Brisbane and the Gold Coast

[cimbom]

Hello,

My husband and I have discussed moving up to Queensland once he is done with uni as we are getting a bit sick of Canberra weather

We would like to live in either Brisbane or the Gold Coast - I'm thinking we would prefer the former but having not visited either city yet, I'm not too sure so we'll say both for now.

I was just after some pointers regarding areas and types of properties to consider. We may have it as an IP for a year or two before moving in ourselves. We would like to live as inner-city as possible with walking distance to lots of amenities and close to transport. The hospitals my husband is most likely to work in (I think) are Gold Coast Hospital, Princess Alexandra Hospital or Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital so it would need to be reasonably close to these. Our budget would be ~500k and we would like at least 2 bedrooms. I suspect there may be an oversupply of apartments in the Gold Coast - is that right? We are pretty flexible in terms of the type of property it is but the numbers would obviously need to stack up. It would be great if it was at least neutrally geared as an IP. We are not looking to buy for at least 2-3 years which is sort of far away but it'd be good to have something to work towards.

Thoughts?

Thanks

 

[Anh]

Hi Cimbom,

I would have thought, where you buy would depend on where the job would be.

Brisbane is about 1 hour drive to GC depending on the traffic. Lots of people travel from GC to Brisbane for work.

Some people buy somewhere midway.

GC would be good for lifestyle, while there are more jobs in Brisbane.

Just my thought.

Ta

 

[cimbom]

Thanks Anh. I should have been clearer. I was after suggestions for both cities just so we can keep an eye on the market from now.

 

[Heinz57]

Not sure if you have children but we once sold a house in Annerley at a premium because the purchaser worked at the PA hospital and it was in the catchment area for a very good primary school in Tarragindi.

 

[rambada1]

Im a Gold Coaster and biased, so to me there is simply no choice!

Either area you choose to go to, look for transport - be it trains, ferrys, lite rail or if you have to, easy main roads. Yes its not Sydney traffic but it is a chaotic.

Bayside suburbs or walk to beach/broadwater as well. In Brisbane I am a fan of Sandgate & Cleveland. Gold Coast - anywhere near the beach, include the lite rail starting soon and enjoy!Like all cities in Australia, if you can tie transport & water together, all the better.

Mind you, I live on acreage, no where near transport, and wouldn't trade it for anything - but what a life !

 

[eeew]

Hello,

My husband and I have discussed moving up to Queensland once he is done with uni as we are getting a bit sick of Canberra weather

We would like to live in either Brisbane or the Gold Coast - I'm thinking we would prefer the former but having not visited either city yet, I'm not too sure so we'll say both for now.

I was just after some pointers regarding areas and types of properties to consider. We may have it as an IP for a year or two before moving in ourselves. We would like to live as inner-city as possible with walking distance to lots of amenities and close to transport. The hospitals my husband is most likely to work in (I think) are Gold Coast Hospital, Princess Alexandra Hospital or Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital so it would need to be reasonably close to these. Our budget would be ~500k and we would like at least 2 bedrooms. I suspect there may be an oversupply of apartments in the Gold Coast - is that right? We are pretty flexible in terms of the type of property it is but the numbers would obviously need to stack up. It would be great if it was at least neutrally geared as an IP. We are not looking to buy for at least 2-3 years which is sort of far away but it'd be good to have something to work towards.

Thoughts?

Thanks

I think you would be better off in Brisbane.
There are more healthcare facilities [ not just hospitals], in Brisbane, its a larger more diversified base than GC and will also help you get a job more than the GC.
With 500k as the budget as you mentioned, you should have a decent range to pick from in Brisbane. Id probably go for 3 bed, 2 bath, 1 carpark townhouse near transport and hospitals.
In addition, most suburbs within about 10km from cbd in Brisbane are quite good and safe, whereas the same cannot be said easily for the GC.
I take it that you are also looking for CG? If so, then some land component would greatly help- and this is provided more in houses and townhouses rather than apartments.
Some suburbs I would look at in Brisbane next to hospitals:
Greenslopes, Holland park/west, carina/heights, Coorparoo, camp hill, herston, clayfield, wooloongabba.

