Investment By Design

Will Cairns property prices keep rising in 2027, or has the market already peaked? In this Cairns real estate market forecast, we explore what's next for property prices, rental yields, housing supply and the best property investment opportunities in Cairns, Queensland.Cairns property prices have increased by an extraordinary 59% over the past three years, compared with 26% nationally. Despite this growth, I believe 2027 could present some incredible opportunities for buyers and property investors in Far North Queensland.In this video, I break down the latest Cairns property market data, explain why the housing shortage could continue pushing rents and property values higher, and share where I'd be looking to invest in Cairns in 2027.🏡 What you'll learn in this Cairns property market forecast:

• Why Cairns real estate prices have outperformed Sydney and Melbourne
• Whether Cairns property prices could continue increasing in 2027
• Why Cairns rental vacancy rates remain below 1%
• How the $1 billion Cairns Hospital expansion could influence housing demand
• Why rising construction costs are restricting new apartment development
• Why established apartments could be among the best investment opportunities in Cairns
• How the recent increase in properties for sale could create opportunities for buyers
• The Cairns suburbs I'd be researching for property investment in 2027

📍 Where would I invest in Cairns in 2027?

I share my thoughts on established apartments and investment properties in Cairns North, Manoora, Westcourt and Cairns City, including what investors should consider when comparing rental returns, body corporate fees, capital growth potential and purchase prices.

I also explain how an apartment I purchased in Manoora for approximately $170,000 in 2019 has grown to an estimated value of $470,000 today.

Past performance doesn't guarantee future growth, but understanding property replacement costs, housing supply and local rental demand can help investors make more informed decisions.

🏠 Looking to buy property in Cairns or North Queensland

I'm a Cairns-based property investor and co-founder of The Buyers Co, an independent buyers agency helping home buyers and property investors find, assess and negotiate properties throughout Cairns, Port Douglas, Townsville and the Atherton Tablelands.

We help local and interstate buyers purchase investment properties, family homes and off-market opportunities, with a strong focus on location, property fundamentals and negotiating the right price.

Whether you're researching your first Cairns investment property, planning to expand your Queensland property portfolio or relocating to Far North Queensland, we'd love to help.

🌐 The Buyers Co: https://www.thebuyersco.com.au

🎙️ Investment by Design Podcast: Property investing insights, real estate market analysis and conversations about building long-term wealth through Australian property.

💬 Join the conversation

Do you think Cairns property prices will keep rising in 2027, or is the market due for a correction?

And would you rather invest in a house or an established apartment in Cairns?

Let me know in the comments.

Subscribe for regular Cairns property market updates, Queensland real estate forecasts, property investment strategies and insights from the ground as a local Cairns buyers agent.

This video contains general market commentary and personal opinions, not individual financial advice. Property investment involves risks, and market forecasts are not guarantees.#CairnsRealEstate #CairnsPropertyMarket #PropertyInvestingAustralia

Most Australians are taught the same financial formula: get a good job, earn more, buy a house, upgrade your lifestyle and hopefully retire comfortably.But that path does not automatically create financial freedom.In this video, I break down the 7 rules that have shaped how I think about money, debt, property and lifestyle after building a portfolio of 10 properties over roughly 10 years.We cover:Why a high income does not automatically make you financially freeHow debt can either accelerate wealth or destroy cash flowThe 4 property pillars I believe need to be balanced: cash flow, capital growth, market forces and the ability to manufacture growthWhy long-term compounding matters more than short-term resultsThe hidden opportunity cost of expensive lifestyle purchasesWhy looking wealthy and actually being financially free are two very different thingsThe goal is not to stop spending money or avoid enjoying life. It is to build enough financial strength that your lifestyle no longer depends entirely on your next pay cheque.Need help buying the right property?At The Buyers Co, we help home buyers and property investors identify, assess, negotiate and secure property with a strategy built around their goals.We work across Cairns, Port Douglas, Townsville and the Atherton Tablelands, with a focus on making sure the property fits the bigger financial picture, not just the purchase itself.If you would like help with your next property purchase, visit The Buyers Co and get in touch.www.thebuyersco.com.auSubscribe for more straightforward conversations about property, investing and creating financial freedom.#PropertyInvesting #FinancialFreedom #AustralianProperty #RealEstateInvesting #WealthCreation #PropertyInvestment #TheBuyersCo

Australian property investors are disappearing.

But what if they're leaving at exactly the wrong time?

In this video, I break down why investor confidence has been hit by recent government policy changes, how borrowing power has changed, and why many Australians may be overlooking one of the most interesting property market setups we've seen in years.

