Property prices are tipped to hit a $A1 million median as the city attracts a skilled workforce from other states
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Australia has a new urban destination for those seeking a high quality of life — and it’s not Melbourne or Sydney.
A new report released by Deloitte Access Economics has revealed Brisbane as the best ‘city swap’ location to live and work. It follows on from the east coast capital being named as one of the 50 best places in the world by Time Magazine, the only Australian capital to make the list.
The State of the Cities Report by Deloitte Access Economics reported the city offers significant advantages to businesses and workers alike, with a $25 billion infrastructure pipeline in play to support the city’s rapid population growth as well as a track record of processing development applications 38 percent faster than other cities. Commercial rents are also appealing compared with the southern cities, averaging $450sqm less than similar centres in Australia and internationally.
For workers, commute times are minimised with less congestion on the roads and trains more likely to run on time compared with other Australian cities.
The report also found that Brisbane’s economy is set to grow by 68 percent to $275 billion in the 20 years to 2041.
Clearly, it is not news to those seeking to enter the Brisbane market, with CoreLogic data released this week showing the Queensland capital is now the second most expensive residential real estate market in the country, second only to Sydney. Prices rose by 1.4 percent during May, bringing the median property price to $843,231. Only Adelaide experienced a higher growth rate in home prices in May at 1.8 percent.
Those price increases look set to continue as Brisbane experiences the fastest growing working age population among Australia’s major centres, growing 7.7 percent compared to an average of 4 percent across major cities. The Domain House Price Report released earlier this year predicted the median house price Queensland capital would hit $1 million in the next 12 months.
While demand for housing in the city is strong, it would appear the workforce is there to support it.
Lead Partner at Deloitte Access Economics, Pradeep Philip, said Brisbane offered significant growth opportunities for businesses, innovators, and investors.
“Brisbane is the definition of a growth stock, with clear opportunities for innovators, investors and businesses across Australia and internationally in the years to come,” Mr Philip said.
“This is evident in Brisbane’s talent market, where it has the fastest growing working age population among Australia’s major centres, with 7.7 percent growth against an average of 4 percent across major cities.
“This, combined with Australia’s highest ranked university, a 32 percent increase in university graduates in the past five years, and the highest state-wide rates of technical and trades education attainment in the country, positions Brisbane with a highly competitive, skilled, and growing workforce.
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A vibrant 1954 Palm Springs home featuring eight colorful murals by late artist Shawn Savage is on the market for $2.295 million. The 2,237-square-foot property features bold hot-pink doors, three bedrooms, a pool, mountain views and playful interiors blending modern glamour with classic Palm Springs style.
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A bold 1950s home in Palm Springs, California, adorned with eight colorful murals by the late artist Shawn Savage, is coming to market ahead of the city’s annual Modernism Week.
The white stucco home on El Camino Way, built in 1954 and recently renovated, has an asking price of $2.295 million. Its staggered facade features three playfully abstract murals on either side of double-height hot pink doors.
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The sellers are Los Angeles-based partners John Freeman and Mathieu Faure, who knew it was “the one” when they saw it after several months of searching in the winter of 2023. “It’s a happy house,” Freeman said. “We really liked the feel of the house: the uniqueness, the openness, the brightness—and the art.”
Located in the Mesa neighborhood of Palm Springs, which backs up to the San Jacinto Mountains, the 2,237-square-foot house features three bedrooms, an angled bonus room and a yard with a pool, desert mountain views and another colorful mural running alongside the pool.
“I never thought in my life I would have a house with pink doors,” said Faure, a producer at Apple TV who is originally from Paris. “It’s so colorful, it’s so different. And so Palm Springs.”
The layout of the home creates a smooth flow from the front doors through the open-plan common area—a foyer, bar, and living and dining room—into the kitchen around a fireplace wall and out to the yard. A corridor leads to a private bedroom wing, where the primary suite has floor-to-ceiling windows and the primary bath is only a tad smaller than the bedroom.
Faure has filled the home with Jonathan Adler furniture, rugs and accessories, riffing on the energetic California vibes of the house to create an aesthetic of “modern American glamour,” he said.
“It was enjoyable for me to play with different types of furniture and make this house ‘happy chic,’ as I describe it,” he said.
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“He did a fantastic job,” said Freeman, who is an attorney and consultant. “It does kind of bring a smile to my face whenever I walk into the house.”
Since the furniture and decor were chosen for the particularities of the space, the couple is open to selling them with the home. Their West Hollywood house is already furnished; the collection doesn’t match the vibes of a Houston loft they bought near family; and Faure can’t imagine these pieces in New York—where he’s lived in the past—he said.
The duo bought the Palm Springs house for $1.925 million in 2024, according to property records, and will list the home Monday. They are represented by Stewart Smith, Patrick Jordan and Kevin Stanley of Bennion Deville Homes/Luxury Portfolio International.
The previous owners had purchased the home in 2021 for $975,000 and then spent more than two years and $700,000 on the renovation, according to Realtor.com. They commissioned Savage, a local Palm Springs artist and painter known for his joyful abstract work, to decorate the home.
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Savage, who died in 2024, lived in the Coachella Valley from 2003, and his work can be found in various local institutions and is on exhibit at the Illumine Gallery in Palm Springs. “Some artists pass through a place. Shawn Savage became a part of it,” the gallery’s description states.
Unsurprisingly, the murals invite lots of friendly conversations, as well as guided tours and interested lookers, but never to a degree that it disturbed the peacefulness of their home or the neighborhood, the sellers said. “It felt like living in an art gallery, and you have the exterior that you would share with the world,” Faure explained.
The neighborhood also played a role in their decision to buy, because of its access to the hiking trails of the San Jacinto Mountains, the lack of through-roads and the neighborly environment.
“It’s a very friendly place,” Faure said.
