The Queensland Government has released their 2011 land valuations for the Gold Coast. Overall, the land values in the city grew by 3%. Of the 55 suburbs, 20 saw zero or negative growth and with the exception of Bundall, all seven suburbs to fall in value were beachfront.  Broadbeach saw the biggest drop, down 8%, while Surfers Paradise and Mermaid Beach fell 4% each.

Conversely, the greatest gains were made in the western suburbs. Mudegeeraba came in on top with a 19% gain, followed by 18% in Tallai, 14% in Oxenford and 11% each in Helensvale and Nerang. Elanora also saw significant gains, up 15%.

You can view a full breakdown of values here on the Department of Environment & Resource Management website.

It remains to be seen what effect these valuations will have on Council rates.иконииконописikoniбългарски икони

Despite approval rates in excess of 340 homes per month in 2006 & 2007, figures from the ABS have revealed that housing approvals on the Gold Coast fell to just 187 per month in 2010.  Apartments, which peaked in the same period at around 290 per month are down to 81 per month.

This reduction will likely see continuing loss of construction jobs on the Gold Coast.  Fortunately, there are several major projects, including a major refurbishment of both Jupiter’s Casino and Pacific Fair – as well as Potter Group’s Main Place project slated to get underway over the next 18 months

The number of high rise apartments on the market has fallen from 1296 to 839 over the last 12 months, according to the latest Midwood Queensland Investment Report.  This is the lowest the figure has been since around 2004.  The fall is largely attributed to a reduction in the number of apartments being built on the Gold Coast – with development approvals having fallen consistently in recent years and the market remaining relatively flat.

Following a tough 2008/09 financial year, which saw Sunland announce their first annual loss at $145m, the last 12 months have seen the local developer recover, posting an $18.3m profit for the last financial year.

Rather than pay a dividend to shareholders, the company is looking to the long-term and has elected to continue buying back shares, with plans to purchase another 20% of its own stock in the near future.

Council have released their latest budget, continuing into the 2nd year of the Bold Future city plan.

Highlights include:

• Funding of $26.5 million to continue the delivery of Council’s 2009-11 $90 million economic stimulus package.
• $13.3 million to continue the four-year $111.6 million community infrastructure program.
• An allocation of $53.6 million as part of a total commitment of $120 million for the rapid transit system.
• A major program for road network improvements, including major roadworks of $35.3 million, road reseals of $17.5 million and bikeways of $4.3 million.
• A major program for parks and recreation including major open space development of $5.5 million, tree planting of $1.0 million, park asset renewal of $3.3 million and major sporting areas of $3.1 million.
• A major redevelopment of the Surfers Paradise foreshore, at a cost of $13.4 million, which will revitalise the heart of Surfers Paradise.
• $31.9 million capital investment into waste management services and facilities designed  to ensure long term sustainability. This includes: $8.6 million for remedial and closure works at Suntown Landfill, $2.5 million for recycling and drop-off centre at Molendinar, $2 million for new waste transfer station at Reedy Creek, and $1.5 million for upgrade of Helensvale WTS.
• $7.7 million in community support through grants, subsidies, donations, concessions and rebates.

For greater details, refer to the Gold Coast City Council website.

The latest report from Australian Property Monitors has revealed a 0.8% fall in Gold Coast House Prices and 3.2% fall in unit prices across the city.  This is in stark contrast to strong gains in the capital cities – particularly Melbourne, which has seen 27% and 13.7% increases over the last 12 months for house and unit prices respectively.

Despite the falls, APM have indicated that they expect to see price growth later in 2010.

New valuations of unimproved land value on the Gold Coast has shown a 5% (on average) decline.  Prestige and waterfront suburbs were hit hardest with Mermaid Beach, Surfers Paradise and Paradise point down 29%, 18% and 15% respectively.

It was not doom and gloom however, Coomera and Ormeau – outer land-rich suburbs recorded gains of 20% and 15% each.  Ten other, similarly categorised suburbs recorded single-digit growth, with the remainder of the Gold Coast static or falling in the last two years.

After putting last year’s property assessment on hold, the Department of Environment and Resource Management will be proceeding with a city-wide valuation check – the first since 2006.

Despite the turbulent market of the past eighteen months, the new valuations are expected to push the average land value in some coastal suburbs, including Mermaid Beach and Surfers Paradise over the $1m mark. Suburbs like Robina and Coomera are also expected to show strong growth.

Used to calculate Council Rates, ratepayers will likely see an increase in their annual bills, with the new valuations expected to come into force June 30 2010.

Despite a 2.3% fall over 2009, the median house price in Surfers Paradise ($1.3m) has come in as the highest in the stage.  On the national scale Surfers Paradise only ranks at 54 – with the exclusive Perth suburb of Peppermint Grove dominating the list with a median house price of $5.4m.  Sydney’s Bellevue Hill and Vaucluse rounded out the top three at $3.25m and $3.16m.

Mermaid Beach, which includes ‘Millionaire’s Row’ Hedges Avenue experienced a 26% fall over the same period, to come in 2nd on the Gold Coast at $1.08m.

In a widely tipped move, the Reserve Bank has left interest rates unchanged – with the cash rate sitting at 3% despite weaker employment data.

The decision leaves the door open for further cuts later this year should the economic situation worsen.