While headlines focus on falling prices and investor uncertainty, something else is happening beneath the surface:

• Rental growth remains extremely strong

• Vacancy rates remain critically low in many markets

• Investor competition has reduced

• Some vendors are becoming more negotiable

• Yields on certain properties are improving

• Population growth continues to place pressure on housing demand

• New housing supply remains constrained

I also explain why I believe the biggest losers from investors exiting the market could ultimately be tenants, and why some of today's buying conditions could look very different a few years from now.

We'll look at:

🏠 The impact of the 2027 property policy changes

🏠 Investor borrowing capacity and negative gearing changes

🏠 Why rental yields are improving in some markets

🏠 The relationship between rents, prices and opportunity

🏠 Cairns property market observations from the ground

🏠 Population growth and housing demand

🏠 Construction costs and housing supply

🏠 Why some investors are waiting, and the risks of doing so

🏠 Whether 2026 could become a significant buying window for Australian property investors

This isn't a prediction that prices can only go up.

It's an exploration of what happens when sentiment turns negative while some of the underlying investment fundamentals remain surprisingly strong.

If you're interested in Australian property investing, real estate market trends, rental property analysis, housing supply, population growth, property prices, negative gearing, rental yields and long-term wealth creation through property, this video is for you.

👇 I'd love to hear your view:

Are investors making a mistake by stepping away from the market right now, or is this the start of a much bigger downturn?

#AustralianProperty

#PropertyInvesting

#RealEstateAustralia

#PropertyMarket

#NegativeGearing

#RentalCrisis

#PropertyPrices

#AustralianHousing

#PropertyInvestor

#InvestmentProperty

#HousingMarket

#RealEstateInvesting

#PropertyNews

#RentalProperty

#AustralianEconomy

Is the Australian property market heading for a crash in 2026, or is the current fall in house prices simply another correction?

Australian property prices are falling again, but this isn't the first time. Over the past 60 years, Australia has experienced multiple major housing market corrections, including the early 1980s recession, the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, the 2017–2019 credit tightening and the 2022 interest rate shock.

Despite being triggered by very different events, these Australian property downturns have something important in common.

In this video, I look at the history of **Australian house prices and property market crashes** to understand what's happening in the housing market today, including:

• Why Australian property prices fall
• What previous housing downturns had in common
• How interest rates and borrowing capacity affect house prices
• Why the 2022 property downturn eventually reversed
• Why Darwin experienced a much larger property crash
• The difference between a housing market correction and a genuine crash
• How unemployment and forced selling could affect property prices
• The importance of population growth and housing supply
• What would need to happen for Australian house prices to fall significantly further
• The key property market indicators I'm watching in 2026

The big question isn't simply whether Australian property prices are falling.

It's **what would need to happen for today's correction to turn into a genuine property crash?**

History suggests falling borrowing capacity can start a housing downturn, but much deeper property crashes generally require something more significant to change in the balance between housing demand and supply.

And importantly, there isn't one Australian property market. Conditions in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Darwin, Cairns and other regional markets can be very different.

If you're a property investor, home buyer or simply interested in the Australian housing market, this video provides a framework for understanding what could happen next rather than trying to predict the exact bottom.

Subscribe for straightforward Australian property, real estate and investing analysis.

www.thebuyersco.com.au

#AustralianProperty #PropertyMarket #PropertyCrash

Australian rents can’t keep rising forever… can they?

Rental affordability has deteriorated dramatically across Australia, but the assumption that rents are simply approaching a hard ceiling may be missing something important.

In this video, I look at what could happen next if households continue adapting to higher housing costs at the same time as the economics of property investing are changing.

We explore why:• Households may change their spending and living arrangements before rental demand disappears• Investor activity is pulling back• Higher-yielding properties could become increasingly attractive to investors• Larger family homes could face a very different rental supply problem• Today’s rental yield may not be the number investors should be focused on• Future rental growth could become just as important to analyse as future capital growth

The big question isn’t simply whether rents can keep rising.

It’s what happens when the properties tenants most need become the properties investors increasingly don’t want to own.

For property investors, that could create both significant risks and opportunities over the next decade.

#PropertyInvesting #AustralianProperty #RentalMarket #RealEstate #PropertyInvestment #Australia

What would 74,000 property investors do with $600,000?

I asked one of Australia’s largest property investing communities where they believe the best buying opportunities are right now. From their responses, I selected five markets and put them to the test.