 

[INVSTOR]

I think you would be better off in Brisbane.
There are more healthcare facilities [ not just hospitals], in Brisbane, its a larger more diversified base than GC and will also help you get a job more than the GC.
With 500k as the budget as you mentioned, you should have a decent range to pick from in Brisbane. Id probably go for 3 bed, 2 bath, 1 carpark townhouse near transport and hospitals.
In addition, most suburbs within about 10km from cbd in Brisbane are quite good and safe, whereas the same cannot be said easily for the GC.
I take it that you are also looking for CG? If so, then some land component would greatly help- and this is provided more in houses and townhouses rather than apartments.
Some suburbs I would look at in Brisbane next to hospitals:
Greenslopes, Holland park/west, carina/heights, Coorparoo, camp hill, herston, clayfield, wooloongabba.

I agree with those suggestions and would add Mt Gravatt/wishart/Mansfield also. Excellent bus system, close to gateway arterial, small restaurants or larger ones at Garden City Shopping Centre closeby. I would chose an area with good access to a variety of hospitals rather than one. I've been hearing negative feedback about one of the hospitals you mentioned, so I think it would be pointless just focussing on one hospital/location.

 

[cimbom]

Thanks so much for all the suggestions. I'm really impressed with the value for money in these areas. I grew up in Melbourne and what you get for the price is amazing when you compare prices to Sydney/Melbourne

 

[cozmicmel]

If you can get a job on the Gold Coast than defienetly pick the coast to live...I might be biased but I just find Brisbane boring and hot Somewhere like Burleigh Heads you cant go wrong. I dont expect huge capital growth on the coast but if you could find yourself a dooer upper under $500,000 in Miami, burleigh, palm beach I think you would certainly manufacture some growth. My partner currently does the gold coast /brisbane commute but if you could add Logan to your list of potential hospitals to commute to its about 30 / 40.min. A doer upper in Paradise Point is a another good option on coast to look at if you want to be able to get to brisbane in under an hour. Lots of cafes and walk to broadwater. Just depends what life style you want really.

 

[cimbom]

Thanks cozmicmel. My husband would need to get to work in about 20-30 mins when on call so we wouldn't want anything with much of a commute.

It really depends on the specialisation he decides on and the training he'll need for it - there seems to be lots more options in Brisbane whereas the Gold Coast mainly seems to have the major areas only. It's good to get an idea of the different areas though and the types of properties we can expect for our budget. We'll see how it goes

 

[cozmicmel]

Yes hospital jobs on the gold coast are very sought after you will have more to choose from in Brisbane hopefully. I am doing my midwifery studies at logan hospital the drive is not to bad but if you will be on call being close is probably the most important thing. Good luck !

 

[INVSTOR]

Thanks so much for all the suggestions. I'm really impressed with the value for money in these areas. I grew up in Melbourne and what you get for the price is amazing when you compare prices to Sydney/Melbourne

Yes, I was just talking with my doctor about house prices in Brisbane and Perth. Her friend settled in Brisbane while she settled in Perth from Indonesia. She was asking me if I thought Brisbane was cheaper than Perth. Currently, yes, I agree Brisbane is good value. If I were you I'd be looking to buy as soon as you can afford to. Eight years ago I was priced out of selling up in Perth and moving to Bris as Bris's prices were so high. when prices dropped off a bit I bought an investment so I wouldn't be stuck again. Purchased about 5 years ago - prices are still similiar, or have risen about 10% in past year (depending on suburb) and I believe it will continue for a while yet. I was looking into Springwood about a year ago, I'm not sure what prices are like now, but that was close to neutral, good transport, good access to either gold coast or Brisbane, feral factor OK. Prices looked good. i guess it all depends on what you can afford but may be worth looking into current holding costs to purchase soon instead of 2 years away. I think it may be a good entry point before finding an area to suit your lifestyle. (would be good area to have IP)

 

[cimbom]

I would love to buy now but my husband is still completing his medical degree so our income is not high enough to service two properties of that price (we recently purchased a PPOR in Canberra, which will be converted to an IP). Hopefully the prices don't increase until he's done