• Interest Rate Hikes Only Blunt Australia's Sunshine Coast's Boom   

CBRE Hotels;

The Sunshine Coast remained one of the fastest-growing regions in the country in 2022, with the economy growing at an annual rate of 4.2% despite interest rate pressure and slowing interstate migration.

CBRE's latest quarterly review, covering Q4 2022, showed that median house prices on the Sunshine Coast had increased by 50% over the past two years to a median of $962,000 across the region.

That is led by suburb medians in Sunshine Beach ($3.275 million), Noosa Heads ($2.405 million), and Minyama ($2.215 million).

The region's population had grown by 1.9% in the past year to 403,521, with a 10-year average growth rate of 2.4% per annum.

CBRE Sunshine Coast managing director Rem Rafter said, "The region has benefitted from the shift in living and working preferences away from the capital city and metropolitan areas because of COVID-19.

"Consumer spending was up 5.35%, unemployment fell to 2.7% and the Sunshine Coast was the target for nearly $20 billion of investment spending,"

"Interest rate pressures have led to a correction of property prices since record levels were reached mid-2022; the market has passed its peak and in the short term will adjust," Mr Rafter added.

Prices had started to correct, with sales volumes retreating. House prices dipped in July, while unit performance held until August.

Other key stats of interest:

Median house prices had risen by 22.5% in the 12 months to September to $962,000, while the median unit price increased by 20.7% to $625,000.

Median house rents were $650/week and median unit prices were $525/week, with the September residential vacancy rate of 0.8% the lowest on record.

The report also showed the region's Gross Regional Product was up 2.9% to $21.5 billion in June, and the long-term growth rate was 4.2%.

Beyond tourism, construction (13.4%) and healthcare and social assistance (15.1%) accounted for more than a quarter of the Sunshine Coast economy. Healthcare and related services also had the largest share of the workforce, up 8.9% since 2016.

Inbound travel to the Sunshine Coast had recovered beyond pre-COVID levels, with the Sunshine Coast the second most popular destination in the country for city-dwellers migrating to regional centres, behind the Gold Coast.