The five contenders:

• Cairns North, QLD

• Launceston, TAS

• Dubbo, NSW

• Sunshine, VIC

• Parramatta, NSW

Rather than relying on opinions, hype or predictions, I compared each market using five measurable indicators that can help identify current market conditions:

1. Stock on market
How much property is actually available to buyers?

2. Rental vacancy
How tight is the rental market?

3. Supply constraints
How difficult is it for new housing supply to respond?

4. 12-month price growth
What is happening to prices right now?

5. Rental yield
What return could an investor potentially achieve at current prices?

Each location receives a score out of 50 before I reveal which market comes out on top.

The result surprised me, and there was a much bigger gap between first and second place than I expected.

This isn't about claiming one suburb will outperform every other market in Australia. Property selection, individual assets, price paid and due diligence still matter enormously. The aim is to compare five markets using the same framework and see what the numbers actually tell us.

If you're considering investing around the $600,000 mark, this should give you a useful framework for comparing markets before deciding where to buy.

The Buyers Co.
Independent property buyers agency specialising in Cairns and North Queensland.

www.thebuyersco.com.au

#PropertyInvesting #AustralianProperty #RealEstateAustralia #PropertyMarket #InvestmentProperty

Chapters:

00:00 Intro – Where Would 74,000 Investors Spend $600k?

00:57 #5 Parramatta, NSW

03:02 #4 Sunshine, VIC

04:51 #3 Dubbo, NSW

06:29 #2 Launceston, TAS

07:56 #1 Cairns North, QLD

10:39 Final Results & What the Scores Really Mean

11:45 The Most Important Investing Lesson

12:14 Which Property Would You Buy?

Building a new home has changed. Higher construction costs, smaller blocks, changing buyer expectations and pressure on housing supply are reshaping what it means to build in Cairns, Far North Queensland and regional Queensland.

In this episode, I sit down with Ram Singh from Five Rivers Group, a Cairns-based builder and property professional whose business delivers around 50 dwellings a year while also operating across property sales and rentals.

We discuss whether building new still stacks up against buying established, the mistakes that can cost buyers thousands, what is actually driving construction costs higher and why new housing estates across Cairns and regional Queensland are increasingly moving towards smaller lots and higher-density housing.

We also cover:

• Building new vs buying established
• The hidden costs and risks buyers need to understand before building
• Why Cairns house blocks are getting smaller
• What is driving construction costs across FNQ and regional Queensland
• How to design a new home with future resale value in mind
• What tenants actually want from a new investment property
• The rise of duplexes, triplexes and higher-density development
• Why Australia is struggling to build enough new homes
• What the next generation of housing could look like
• What Ram would personally buy or build with his own money

Although we use Cairns and Far North Queensland as the case study, many of the challenges facing builders, developers, home buyers and investors are being seen right across regional Queensland and Australia.

If you're considering building a new home, buying a house-and-land package, developing property or simply trying to understand where the housing market is heading, this conversation is worth watching before making your next move.

Subscribe for more discussions on Cairns property, FNQ real estate, regional Queensland property investing and the Australian housing market.

#CairnsProperty #CairnsRealEstate #FarNorthQueensland #FNQProperty #RegionalQueensland #PropertyInvesting #NewHomeBuild #AustralianProperty #HouseAndLand #PropertyDevelopment

Has the Australian property market entered a new phase?

With tighter rental regulations, changing investor sentiment and evolving tenant expectations, many investors are asking the same question: where are the best opportunities now?

In this episode, I'm joined by a leading Cairns property management expert, Adam Saitta from Benchmark Real Estate, to discuss why regional markets like Cairns could outperform some of Australia's larger capital cities, and what investors need to understand before buying their next investment property.

Whether you're buying your first investment or growing a portfolio, this conversation covers the practical insights that can help you reduce risk and improve long-term returns.

In this episode we discuss:

• Why the rental market has changed.
• Why fewer investors may enter the market.
• Why Cairns could outperform Melbourne.
• Current rental demand across Cairns.
• What tenants are really looking for.
• How professional property managers screen tenants.
• The biggest tenant red flags.
• Due diligence when buying a property with an existing tenant.
• What questions every investor should ask before going unconditional.
• The property features that attract quality tenants.
• Common mistakes investors continue to make.
• Where we believe the Cairns property market is heading.

If you're interested in real estate investing, Cairns property, Melbourne property, property investing Australia, rental property, or buying investment property, this episode is packed with practical insights from professionals working in the market every day.

If you enjoy evidence-based discussions about Australian property investing, subscribe for weekly episodes covering market trends, investing strategies, regional property opportunities and interviews with industry experts.

📩 Looking to buy property in Cairns or North Queensland?

