Brisbane Property Market Update, July 2026

by Stephen McGee, Director, National Property Buyers Brisbane

The Brisbane property market has certainly gone into the reactive stage.

Yes – buyers affordability levels, rising Interest rates,  budget and Gov reforms have all played their parts well in draining the market confidence and affecting buyers & sellers’ sentiment. How these factors will ultimately unravel and impose themselves on the market is still way too early to reveal, but what we can determine is that the mood has changed & the pace of the market has slowed. I repeat my sentiment of last month – we are now back to a NORMAL BRISBANE MARKET.

Domain’s recent Forecast report on 2027 notes that the markets in Sydney, Melbourne & Canberra will fall whilst Brisbane, Adelaide & Perth will continue to grow. Brisbane itself is forecasted to return a modest growth of between 3% to 7% for housing stock and 5% to 9% on units. This forecast lies well with the annualized growth rate of Brisbane’s pre pandemic years where most suburbs recorded an annualised growth of 4%.

This then brings me to the question that a lot of people are asking right now “What do we do”?

For me the worst thing that any prospective property buyer can do is NOTHING. Whilst the people sitting on the shelf in PAUSE mode are cautiously observing, there are new opportunities presenting themselves that will undoubtedly meet its buyer – so why not let that be YOU?

What is important now more than ever is that suburb selection and property selection MUST be the best they can be.  As a Buyers Advocate of over 25 years these TWO factors have always been top in my search criteria and have largely been the factors that have rewarded my clients with a very good equity cushion through value growth and increasing YoY rental yields. The growth drivers of superior suburbs are under pinned by the demand from owner occupiers wanting to get into that suburb and also by the lifestyle & educational offerings that these suburbs present to its resident occupants. From an investment perspective these same factors also result in attracting a good quality tenant.

CoreLogic have also posted a recent article re-enforcing this:

→ Suburbs with a higher share of owner-occupied homes recorded significantly stronger long- term capital growth between 2010 and 2026.

→ Units in owner-occupied areas grew 99% in value compared to 65% in investor-heavy suburbs, generating an estimated $148,000 more in gross capital gains.

→ Tightening credit conditions and Federal Budget tax reforms could heighten financial risks for rental-heavy suburbs, making ownership mix a critical metric for future returns.

Prices: Property values eased slightly over July with a slow down evident in the higher value end of the market. Days on market stretching back out towards 40 to 50 days.

Supply: A slight increase in listing supply but affordability issues for buyers will keep the competition minimal. We are now entering a BUYERS MARKET which will be a welcome relief for some. But may also see sellers holding back unless the need to sell is immediate.

Rental Market: Rental Yields in Brisbane are still slowly rising as rental pressure increases and values slowly fall, current gross yields avg out at 3.3%. Brisbane vacancy rates are also tightening and currently sit at 0.9% , again supported by migration and lack of rental stock.

Forecast: Brisbane still has an increasing population fuelled by the nation’s highest interstate migration (see chart below) & the housing supply is still tight, especially in sought-after suburbs. These two factors will help in sustaining the value growth, even at a more moderate pace. The equity cushion that home owners have acquired & household spending restraints are also working towards the prevention of the market being flooded with stressed properties, which in turn is maintaining some semblance of order in the property markets.

Call us to discuss how we can help you with your property journey.

Residential Property Market, Australia Wide

Source: COTALITY

Monthly Data:

Perth recording a 0.1% rise.

Brisbane recording a 0.6% fall.

Sydney and Melbourne values still falling.

Median Value:

Sydney still leads the way with a median value of $1,244,617.

Brisbane again runner up with a median value of $1,104,094.

Here’s What NPB Do Best

Few people understand that you make your money when you BUY a property NOT when you sell. As the cliché goes “buy the RIGHT property, in the RIGHT suburb at the RIGHT price”.

We take a look back in time at a property purchased by Steve for a client and demonstrate how the factors of TIME and GROWTH can increase your wealth as long as you get the above fundamentals RIGHT.

A 2 bedroom, 2 bth, 1 x car elevated unit with green aspects. 110 sqm internally, small boutique complex, close to CBD, shops and rail.

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