Buyers waiting for a discount in the central beachside suburbs of Mermaid Beach and Miami should not hold their breath, with demand versus supply remaining firmly in sellers’ favour.

Kollosche sales agent Eoghan Murphy, who specialises in the Mermaid Beach and central beachside market, said scarcity, not the wider market noise, remained the defining feature of the corridor.

“There are two houses and three villas on the market in Mermaid Beach and Miami right now. That’s it, and buyers are still lining up to make offers,” Mr Murphy said.

He said talk of the government’s tax changes, uncertainty around interest rate movements and unending geopolitical friction was overshadowing the main issue.

“While all this talk around the dinner table is relevant, it is overshadowing the one, most basic, fundamental affecting the market – low supply,” Mr Murphy said.

According to Mr Murphy, the shortage is not a temporary dip but a structural feature of a high-demand coastal corridor anchored by ocean frontage and long-held wealth.

“Land in these prime beachside pockets is finite whereas many inland Gold Coast suburbs simply are not,” he said. “Opportunities will not be freed up by subdivision or fresh land release any time soon.”

He said existing owners wanted to maintain the precincts’ community feel, rather than squeeze villas onto smaller and smaller blocks, so what little supply exists stays tightly held.

“It is why demand hasn’t really budged in these areas, even if enquiry volumes have dipped elsewhere,” Mr Murphy said.

“Buyers keep turning up because the lifestyle appeal of living this close to sand and surf is not something a downturn in wider market confidence can manufacture more of.”

Mr Murphy said the recent sales of three knockdown properties in Mermaid Beach for more than $4 million was proof that value in these beachside areas reside in the land rather than the dwelling and that value was not going soft.

The pattern is not unprecedented, according to Mr Murphy, who recalled the market shift that followed the December 2021 peak, when many buyers assumed prices would “fall off a cliff”.

“Instead, vendors with no pressing need to sell simply withdrew and waited, tightening supply further. Within a year, prices had risen again and the bargain many buyers were waiting for never arrived.”

Equally telling was the listing of two comparable Mermaid Beach houses at the same time late last year, a rare occurrence some buyers took as a sign more stock was on the way.

“Many buyers chose to sit back and wait, but nothing of the calibre has come to market since, and those opportunities are now long gone,” Mr Murphy said.

The message to buyers sitting on the sidelines in the current market is simple.

“Anyone who is waiting for a discount in Mermaid Beach or Miami before jumping in is more likely to miss the next upswing rather than catch a bargain,” he said. “If you find something you can afford and love, the smartest move is to act now, because someone else will be willing to pay the same, if not more.”

Mr Murphy said the upper hand currently held by sellers was not a fleeting trend, but one baked into the geography of the area.

“As long as this strip of coastline stays scarce and desirable, and there is no sign of that changing anytime soon, sellers will continue to dictate the terms of this micro-market, cycle after cycle.”

To discuss opportunities in Mermaid Beach and the central beachside market, reach out to Eoghan Murphy and his team.