Brisbane’s Woolloongabba has taken the number one spot in ME Bank’s top 20 suburbs for residential property buyers to invest in following the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The research, commissioned by ME and produced by consultancy Ethos Urban, ranked suburbs around the country on new transport infrastructure, rental yields, population growth, house prices, lifestyle appeal and other factors.  

Ethos Urban’s Chris McNeill said a common theme that really stood was the huge impact that new transport infrastructure was having on creating investment opportunities in a suburb. 

1.      Woolloongabba, QLD

2.      Burleigh Heads, QLD

3.      Five Dock, NSW

4.      North Melbourne, VIC

5.      Rozelle, NSW

6.      Ellenbrook, WA

7.      Parramatta, NSW

8.      Crows Nest, NSW

9.      Preston, VIC

10.   South Melbourne, VIC

11.   Yanchep, WA

12.   Waterloo, NSW

13.   Coffs Harbour, NSW

14.   North Sydney, NSW

15.   Pyrmont, NSW

16.   Claremont, WA

17.   Mermaid Beach, QLD

18.   Miami, QLD

19.   Concord, NSW

20.   Fairfield, QLD

“Woolloongabba, for example, is already serviced by two train stations and the new Cross City Rail Project will provide a new line running directly under the suburb, increasing connectivity and changing the way people use the area,” McNeill said. 

“This will only be bolstered in the coming years as Brisbane prepares its infrastructure for the 2032 Olympics.”  

For New South Wales, McNeill said transport infrastructure projects like the Sydney Metro South West project would enhance connectivity to the CBD from areas including North Sydney and Crows Nest. 

Five Dock, Rozelle, Parramatta, Pyrmont and Concord will also benefit from the high-speed, high-frequency metro line connecting them to the Sydney CBD.  

In Victoria, the Melbourne Metro project will benefit suburbs such as North Melbourne and South Melbourne, while Andrews Government’s investment in removing level crossings has improved the investment prospects of suburbs like Preston.  

Rail extensions and station upgrades in WA have improved suburbs like Ellenbrook, Yanchep and Claremont. 

“While the ACT, South Australia, Tasmania and Northern Territory, had no entries in the top 20, this doesn’t suggest they are lacking in favourable investment options,” McNeill said. 

“Based on the statistical approach and methodology applied, it is simply that the most impactful transport projects presently being undertaken, are in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia.”