Toowoomba Property Market Update 1st Half 2020

Toowoomba recorded a median house price of $398,000 and a median unit price of $275,000 in Q4 2019. This represents annual (Q4 2018 – Q4 2019) median price growth of 0.5% for houses and a softening of -8.3% for units. Between Q4 2018 – Q4 2019 total sales declined, by -9.2% for houses (to 524 sales) and by -10.6% for units (to 110 sales). There is potential undersupply in the house market, as less sales are returning capital growth. Now is an ideal time for first home buyers as there is less competition in the market.

Average vendor discounting between Q4 2018 and Q4 2019 has tightened to -3.9% for houses and -5.2% for units. The current housing market have moved slightly to favour vendors, where buyers are willing to offer a little closer to the initial listing price. Discounts remain in the market, and now is the time to take advantage.

House rental yields in Toowoomba were recorded at a rate of 4.9% in December 2019, on par with Toowoomba LGA and well above that of Brisbane Metro (3.9%). Further, over the past 12 months to Q4 2019 median rental prices were stable, at $350 per week (house) and $290 per week (units). This confirms there is a healthy rental market in Toowoomba.

2-bedroom houses have provided investors with +6.7% rental growth annually, resulting in a median rent of $280 per week.

Toowoomba recorded a low vacancy rate of 1.8% in December 2019, on par with Toowoomba LGA and well below that of Brisbane Metro (2.9%). This further indicates that there is a healthier rental demand in Toowoomba, which should provide investors with higher confidence in quick occupancy of rental properties.