Calamvale has been a hot topic of conversation for quite a few years now. The suburb has undergone massive gentrification over the last decade or so, and has become widely known for being extremely family-friendly. Buying in the suburb is becoming increasingly difficult as people are holding onto homes for far longer than average, and houses on the market are selling very quickly.
Why exactly is the suburb so popular though?
Many current and former residents consider Calamvale to be one of the best suburbs they’ve lived in. With several major shopping centres in the suburb itself or close nearby, all key amenities in demand by residents is generally no more than 5-10 minutes drive from anywhere in the suburb. The suburb is quite popular with residents from surrounding areas as well, so it’s not uncommon for friends and family to catch up at the many restaurants or cafes throughout the suburb. Another reason for this popularity is also the extensive parkland that is available through the suburb. The Calamvale District Park is popular with sports lovers and families alike, given it has extensive playgrounds, outdoor exercise equipment and free Wifi.
This popularity creates constant demand for housing in Calamvale, and as a result the house and land available in Calamvale tend toward the smaller side by Brisbane standards. The average lot sits about 300 sqm – 400 sqm in size in Calamvale, which is slightly less than the average for Brisbane. Interestingly, houses tend towards the larger size: the average house has four bedrooms in Calamvale. This makes the homes highly popular with families for obvious reasons. Homes in Calamvale tend to be ‘newer’ than neighbouring suburbs like Sunnybank, as the majority were built around 1990-2000. Calamvale is also a popular suburb for pet owners: the suburb has 2 veterinarians within the suburb itself, but there are at least 15 within 10 minutes drive. For this reason, it’s not uncommon to see plenty of people out and walking their dogs in the morning/afternoon and using the 2 council provided off leash dog parks.
Much more affordable than comparable suburbs like Macgregor (median house price $750,000) and Sunnybank ($717,500), Calamvale is the preferred choice for younger families. With an average house price of $643,500, is certainly not a first home buyer market, however it is ideal if you want a bigger home at a more affordable price. Prices are expected to rise over the coming years, which is unsurprising considering how quickly property in the area is being snapped up.
While Calamvale is more than half an hour outside of Brisbane, the suburb is in a great location for those who work in the Brisbane CBD. Roughly 40 minutes from Brisbane (in peak hour traffic; so just over thirty minutes in off-peak hours), there are a number of ways to travel around. Drivers can take Beaudesert Road until it connects to the M3/Pacific Motorway for a direct route through to the city. The suburb also has a number of public transport options. It’s an easy ten-minute bus ride to the Kuraby or Richlands train stations from most points in the suburb, which can get residents into the city in just over 30 minutes. You could also take the bus in, with the bus a roughly 45 minutes trip to the city.
COVID-19 has driven a lot of buyers from the market because of a fear of falling property values, however paradoxically it is in fact a great time to buy. With property markets beginning to recover from the COVID-19 shock, and huge government subsidies and grants, many are also finding that they’re able to put down larger deposits than they usually would and are able to find suitable properties in previously very hard to find markets.
Finding new property in Calamvale is not easy given the suburb was substantially built out in the 1990’s/2000’s, as discussed above. There are very few opportunities to build or buy new, which is significant push in the increasing house prices in the area.
Parc Calamvale is a new house and land development that might just be one of the last house and land estates in the area. With only 22 lots across the estate — a formerly massive homestead with a palatial mansion that fell into considerable disrepair over the last decade or so — the estate sits on Menser Street. Lots range in size from 405 sqm to 776 sqm, which is definitely larger than the average for the area. The project also offers buyers a variety of house and land packages. All of the house designs have four or five bedrooms, and the specifics of each house and land package differ as each has been specifically designed for the lot it sits on. This is something you rarely see in house and land estates, and it really shows how much thought and effort that has gone into the entire estate. The house and land packages are priced from $674,043.
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