In a recent report, Toowoomba has emerged as the leading investment location in Australia for 2013. The city has been described as the ‘economic engine’ of this area, giving a clear picture as to why it has topped this list. Several metrics were used as the basis for populating this list of 50 most favored Australian real estate investment locations. These included income levels, gross rental yields, housing demand, vacancy rate, employment level and population growth.
Investor Interest Returns to Queensland
Toowoomba is not the only hotspot that is witnessing some aggressive activity in the real estate arena. The top 50 list also features Chinchilla and Oakey, showing that investors appear to be favoring Queensland locations over others. According to market experts, affordable pricing is not the only factor encouraging investors to look at properties here. These locations offer buyers a chance to live close to commercial center without having to put up with the pressure that living in a capital city entails. The friendly environment in these cities makes them perfect for families.
Property Cycle on the Rebound
Even at the beginning of the year, analysts were expecting Queensland properties to perform well considering that the market is on the rebound here after touching bottom towards the middle of last year. Momentum was evident here during the second half of 2012 albeit any activity remained low key. Increasing investor confidence, affordable pricing and the continuing low interest climate are expected to support demand here and keep the market buzzing throughout 2013.
The recovery is expected to be slow and consistent and prices are not likely to demonstrate many peaks and troughs in this year as investors temper their buying urge with caution.
Resource Rich States will be Preferred by Investors
The 2012 to 2015 Residential Property Prospects report highlights resource rich states including Queensland as the locations that are most likely to demonstrate maximum recovery. Across these locations, the number of first time home buyers will also see an increase. The increase in the number of overseas migrants coming in to reside in Australia will also positively impact property demand and prices here. Given that many of the negative factors that kept real estate prices subdued here over the past year are no longer in existence, there is enough reason to believe that Queensland will witness a strong return of investor confidence in 2013.