Bargain property bonanza on the Gold Coast

With an oversupply of listed homes to chose from, weak auction clearance rates and sellers keen to offload investment properties, the Gold Coast is proving to be the place to find a bargain.

It’s a buyer’s market on the Gold Coast to be sure, and anyone looking for a property in the next few months is likely to be in a strong negotiating position.

Take Kris Caris for example, who has just bought back her family’s Gold Coast holiday home for just $381,000, after it had been sold for $1.55 million at the height of the property boom several years earlier.

The three-bedroom apartment originally cost her grandmother, the late Marego Kritharis $37,000 back in 1970, reported the Gold Coast Bulletin.

Kris Caris was only five years old when she first holidayed in the property and was understandably excited to regain the keys.

"We had up to 14 family members, aged from two to 80, in a three-bedroom unit," she said.

On the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast property markets

As resident Finance expert David Koch reported earlier in the year “both areas had a great run between 2000 and 2007, with Gold Coast prices doubling over the period.

"However this in many cases left property overvalued and oversupplied, and since 2007 prices have been falling. As 2008 rolled around the tides turned and in the next 2 years the Gold Coast’s prices fell 8%," continued Koch.

"Some people are even blaming local councils for a lack of vision, leading to a fall in their respective demographics and increased crime rates.”

Property unsold for six years – price drops $4.6 million

A four-bedroom, four-bathroom home and one of the last remaining original beachfront properties on Mermaid beach went up for sale in May 2006 for $9.8 million.

This prime piece of Gold Coast real estate has languished on the market for more than 5 years and is now currently listed for $5.2 million. As the steam left the 00’s property boom this property on 97 Hedges Avenue has seen its value drop by some $4.6 million.