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SAVVY househunters could save hundreds of thousands of dollars by buying a house in a ‘bridesmaid’ suburb just a stone’s throw from some of Brisbane’s priciest postcodes.

While the ‘bride’ suburbs of Ascot, Hamilton and Pullenvale may have some of the most prestigious real estate in Queensland, some of their neighbouring suburbs are just as appealing — and with a much more affordable price tag, new figures show.

Research by Realestate.com.au reveals it is possible to buy a house in Northgate, Riverhills and Murarrie for less than half of what you would expect to pay for their respective ‘bride’ suburbs.

In crunching the numbers, suburbs were ranked based on the greatest variance in median price between the ‘bride’ suburb and the ‘bridesmaid’ suburb.

The two suburbs being compared either share a boundary or are within 10km of each other.

For example, in Newstead the median unit price is $645,000, but just next door in Fortitude Valley, the median unit price is $390,000 — that’s a difference of $255,000.

The Brisbane ‘bridesmaid’ suburbs with the biggest difference in unit prices compared to their respective ‘bride’ suburbs include Woodridge, Deception Bay and Capalaba.

Realestate.com.au chief economist Nerida Conisbee said ‘bridesmaid’ suburbs were considered the second-best options for buyers locked out of the more expensive postcodes.

Ms Conisbee said some suburbs were seen as less desirable than others nearby, but buyer preferences could change.

“Difficulties in moving around are going to be less of an issue going forward,” Ms Conisbee said.

“Sometimes suburbs can seem vastly different but because preferences change they become far more desirable.”

Ms Conisbee said buying a property a bit further away from a ‘bride’ suburb to a ‘bridesmaid’ suburb could be a good an investment.

“In the knowledge that you’re never going to pay the same price, you can enjoy some of the amenities that the blue chip suburbs enjoy (by moving to wannabe suburbs),” she said.

“The factors that seem to lead to the gaps are things like beach access, housing is tight, block sizes and physical geography. Hilly does better as you can get higher aspects.”

In Brisbane, Ms Conisbee said homes in suburbs on the river were generally higher in price.

She said Stretton, with a median house price of $896,500, would be considered a ‘bride’ suburb because it had a lot of big homes on large blocks.

But the nearby suburb of Woodridge had a much more affordable median house price of $285,000 — meaning buyers could potentially save more than $600,000 by buying a house there instead.

“Places like New Farm are also really expensive for houses,” Ms Conisbee said.

“People are potentially buying units just to be in those (‘bride’) suburbs, and that’s something that would really push up the pricing.”

Ms Conisbee said the same considerations applied when it came to buying units.

“If there are a lot of units in one location as opposed to another, it makes it a lot cheaper than a suburb where there aren’t many units,” she said.

Northgate in Brisbane’s north has been identified as a ‘bridesmaid’ suburb, with a median house price of $633,000, yet only about 10km from the CBD.

Its ‘bride’ equivalent of blue-chip Ascot has a median house price of $1.4 million.

Janelle McKenna of Place Estate Agents Ascot said Northgate was a more affordable alternative to Ascot that offered “more bang for your buck”.

But house prices in the suburb are rapidly growing as buyers begin to realise its potential.

Ms McKenna holds the residential home sale record for Northgate after selling 94 Peary Street for $3 million early this year.

“I don’t think you’d get a bargain here anymore, but you’re going to have good growth — it’s definitely a suburb worth investing in,” Ms McKenna said.

She said the suburb had grown in popularity in recent years as coffee shops and micro breweries started to pop up.

“Northgate once upon a time was looked at as an industrial suburb, mainly because of the pineapple factory that was here,” Ms McKenna said.

“It’s now a community minded family area.”

On the other side of the river, the ‘bridesmaid’ suburb of Murarrie has a median house price of $645,500 — a far cry from its respective ‘bride’ suburb of Hamilton, where the average house sells for $1.4 million.

After falling in love with Murarrie nearly two decades ago, Mara and Vince Greco are now reluctant to leave.