The Buyers Co helps home buyers and investors secure the right property through independent advice, negotiation and due diligence.

🌐 https://www.thebuyersco.com.au

The property investing playbook that worked ten years ago may not work today.

Borrowing capacity has tightened, ownership structures matter more, SMSF investing is under pressure, tax strategies are being questioned and simply buying any property and waiting for it to grow is becoming increasingly risky.

So, what are the new rules of property investing in Australia, and how can investors still build a successful portfolio in 2026 and beyond?

In this episode of Investment By Design, Shaun Craike brings together three leading Cairns property professionals, Ben, Kurt and Cameron, for an honest debate about what has changed, which traditional strategies still work and where investors could make their biggest mistakes over the next decade.

The panel discusses:

00:00 The New Rules of Property Investing After the Budget

03:22 SMSF Property Deadline: What Investors Need to Know

07:12 Property Investing Myths That Could Cost You Money

09:14 Has the Australian Property Market Changed Forever?

13:06 Property Market Confidence: Are Investors Buying Again?

16:03 Cash Flow vs Capital Growth: Which Builds More Wealth?

21:43 Is Capital Growth Still King in Property Investing?

24:31 Renovations, Duplexes & Smart Property Investment Strategies

29:40 New Build vs Established Property: Which Should You Buy?

33:36 Why More Locals Are Investing in Cairns Property

40:21 Trust vs Company vs Personal Name: Best Ownership Structure?

44:52 SMSF Changes: Should Investors Buy Commercial Property?

52:09 Property Investing vs Property Flipping: Which Builds More Wealth?

57:05 How to Build Wealth Through Property Over the Next Decade

59:51 Delayed Gratification: The Secret Behind Successful Investors

1:02:22 Why Units Could Be the Next Property Investment Opportunity

The panel also reveals the investing advice they would no longer give, the rules they have personally changed their minds on and the strategies Australians may need to stop following.

Whether you are preparing to buy your first investment property, deciding how to structure your next purchase or trying to grow beyond one or two properties, this conversation will help you understand the decisions that matter most in today’s market.

Do you believe the old property investing playbook still works? Let us know in the comments.

Subscribe to Investment By Design for practical conversations about Australian property, finance, wealth creation and the regional markets shaping the country’s future.

#PropertyInvesting #AustralianProperty #RealEstateInvesting #SMSF #PropertyInvestment #InvestmentProperty #WealthCreation #CairnsProperty

Is now the right time to buy an investment property in Cairns, or should investors wait another 12 months?

In this episode of Investment By Design, Shaun Craike is joined by financial planner and former accountant Ben Cole, mortgage broker Stacey Hart, and top-performing Ray White real estate agent Natasha Whalley-Thompson to build a practical blueprint for investing in Cairns property after the 2026 Federal Budget.

The panel looks beyond the headlines to discuss what is actually happening across the Cairns property market, borrowing capacity, negative gearing, investor confidence and the availability of quality properties.

They also work through a realistic scenario involving homeowners earning approximately $200,000 per year with equity available in their home. The panel considers how much they may be able to borrow, what they could realistically purchase in Cairns and which risks they would need to manage.

In this episode, we discuss:

00:00 Buy Now or Wait? Cairns Property Outlook 2026

03:02 Why Property Investing Is a Long-Term Strategy

05:54 Could Cairns Property Prices Fall 10%?

10:19 Interest Rates, Confidence and Cairns Property

14:30 Lending Changes and Building the Right Property Team

17:42 Negative Gearing Changes Explained After the 2026 Budget

22:35 SMSF Property Deadlines and Serious Cairns Buyers

25:20 How Emotion Leads to Bad Property Decisions

29:50 Buying Your First Investment Property: Where to Start

33:46 Using Home Equity to Buy an Investment Property

36:10 Rentvesting: A Smarter Way to Start Investing?

39:00 Property Investment Mistakes to Avoid

43:47 Units vs Houses: What Would We Buy in Cairns?

52:30 Co-Ownership Risks and Final Investor Lessons

This conversation is designed for first-time property investors, existing homeowners considering using equity, and anyone researching the Cairns property market in 2026.

The discussion provides general information only and does not constitute personal financial, lending, tax, legal or property advice. Always seek advice based on your individual circumstances before making an investment decision.

Subscribe to Investment By Design for more conversations about Australian property, investing, finance, business and the future of Cairns and North Queensland.

#CairnsProperty #PropertyInvesting #AustralianProperty #CairnsRealEstate #InvestmentProperty #FirstTimeInvestor #NegativeGearing #MortgageBroker #PropertyMarket #RealEstateInvesting