Ditching the city for a place by the beach is trendy again. Capital city-to-regional Australia migration is approaching pandemic-era levels and the Sunshine Coast remains the nation's premiere destination. The coastal destination accounted for around 12% of Australia's total regional migration over the year to September, according to the Regional Movers Index.
Though, the Sunshine Coast's population isn't all that's growing. The area's average dwelling price has risen 70% since the end of 2019 to sit at $1.06 million as of November '24, as per CoreLogic figures. That's nearly a fifth more expensive than Greater Brisbane's median property price - a stat that may be tough for city dwellers to hear, especially if they're under the assumption it's simple to find a cut-price beachside property.
Despite the price tag, there are plenty of reasons buying on the Sunshine Coast in 2025 could make a lot of sense. If you're craving a seaside lifestyle or interested in property investing prospects, these Sunshine Coast suburbs will offer plenty of growth potential in 2025, according to our experts.
All price data is sourced from realestate.com.au and is accurate as at December 2024.
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Burnside (4560)
| Median Price (November 2024) | Annual Growth | Median Weekly Rent (November 2024) | Annual Growth | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houses | $809,000 | 10% | $725 | 9.8% |
| Units | Not enough price data | - | $520 | -4.6% |
Unsurprisingly, the majority of our experts' top suburb picks aren't household names like Noosa or Mooloolaba. Even locals might not be familiar with Burnside - a small suburb near Nambour with just over 3,000 inhabitants. It's nearly 20 kilometres inland, which might be a bit of a turn off for some, but with a median price of $809,000, houses are significantly more affordable here compared to on the coastline.
Junge Ma, senior research analyst at Investorkit, said the underlying numbers point towards values climbing through 2025.
"Burnside's house market inventory is low and continues to decline," Ms Ma told Savings.com.au.
"The vacancy rate has dropped significantly and rental yields are strong at 4.7%, much healthier than the Sunshine Coast average of 3.9%."
Burnside could also benefit from the Sunshine Coast Council's big plans for the area. There are plans to 'revitalise' the Nambour centre over the next decade or so. There's also significant development planned, as well as other initiatives to entice private sector investment like the 'Special Entertainment Precinct' zone, which allows the council to prioritise entertainment venues over building new homes.
Palmview (4553)
| Median Price (November 2024) | Annual Growth | Median Weekly Rent (November 2024) | Annual Growth | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houses | $848,000 | 7.3% | $730 | 7.4% |
| Units | Not enough price data | - | - | - |
Like Burnside, Palmview is another inland suburb boasting prices significantly below the Sunshine Coast average. Its claim to fame is the Aussie World theme park, which you'll have driven past if you've taken the Bruce Highway from Brisbane.
"Palmview's for sale house listings have been declining since early 2023," Ms Ma said.
"The tightening supply in both the sales and rental markets has led to steady price growth and rental growth."
Caloundra West (4551)
| Median Price (November 2024) | Annual Growth | Median Weekly Rent (November 2024) | Annual Growth | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houses | $800,000 | 6% | $660 | 2.7% |
| Units | $648,000 | 9.3% | $567 | 3.2% |
Caloundra is among the Sunshine Coast's most prominent areas. The town's population was nearing 100,000 as of the 2021 Census, making it the region's largest urban centre, but it's probably best known as a tourist spot. Dickies, Moffat, and Kings - three of the Sunshine Coast's most popular beaches - are all in Caloundra. That probably helped it to be crowned Queensland's top tourism town in 2023.
Waterside property in Caloundra (unsurprisingly) comes at a premium, but buyer's agency Pivot Property director Henry Single says more affordable property slightly further inland could be set to benefit from the "ripple effect."
"Caloundra is incredibly popular," he told Savings.com.au.
"I think Caloundra West is benefitting from the ripple effect… [residents] have similar access to all the amenities that Caloundra offers, just it's a little bit more affordable."
Meridan Plains (4551)
| Median Price (November 2024) | Annual Growth | Median Weekly Rent (November 2024) | Annual Growth | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houses | $870,000 | 15.5% | $680 | 4.6% |
| Units | $628,000 | 9.1% | $587 | 6.8% |
Meridan Plains is another suburb within the Caloundra postcode, incidentally also bordering Palmview. It's seen robust growth recently - house prices climbed 15.5% over the twelve months to November, a rate that's more than double the Sunshine Coast average. Nevertheless, it remains on the affordable end of the spectrum and is another spot Ms Ma believes could experience further growth next year.
"Meridan Plains' housing supply levelled off in 2024 and now sits at a low inventory level of 1.9 months," she told Savings.com.au.
Vacancy rates in Meridan Plains are just 0.7%, which suggests investors likely won't have trouble finding tenants and could point to solid underlying demand.
Sippy Downs (4556)
| Median Price (November 2024) | Annual Growth | Median Weekly Rent (November 2024) | Annual Growth | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houses | $900,000 | 12.5% | $700 | 6.1% |
| Units | $585,000 | 18.2% | $570 | 3.6% |
Buderim's Sippy Downs is another suburb said to be worth keeping an eye on next year. Again, it's slightly inland, so property is a bit more affordable, but it's only around ten minutes from Mooloolaba beach.
Both Mr Single and Ms Ma highlighted Sippy Downs as a relatively affordable Sunshine Coast option with significant growth potential.
"Sippy Downs' housing supply has remained at its lowest level in over a decade since 2022," Ms Ma told Savings.com.au.
"House prices have been steadily increasing since late 2023… the vacancy rate is low and continues to trend downwards."
Picture by S O C I A L . C U T on Unsplash
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