The couple is selling their home at 32 Walter Street to move closer to family interstate.

The Grecos have seen a lot of once undesirable suburbs become ‘brides’ in the time they have lived there.

“We used to visit friends in Bulimba, but back then it was an area inhabited by people who worked down at the wharves,” Mr Greco said.

“It was low-lying and flood-prone. Of course, it’s been transformed now.”

But Mr Greco always saw potential in Murarrie.

“On the other side of Creek Road — the high side — is all small, post-war houses,” he said. “The elevation is something that always appealed to me. It’s a lot cooler up here than on the low side.”

The Grecos bought an old house in the suburb, but instead of renovating, decided to rebuild.

Mr Greco believes it was a good investment decision, and sees Murarrie continuing to grow in the years ahead.

“If you look at the progression of residential development over the decades, if you look at what Brisbane started out as and how it’s grown since then, the industry tends to get pushed further and further out,” he said.

“There’s less and less stevedore work and dry docks down along the river at Murrarie, and that will all slowly change.

“People want to live close to amenities, schools, shopping centres. Here, you’ve got the Cannon Hill shopping centre, Carindale (Westfield shopping centre) down the road, you’re one traffic light away from the north coast, one traffic light away from the south coast, and there’s a train station.”

Meagan Muir of Place Bulimba, who is marketing the Grecos home, said ‘bridesmaid’ suburbs like Murarrie often held up well in times of uncertainty because buyers saw an opportunity to buy close to a more desirable area.

“I think anyone wants to buy in a suburb where they can see growth happening,” Mrs Muir said.

“If they can get in at a value buy, they feel more confident because they’re not paying a premium for real estate at a time when the market is uncertain.”

Mrs Muir said Murarrie was seen as the next Cannon Hill in terms of the ripple effect from higher priced suburbs closer to the CBD.

“Now Cannon Hill is outpricing many buyers, so they’re looking to Murarrie,” she said.

“It’s very family friendly, with lots of young families and first home buyers.

“You’ve got a city view from some parts. In Bulimba, you’d be paying in the high $1 million bracket for a house with the same view.”

THE TOP 10 BRIDESMAID SUBURBS FOR BUYING HOUSES IN BRISBANE

Suburb #1  Median price Suburb #2  Median price  Price difference % difference

Stretton $896,500 Woodridge $285,000 $611,500 215%

Brookwater $780,000 Goodna $292,375 $487,625 167%

Kuraby $682,000 Logan Central $285,000 $397,000 139%

Fig Tree Pocket $1,170,000 Jamboree Heights $495,000 $675,000 136%

Newport $850,000 Deception Bay $362,000 $488,000 135%

Corinda $805,000 Inala $345,000 $460,000 133%

Ascot $1,445,000 Northgate $633,000 $812,000 128%

Pullenvale $1,115,000 Riverhills $505,000 $610,000 121%

Sherwood $915,000 Rocklea $420,000 $495,000 118%

Hamilton $1,403,888 Murarrie $645,500 $758,388 117%

(Source: Realestate.com.au)

THE TOP 10 BRIDESMAID SUBURBS FOR BUYING UNITS IN BRISBANE

Suburb #1  Median price Suburb #2  Median price  Price difference % difference

Runcorn $326,000 Woodridge $161,500 $164,500 102%

Scarborough $440,000 Deception Bay $255,000 $185,000 73%

Ormiston $485,000 Capalaba $292,500 $192,500 66%

Newstead $645,000 Fortitude Valley $390,000 $255,000 65%

Bulimba $650,000 Albion $400,000 $250,000 63%

Bethania $310,000 Beenleigh $203,000 $107,000 53%

New Farm $587,000 East Brisbane $395,500 $191,500 48%

North Lakes $402,500 Murrumba Downs $277,000 $125,500 45%

Teneriffe $567,500 Bowen Hills $395,500 $172,000 43%

Ascot $477,500 Wooloowin $336,750 $140,750 42%

(Source: Realestate.com.au)

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