With Queensland’s property growth shooting past the national average, Emilie Mahony and Jordan Routledge decided to avoid the auction craze and build a place themselves.
After buying a three-bedroom townhouse before the huge price hikes post-Covid, Ms Mahony wanted to upgrade to a larger home for when they have kids.
But when she saw the “extortionately priced” homes on the market, she felt the better option was to find a patch of land and build something to suit her needs.
“I feel like prices are just gonna keep going up – I don’t think there’s gonna be any turning back,” she said.
“We felt like we could get more value for our money, and get something that we wanted.”
Amid rising prices across Queensland, Emilie Mahony and Jordan Routledge decided building a house was a cheaper way to get the lifestyle they want. Picture: Patrick Woods
New data from PropTrack showed Queensland’s property market has had an average annual growth of 13.65 per cent, outpacing the national average of 6.77 per cent.
Brisbane’s outer suburbs saw particularly large spikes in price, with people fighting for a chance at an entry-level house out of the city.
Ms Mahony’s four-bedroom home is currently being built with Creation Homes in the Sage estate in Burpengary.
Prices have spiked so much that the land Ms Mahony built on alone cost more than her last townhouse. Picture: Patrick Woods
Located in Moreton Bay, Burpengary’s changing property market saw the suburb’s median house price rise by 10.7 per cent in the past year.
Ms Mahony, whose townhouse was $380,000 when she bought it, decided building a home would be cheaper for her family in the long run – but even the 500 square metres of land alone was $410,000.
“That’s more than my entire house,” she said. “A couple of years ago, I’d have been able to build the house and buy the land for $410,000.”
The home is being built in the Sage Burpengary estate, for a total value of $860,000 – just below Brisbane’s median price. Picture: Wayne Sorensen
The total land and build ended up priced at around $860,000: $10,000 less than Brisbane’s current median price.
“We did have to adjust our expectations with this house,” she said. “We originally wanted bigger land but we were getting priced out of everywhere, with what we were willing to spend.”
Ms Mahony advised future home buyers to work closely with a financial broker to understand what they could afford.
“A lot of people are going to have to reeevaluate what they need vs. what they want,” she said, “[but] you don’t know what you can do until you actually sit down with someone.”
The couple had to adjust their expectations with the land, but managed to get a build they actually wanted instead of spending too much on a pre-built house. Picture: Patrick Woods
Creation Homes Queensland general manager Peter Ryan said the company regularly discusses with clients ways to get into the housing market with less than a five or ten per cent deposit, and has lobbied for schemes such as allowing super to be used to buy a property.
“Home ownership is key to building a stable and vibrant society in Australia,” he said. “In most states 50% of the price of a Home and Land Package goes toward Taxes and Regulatory Costs and Charges. A change is needed to reduce this burden and assist all home buyers in Australia.”
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