Brisbane Property News: The Infrastructure Boom Driving Market Growth

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Anyone who thinks the start of Brisbane’s 2032 Olympic Games is years off should adjust their perspective, because billion-dollar infrastructure projects are already underway in the River City.

And these plans are having a significant effect on Brisbane’s highly competitive property market – and it’s a long-term impact at that.

The city’s pre-Games infrastructure boom is massive in cost and size, with the international event giving the state the largest infrastructure investment in its history, according to the Queensland government.

So, property buyers take heed, because there is more to Brisbane’s thriving values and tight vacancy rates than first meets the eye. For a start, as the Games’ host city for the first time, Brisbane is determined to show the world what it can do when it puts its mind to big infrastructure.

Queensland has already announced that with the federal government’s help, it will contribute a whopping $7.1 billion to a Games Venue Infrastructure Program. These funds will result in 17 new and upgraded venues across Queensland by 2032.

Brisbane’s Olympic Games infrastructure

A pre-Games project that is not a venue but is already underway is the $17 billion-plus Cross River Rail project. This 10.2km rail line will include 5.9km of twin tunnels and give the city a second river crossing, as well as connecting Brisbane’s north and south sides.

The Cross River Rail will also feature four new inner-city underground stations and three new stations on the Gold Coast, and a whole lot more current stations are also being updated.

Construction is yet to start on a new $3.8 billion Olympic Stadium, which will feature a massive 64-hectare space with a 63,000-seat capacity but spread across three inner-city suburbs – Spring Hill, Herston, and Kelvin Grove.

Plus, it will directly connect to a new $1.2 billion national aquatic centre in Spring Hill.

There are plenty of other high-cost pre-Games infrastructure plans in the works as well, most of them in Brisbane, the Gold Coast, and the Sunshine Coast.

But other Games events are planned for regional Queensland areas, including Rockhampton, Toowoomba, and Cairns. For example, Toowoomba will be the Games’ “Equestrian Centre of Excellence” with a $54 million venue planned for this city’s Showgrounds.

And an athlete’s village for Rockhampton is also being planned, along with three in Brisbane, the Gold Coast, and the Sunshine Coast.

All of these large infrastructure projects are attracting interstate tradespeople to help complete this vast array of construct. Swathes of electricians, engineers, plumbers, builders and more are relocating to Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and surrounds chasing well-paid work. This is having a dramatic impact on rental demand which means vacancy rates sub-1 per cent across most of Brisbane – yet another attractive incentive for property investors.

How Olympic Games’ infrastructure can boost property

You only have to study Sydney’s real estate market after it hosted the 2000 Olympic Games to see how this event changed property values in many locations, and the upsides have been long lasting.

House prices in Newington – the site of Sydney’s 15,000-strong Olympic Athletes Village, and expressly designed to be a permanent neighbourhood afterwards – have risen by 15 per cent in the past year alone.

And values jumped in Sydney, even before such infrastructure was built. Cotality claims the city’s values increased 60 per cent between 1993, when it was first announced that Sydney would host the Games, and 2000.

Combining the figures being spent on Brisbane’s infrastructure boom and the city’s current property market metrics creates an exciting mix.

And it’s no surprise that even back in 2021, Cotality’s Tim Lawless commented that Brisbane’s post-Games property market could perform as strongly as Sydney’s did.

Cotality’s latest Home Value Index show the River City’s median house value is now $1,062,109, after an annual increase of 8.1 per cent. Only Sydney has a higher house median – and its annual lift has been half that of Brisbane.

Best potential for Games benefits

A report I read from Colliers earlier this year called Herston, Spring Hill, Bowen Hills, Fortitude Valley, and Roma Street in Brisbane’s CBD the “Golden Rings of Opportunity” for the most significant potential in Olympic Games’ capital growth.

With some of Brisbane’s most significant and costliest pre-Games infrastructure plans based in this area, I tend to agree with Colliers regarding this description.

All of these suburbs are also inner-city locations and, as such, have plenty to offer in terms of handy amenities like shops, schools, and public transport. Infrastructure projects such as the Cross River Rail will also only improve the accessibility of these addresses to other locations too.

“Brisbane is stepping into a once in a generation transformation, one that promises to shape the future of the city and leave a lasting legacy for Queensland,” the Colliers report noted.

“This revitalisation will drive long term economic growth and bring lasting benefits to the city, extending the CBD’s footprint and creating a more connected, vibrant Brisbane.”

Again, this is spot on.

Finally, we’re not just talking about post-Games residential growth either. According to Colliers, the international event is hyping up the entire property market in the “five gold rings” areas, from the industrial sector to offices and retail sides.

How the Games can help property buyers

Put simply, I would advise any Brisbane property buyer to factor in the Game’s influence.

Even without the Games, and the city’s infrastructure boom, these inner-city suburbs should always do well, based on their locations.

That said, the high demand and low supply being felt across most of the nation is particularly noticeable in inner-Brisbane locations.

If you’re a buyer keen on benefitting from Brisbane’s infrastructure Games boom, but unsure where or what is best for your needs, a buyer’s agent is your elite-level property performer.

Well-connected buyers’ agents, like our local experts at Propertybuyers’ Brisbane office, can advise you on locations where you can still benefit from major infrastructure plans for this international event. We will ensure you come out a gold-medal winner in the real estate race.

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