Sunshine Coast Housing Market Update: August 2026
By Leigh Martinuzzi of Martinuzzi Group – eXp Realty | Sunshine Coast Real Estate
Key takeaways
- – Cotality has Sunshine Coast dwelling values down 0.5% over the three months to July. It is the first fall across south east Queensland since early 2023.
- – The combined capital cities fell 2.5% over the same quarter, so our easing has been far gentler than the national headlines suggest.
- – Hinterland house values still show double-digit annual growth, roughly 11.9% to 20.7%. Those are rolling twelve-month figures that include a much stronger start to the year.
- – Homes across our six main hinterland suburbs are still selling in about 14 to 24 days, though stock levels vary enormously between them.
For the first time since early 2023, the Sunshine Coast has recorded a fall in dwelling values.
It is half a percent over three months. Hardly a crisis.
But the number I keep coming back to is not the fall itself. It is the gap between that figure and what the suburb-level data is showing across the hinterland.
One says the market is easing. The other says homes are still selling in a fortnight. Both are correct, and understanding why is the useful part.
Sunshine Coast Market Performance
Cotality released its Regional Market Update on 18 August. The Real Estate Institute of Queensland’s most recent Sunshine Coast release covers the March quarter and came out at the end of May.
Gerard Burg, who heads research at Cotality in Australia, described a more selective Queensland market emerging. His view was that reduced borrowing capacity has made buyers more price sensitive, and that demand has started shifting toward more affordable centres.
That observation matters a great deal around here.
Hinterland Suburb Performance
This is where the Coast-wide figures stop being much use. Our patch behaves differently to Maroochydore or Noosa, and the suburb data shows it.
Two things stand out.
Nambour is doing a lot of heavy lifting. It has by far the most stock on market at 101 houses, but it is also turning that stock over in around 14 days. High volume and quick turnover together is a healthy combination.
Coes Creek sits at the opposite end. Only eight houses on the market at last check, selling in roughly the same timeframe. Small markets like that can feel frustrating for buyers and can favour owners who are prepared.
Two caveats before anyone gets carried away.
Those growth figures are rolling twelve-month numbers. They include the strong run through late 2025 and early 2026. They describe where we have been, not where we are heading.
The smaller suburbs also work off small sample sizes. Coes Creek recorded around 35 house sales for the year and Burnside about 49. In markets that size, a few larger sales can move a median noticeably.
Why the Hinterland Looks Strong While the Coast Looks Soft
This is the part worth slowing down for, because plenty of people are going to read the two sets of numbers and assume one of them is wrong.
Neither is. They are measuring different windows.
The Cotality regional figure covers roughly May to July. The suburb growth figures cover the full twelve months. A rolling annual median can still read 20% while the most recent quarter has flattened out completely.
There is a second reason, and it is the more useful one.
Burg’s point about demand shifting toward more affordable markets describes our hinterland almost exactly. Most of what we sell here sits well below the Sunshine Coast median of $1.29 million. Nambour, Coes Creek and Burnside sit a long way below it.
Nationally, the softness through this cycle has been concentrated at the premium end. The more affordable end has generally held up better.
So the hinterland has not been immune. It has simply been sitting in the part of the market absorbing the least pressure.
I would not treat that as a guarantee of anything. But it does explain why the local experience has felt so different to the national commentary.
What This Means for Homeowners and Sellers
If you are staying put, very little changes. Half a percent over a quarter is noise. Your equity position after the past few years is almost certainly still strong.
If you are thinking about selling, the selective-buyer point is the practical one.
When borrowing capacity tightens, the pool of buyers who can reach any given price gets smaller. Not less interested. Simply unable to stretch as far as they could a year ago.
Pricing therefore carries more weight than it did twelve months ago. Sitting well above the market is no longer a small overreach, because it can put you above an entire tier of buyers rather than just a few.
Presentation matters more for the same reason. When fewer buyers can reach your number, the ones who can need to be properly convinced.
It is also worth knowing that selling conditions softened across most of regional Australia this quarter. Cotality found the median time on market rose in 44 of the country’s 50 largest regional centres. Our selling times have held up well so far. I would not assume that continues automatically.
What This Means for Buyers
If you have been waiting for a correction to arrive here, the data does not really support that plan.
Half a percent over a quarter is not an opening. And homes in our six main hinterland suburbs are still moving in two to three and a half weeks.
What has genuinely improved is the pace. A market where homes take slightly longer to sell is one where you get time to inspect properly, ask questions and negotiate without panic.
One practical suggestion. If your pre-approval is more than a few months old, get an updated figure before you keep searching. Plenty of people are still shopping against a number a lender would no longer agree to.
Stock levels also vary hugely across the hinterland. Nambour currently offers real choice. Coes Creek and Burnside offer very little. It may be worth widening your search area rather than waiting for the right home to appear in one small suburb.
What the Sunshine Coast Faces From Here
A few things are worth watching over the next few months.
Spring may be quieter than usual. Cotality’s latest listings data shows new listings running below average nationally. Burg’s read was that this spring could prove cooler than past years, with owners weighing up softer values, cautious buyers and an uncertain outlook on rates. If fewer owners come to market here, the ones who do may face less competition than they would normally expect.
Population growth remains the structural support. The Sunshine Coast reached 381,957 residents at 30 June 2025, an increase of around 7,659 people over the year. REIQ has also reported the region as Australia’s leading regional destination for internal migration over the twelve months to March. That is real demand rather than speculative demand.
Borrowing capacity is still the constraint. Until that shifts, the affordability question is likely to keep shaping which price brackets hold up and which do not.
Watch the local stock levels rather than the national index. The number of comparable homes on the market in your suburb right now will tell you more about your timing than anything published about the country as a whole.
My honest read is that our market has come off the boil rather than turned. Values have eased slightly, the annual figures remain strong, and homes here are still selling in reasonable timeframes.
What has changed is that buyers are being more selective. The last twelve months are no longer a fair guide to the next six.
If you are weighing up a move in the next six to twelve months, it may be worth getting an updated view of where your property actually sits today rather than working from a figure set earlier in the year. A short conversation can give you a lot more clarity before any decisions get made.
Get in touch with us today and and let’s give you fantastic results that you deserve.
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