was contributing to housing demand.
“To some extent, people coming from Sydney, potentially with more wealth or more income behind them, can make it harder for locals (to buy in Brisbane),” he said.
Colliers residential director Andrew Scriven said Brisbane’s townhome market was a sector that was growing significantly as the population grew and urban sprawl became less sustainable.
“There’s definitely a panic from buyers who’ve been pushed out of the house market but still want to stay in well-connected suburbs with great schools and amenities,” Mr Scriven said. “They are worried they will miss out as property prices continually rise.”
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