The cheapest homes in the most sought-after sea change hotspots

Is this the cheapest house for sale in the Noosa region?

The unassuming three-bedroom brick house at 17 Jacaranda Place is in Tewantin, just west of its better-known neighbours Noosaville and Noosa Heads, and is for sale for offers over $749,000.

House prices are still well into seven-figure territory in some of the most popular sea change towns after the pandemic property boom and slowdown, but a handful of entry-level options remain.

Looking further afield from the main drag can reveal affordable options, but bargain hunters may find some are cheap for a reason.

Noosa Shire’s median house price was $1.25 million in the December quarter, on Domain data, making it the fourth most expensive regional property market in the country.

It was topped by the Byron Shire at $1.49 million, Kiama on the NSW South Coast at $1.435 million and Victoria’s Surf Coast at $1.43 million.

Sea changers can spend millions on top-end beach homes, but the “absolute entry level” in Noosa is the brick home in Tewantin that would suit a first home buyer or investor, selling agent Luke Burton of Harcourts Property Centre Noosa said.

Interest at that price point has been strong, and the home was under contract at the time of writing, though a further three parties had made offers in case the first fell through.

“Tewantin has had a huge pick-up in the suburb itself over the last couple of years,” he said. “It is like the ripple effect of Noosa Heads, Noosaville, Noosa Waters has priced a lot of people out.”

He said the neighbourhood is away from the hustle and bustle of the main strip but close enough to offer an easy drive to shopping, beaches and national parks.

Another three-bedder in the suburb is listed with price hopes of the high $700,000s to $800,000.

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66 Griffith Avenue, Tewantin QLD 4565

The listing agent for the tenanted home at 66 Griffith Avenue, Alex Harris of Noosa4Sale, said potential buyers did not always realise there are affordable options in the shire after reading reports of $30 million-plus sales.

“People start to turn off Noosa thinking it is too expensive,” she said. “From $900,000 to $1.5 million you still get a really nice home.”

Harris said the sense of buyer urgency has dissipated since the boom, meaning some properties are priced $100,000 to $200,000 below what they may have been a year ago.

She is still fielding enquiry from sea changers but said there are many local buyers in the market now.

Further south, prices in the Byron region have been affected by last year’s floods and a slowdown in sea change activity after lockdowns.

The cheapest house for sale there is a three bedder in Mullumbimby, guided at $725,000 to $795,000.

The entry-level property at 35B Argyle Street was affected by floods but has been renovated since, First National Byron Bay selling agent Denzil Lloyd said.

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35B Argyle Street, Mullumbimby NSW 2482

He said market activity in flood-affected towns was somewhat subdued, but homeowners are looking at permanent solutions such as raising houses in some cases.

On the NSW South Coast, a deceased estate in Kiama has no price guide, but owners may be hard-pressed to find somewhere cheaper in the town.

The home on the 809-square-metre block at 39 Noorinan Street could be renovated, knocked down and rebuilt, or turned into a duplex, depending on council approval.

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39 Noorinan Street, Kiama NSW 2533

Ray White Kiama’s Melinda Budd said it was a rare listing for the area, as most properties in Kiama had been renovated or maintained.

“At the moment there is a lack of property on the market. Properties at the entry level are still selling very well.”

On Victoria’s Surf Coast, buyers can expect to pay upwards of $4 million for their dream beach home.

But the cheapest listing on the coast is the three-bedder at 20 Dupree Street in Torquay, with a price guide of $900,000 to $950,000.

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20 Dupree Street, Torquay VIC 3228

First home buyers make up most of the interest for entry-level homes now, rather than investors, Chris Henson of One Agency Surf Coast said, and about three in 10 buyers are from Melbourne – only down from four in 10 at the market peak.

But there are more homes for sale in the $1 million to $1.2 million mark than there was a year ago, giving buyers more choice, he said.

“We have seen prices soften slightly in the newer areas, newer estates,” he said, but added that in Old Torquay, “prices have held pretty steady”.

Further inland, the town of Winchelsea, part of the Surf Coast council area, offers a lower price point.

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46A Willis Street, Winchelsea VIC 3241

A new three-bedroom home at 46A Willis Street, about a 30-minute drive from the coast, has a price guide of $490,000 to $539,000.

Article source: Queensland Property Investor