With 17.6% of people travelling to work using public transport, and a median age of 34 in Oxley, young working professionals are seeking manageable and affordable homes in Brisbane’s west.
Townhouses are springing up across the Western Suburbs, and they are quickly becoming the obvious choice for everyone from families and retirees.
Local area expert, Paris Arthur, says we’re likely to start seeing more town-homes in the Western Suburbs of Brisbane as the city continues to expand.
“We’re seeing a strong push from families with teenagers looking to get themselves to school. Location of the townhouses is very important,” Paris says.
Oxley is a great suburb for townhouse development due to its accessibility. Train and bus stations are just steps away from the centre of the suburb, which makes accessing schools and the city that much easier.
Paris says, as a real estate agent, he is finding more and more people are coming to the conclusion that they don’t need a four bed home with a huge garden for their modern lifestyle.
Paris says he "found that many families looking for townhouses in the area, are looking for similar reasons."
“Lots of families I speak to are looking to downsize, not necessarily their house, but their maintenance load,” Paris says.
Many new town-homes have a larger living space, such as the recent build at Ellen Street in Oxley, which had over 200 square metres of space.
“They’re essentially a house, without the yard,” Paris says, adding that families have “freedom to come and go as needed with someone else looking after the day-to-day care of the property”.
Currently in Oxley, the median house price is $577,500. For that price, you may be looking at relatively small, older-style home which may be in need of some renovations. However, if you’re not looking for a huge garden, $577,500 could well and truly get you a brand new townhouse.
Paris agrees that town-homes are definitely on the rise in Brisbane, as more people in the outer suburbs are beginning to see a way into the property market.
“People are realising they may not need everything which came with a traditional house like a big yard,” Paris says.
“A lot of people are looking to downsize from family homes and for affordability.”
With people becoming more time-poor, it’s an added bonus that each complex of town-homes seems to become a little community.
“It’s about liveability and affordability,” Paris says.
On a suburban scale, one of the issues often raised with developments in Brisbane is the increased traffic in local areas.
“They’re generally building multi-level or townhouse developments on main roads close to public transport,” Paris says.
“The nature of these units is that when the council approves developments, they’re also working to improve local infrastructure at the same time.”
As Brisbane City becomes more populated, there’s going to be more housing and transport infrastructure put in to assist with liveability. But, Paris says that largely, the people looking to buy in high-density areas are those looking to utilise the local public transport.
