‘Out of control’: Brisbane house prices up $149k in just one year

1 week ago 9

Sophie Foster

Updated 2 Feb 2026, 9:19am

First published 2 Feb 2026, 2:00am

Lucy and James Rosser bought an Everton Park townhouse off the plan during Covid, then waited four years for it to be built. Now they need to upsize having had two children in the meantime and adopted two pet dogs. Picture: Patrick Woods.

Brisbane house prices jumped a record $149k in just 12 months – double the average Queensland worker’s earnings – with Ipswich and Logan now Australia’s strongest regions outside WA.

Greater Brisbane’s median house price hit $1.178 million in January off a 13.1 per cent rise – its largest annual dollar spike on record, according to the latest PropTrack Home Price Index, released Monday. Units rose faster, up 18.4 per cent or $127,500 to $811,000. The overall median dwelling price is now $1.023 million.

Brisbane’s overall dwelling price is now $1.023m.

PropTrack economist Angus Moore.

Ipswich dwelling prices led Australia’s east coast SA4 regions with a 17.8 per cent rise, pushing its median to $860,000, while Logan-Beaudesert recorded 17.3 per cent growth to $897,000 – well ahead of results in NSW, Victoria, South Australia or Tasmania.

PropTrack economist Angus Moore said Queensland has undergone a dramatic affordability shift.

“Brisbane has become a lot less affordable than it used to be. Queensland is now the third least affordable state in Australia, coming from being one of the most affordable states coming into the pandemic,” Mr Moore said. “That really just reflects the fact that prices have doubled since the start of 2020.”

Greater Brisbane dwelling prices have surged 95.7 per cent in five years, with regional Queensland up 88 per cent.

Place Estate Agents Alex Rutherford said market conditions were at fever pitch.

“It’s ridiculous,” she said. “It’s out of control. Once we list a property online, we get email enquiries in the first 30 seconds… Depending on the price point, it can get a bit desperate. The fear of missing out is very significant.”

Alex Rutherford of Place Estate Agents.

One bedroom apartments are hot property now, with this one for sale at 6/549 Brunswick Street, New Farm, getting lots of attention from buyers.

She said one-bedroom units are the hottest ticket items now, seeing a groundswell from the federal 5 per cent deposit scheme for properties under $1 million – with one Brisbane inspection on Friday seeing 32 groups going through a 38 sqm space within half an hour.

Lucy and James Rosser bought their Everton Park townhouse off the plan in January 2023, then waited for years for construction to be completed – by which time they’d had two children.

Six months after moving in mid last year, they’re selling for offers above $1.349 million.

“When we purchased the townhouse, we were a professional couple working long hours, so the low-maintenance nature of townhouse living was very appealing,” Mrs Rosser said.

“Since then, our family has grown significantly – we now have two boys under two and two dogs – and we need more space for everyone to get outside and run.”

The couple are now searching for a family home with a $1.7 million budget, but finding it challenging to secure what they need. “Townhouses in the area are now selling for prices comparable to what houses were worth when we bought this property,” Mrs Rosser said.

“You go to an open home and there are 15 other groups there. On Saturday alone, we attended eight open homes, and the quality of properties available within our budget was a real eye-opener.”

Lucy and James Rosser went to eight open homes on Saturday and are adjusting their expectations of what type of house they will be able to find with prices having inflated. Picture: Patrick Woods.

She said while they’d been fortunate with their property’s value increase, the reality was stark. “While selling has been beneficial, we also have to buy back into an inflated market.”

Mr Moore said interstate buyers and investors continue to drive demand across Queensland, with the share of loans going to investors in the state at near record highs.

“To some extent, people coming from Sydney, potentially with more wealth or more income behind them, can make it harder for locals,” he said.

The median dwelling price across regional Queensland climbed 12.5 per cent in 12 months to a peak of $796,000. Regional Queensland houses jumped $97,100 in 12 months to $803,000, while units surged even higher up $100,300 to $782,000.

Other regional centres close to Brisbane also posted strong results, with the Darling Downs-Maranoa region surging 17.6 per cent to $529,000, and Toowoomba jumping 16.8 per cent to $771,000.

For renters, conditions remain tight but not as dire as during pandemic surges – though prices have not fallen since then.

“We do see pretty tight conditions in rental markets. They’re not as tight as they were a few years ago, when we were seeing double digit or even close to 20 per cent growth in rents and sub 1 per cent vacancy rates,” Mr Moore said.