I was in Rockhampton earlier today to do a bit of investigating into the supply side of the chain, particularly in the Gracemere and Norman Gardens areas where most of the new supply is coming on line. The last time I was in Gracemere was back in April 2013. This is what I noted:
Gracemere:
There were quite a lot of houses (at least 300 or so) being built in the new estates at the northern and southern ends of Gracemere the last time I was there back in 2013. These are almost all entirely complete (and would have contributed to the weaker market conditions towards the end of 2013 having all come on the market at once), with not much currently being built or vacant land currently ready for further development other than a few streets such as Abby Drive.
Anyone buying in the south end of Gracemere and not doing their due diligence could be in for a surprise in a few years, with the new industrial estate (Rockhampton's intended equivalent of Mackay's Paget area) almost on the doorstep of the southern residential areas. On the flipside, this will provide more jobs to the area.
The market seems to be currently a bit oversupplied in Gracemere, but this is affecting the rental market more so than house prices, and pales in comparison to the oversupply in Gladstone. I didn't see too many "for sale" or "for rent" boards around, much to my surprise and the market should be able to absorb it given a few months.
Norman Gardens:
Most of the new residential developments in North Rockhampton are occurring around both sides of Norman Road at its northern end. The amount of development on the western side is fairly insignificant (no more than a few houses north of River Rose Drive), but the volume coming on line on the eastern side is significant, with several estates near Yeppoon Road all currently in the works.
The asking rents and prices for seemingly equivalent standard homes is significantly more in Norman Gardens than it is in Gracemere (or other parts of Rockhampton in general), but Norman Gardens is part of the main urban area and is about 17km from Gracemere. The market in this part of Rocky seems to be steady and relatively balanced, with quite a few turning out to most of the opens I saw in the area.
Overall, there doesn't seem to be a large number of new homes being built around Rocky (even Gracemere), things have continued a relatively steady pace without the big ups or downs that Mackay and Gladstone tend to see.
Other:
Central Rockhampton (4700) doesn't generally see much new housing development due to being surrounded by undevelopable lagoon land on all sides. However, there are a couple of new apartment buildings coming on line, something that Rockhampton has not really seen until recent times - namely Southbank on Victoria, and Empire - both located on Victoria Parade next to the river.
