Investors buying on the Gold Coast as Sydney and Melbourne too expensive

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A wave of serious southern development money is building as the Gold Coast begins a $6 Billion Construction Industry Boom.

Several major Sydney and Melbourne companies admit to spying on potential development estates in southeast Queensland, with the Gold Coast a key spot as the interstate residential property markets reach their peak.

The key drivers are affordability as the Glitter Strip works its way out of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), the positive vibe about jobs growth with the Commonwealth Games, and the council removing bureaucratic red tape for planning applications.

The latest data on the development industry shows:

• City Planning estimates more than $6 billion of actual buildings on its books which includes mega projects like; Jewel, The Pacific Fair upgrade, The Coomera Town Centre, and The four tower Ruby project
• The number of building applications so far this year already totals 1,469 which compares to 9,998 in 2015
• Only 3,215 were received three years ago
• 15 major projects are due to the 2018 Commonwealth Games with that infrastructure cost at $950 million and the event itself expected to inject $2 billion into the local economy.

In terms of business performance the Gold Coast, after strong growth between September and December last year, has slightly dipped but the forecast for both turnover and profit by June will top last year’s highs.

Compared to State-wide figures on setbacks for the industry, the city on average has;

• More available land
• Lower infrastructure charges
• Better interest rates and infrastructure charges.

The region, unlike central and northern Queensland centres, recorded a positive change in total employment of 16,800 in the past 12 months.

Master Builders deputy executive director Paul Bidwell said the latest ABS statistics showed building activity across the State had reached a record high of more than 18% in 2015.

Research by Masters Builders Queensland shows room for growth on the Gold Coast in terms of regional building approvals enjoying year-on-year an 8.1% increase.

This was another interesting article containing stats and facts. April 23, 2016 - Paul Weston and Andrew Potts, Gold Coast Bulletin