The Queensland government have just released broad hectare land profiles for the Gold Coast, Ipswich and Logan.
The table below provides a quick summary:
| Headline summary | |||
| Municipality | Hectares | Dwellings* | % SEQld supply |
| Gold Coast | 1,994 | 63,234 | 15% |
| Ipswich | 6,532 | 111,617 | 28% |
| Logan | 9,924 | 123,063 | 30% |
| Forecast housing typology | |||
| Municipality | Higher density | Standard urban | Rural Residential |
| Gold Coast | 82% | 16% | 2% |
| Ipswich | 57% | 42% | 1% |
| Logan | 18% | 81% | 1% |
| Expected dwellings per hectare | |||
| Municipality | Higher density | Standard urban | Overall |
| Gold Coast | 104 | 12 | 32 |
| Ipswich | 58 | 10 | 17 |
| Logan | 33 | 12 | 12 |
Matusik + Queensland Government. * Medium scenario.
Some comments
- These three municipalities are expected to accommodate close to three quarters (73%) of the new housing development across south east Queensland.The Sunshine Coast and Brisbane City Council are forecast to hold an additional 10% each.
- Most of the new housing development on the Gold Coast, and much of it in Ipswich, is expected to be higher density and, in most part, apartments. This is much higher than current market demand.
- The density expectations appear realistic for standard urban development but impossibly high for higher density areas. Density must be offset. To get people to give up their private space, the immediate public spaces must be of a high quality. This often involves adequate green space and enough room between buildings for views, sunlight, privacy and climatic comfort.
It might pay for town planners to better understand current housing densities before they set such targets.
For example, these Queensland suburbs have the following number of dwellings per hectare:
- New Farm 50
- Surfers Paradise 34
- Forest Lake 18
- Southport 17
- North Lakes 11
- Springfield Lakes 8
The suburb of New Farm has the highest dwelling density in Queensland.
To download these new broad hectare land profiles, click here.