House prices in some Brisbane school catchments have skyrocketed by almost 30 per cent over the past 12 months, proving education is not only golden but worth far more to families than a big pool and river views.
The dramatic price hike comes amid reports of fierce buyer competition and an airtight rental market in the city’s key family hotspots, as growing hordes of home hunters place primary and secondary school access at the top of their wish list.
According to the latest Domain School Zones Report, which measures median prices within school catchments over a 12-month period, prices in a majority of both primary and secondary school catchments rose significantly higher than their respective suburb, with families appearing to place more onus on secondary school placement.
Across Greater Brisbane, a whopping 72 per cent of secondary school zones experienced a price rise, compared to a slightly lower 61 per cent of primary school catchments.
Domain senior research analyst Dr Nicola Powell said prices in some secondary school catchment zones increased an incredible nine times faster than that of prices in Greater Brisbane, with the sunshine state capital further featuring heavily in the national combined cities top 10, with five primary school catchments making the list.
She said the figures also revealed just how much importance families placed on education – no matter their property budget.
“These catchments are a fundamental driver for property decisions because education is hugely important … And one of the things I have seen [within the data] is those positive rates of growth were dotted around the city,” Dr Powell said.
“In fact, when you look at the top 10 [school catchments], it spreads from expensive pockets to more affordable.
“Because it doesn’t matter what price point [buyers are shopping at], they place equal importance on education and that’s what this report highlights.”
While the report revealed secondary school zones outstripped their junior counterparts in overall performance, it was primary school catchments that claimed the highest property price hikes, with the highly desirable Rainworth State School catchment, in Bardon, undergoing one of the biggest spikes of the year.
Median house prices there soared by 27.8 per cent to a bank-breaking $1.15 million.
It’s a figure that comes as no surprise to mother-of-three Megan Matthew, who purchased a home there 12 years ago for the sake of her and her husband’s children, only to recently sell 49 Outlook Crescent with the ambitious plan of upgrading into the same hotspot.
Since then she admitted to spending countless hours combing websites and walking the streets in the hopes of finding the perfect family home before Christmas, with a severe lack of stock forcing them into the rental market in the interim.
“My partner and I bought here in Bardon a long time ago … and we bought our home understanding that it was in a fantastic area for schooling … particularly for Rainworth State School,” Mrs Matthew said.
“We wouldn’t have sold it if it had had a bigger footprint … but now I am finding it really tough to find the perfect place [to purchase].
“It’s a matter of low stock, competition [for the area] and prices rising … in fact I can see the prices rising in front of my eyes.
“Even getting a rental was really challenging. It’s a landlord’s market and it’s a seller’s market right now.”
Mrs Matthew said what made the Rainworth State School catchment in Bardon so special was more than just the school itself, but the fact it was located close to top secondary schools.
“That´s why Bardon is so great … you’ve also got Brisbane Girls Grammar or St Joseph’s in Gregory Terrace as well as great secondary state schools. In fact, a good family home needs to be two-fold, it has to be in a good catchment for primary schools but also close to those secondary schools. It forms a big a part of the buying decision,” she said.
“Bardon is also only 10 minutes to the city so if you were there and if you want to go out, it ticks all the boxes.”
While Mrs Matthew’s two eldest children are now in secondary school (attending Brisbane Girls Grammar and St Joseph’s Gregory Terrace), it’s her three-year-old who is now dictating their property options, and a prime reason why her and her husband are so desperate to buy back into the Rainworth State School catchment.
Ray White Paddington agent Judi O’Dea sold the Matthew family home and said in her experience, the top property ingredient for Brisbane families was often the local primary school – with Rainworth State School catchment being an enormous drawcard for years.
“It’s always been extremely important and motivating for families to get into that catchment and they’ll do anything not to be just in that zone, but part of that community,” Ms O’Dea said.
“I call that zone the ‘happiness triangle’ and so many people try to live in it because it’s a short distance from Rainworth or St Joseph’s in Bardon … and considering families spend 15 years of their life going back and forth from their children’s school … well, it’s something you buy for.
“And because you’re often there in that catchment for 10 to 15 years, those properties are so tightly held.”
Cannon Hill State School catchment also earned a spot in the city’s top 10 zones for price rises, with houses jumping by 25.8 per cent to $755,000 over the past year.
Meagan Muir, of Place Estate Agents Bulimba, said the area was fast becoming a family hotspot thanks to the community and the zone’s central location, with prices noticeably soaring over the past five years.
“At the moment, houses in that Cannon Hill State School catchment are taking between just seven to 14 days to sell … and if a home ticks those boxes, it gets snapped up very quickly,” Ms Muir said.
Byron Freeborn, of Raine & Horne Wynnum Manly, said homes in the incredibly popular Wynnum West State school catchment (which ranked second on the School Zone list) were now so popular buyers were increasingly trying to snap them up off-market.
He said the catchment, which experienced a median price rise of 28.8 per cent to $547,500 over the past year, was now a magnet for young couples and families who had been previously renting in Bulimba and Morningside, but were unable to buy in those pricier patches.
Bald Hills State School was a top performer on the Domain report, with prices soaring by 29.2 per cent over the year to $675,000. The top performing secondary school catchment was for Rochedale State High School, where median prices rose by 20.5 per cent to $750,000.
Article Source: domain.com.au
from Queensland Property Investor https://ift.tt/3nYHzev
via IFTTT
