QLD property investors anticipate acceleration ahead of 2032 Olympic Games

The decision on whether Queensland’s bid to host the 2032 Olympic Games has been successful is expected this month, but the real estate sector is already celebrating.

According to a new report by Colliers, Brisbane’s hosting of the 2032 Olympic Games has the potential to supercharge the region’s residential and commercial real-estate sectors. Citing the international visibility associated with hosting the Olympic Games, the team at Colliers believed that an event of this magnitude has the potential to consolidate Brisbane and SEQ as an attractive geographical location for global capital looking at diversifying their investment portfolio across Asia-Pacific markets.

Colliers’ report highlighted a series of interrelated benefits that they expect hosting the Olympic Games would yield for Brisbane’s property market. To begin with, Colliers expected that a successful Olympic bid will see many of Queensland’s infrastructure projects accelerated. The report predicted that these upgrades “will provide a lasting legacy to the area and provide industrial land-banking opportunities in key infrastructure growth corridors.”

“Venue upgrades and new venue infrastructure will drive new commercial and retail precinct opportunities,” it added. In addition, Colliers’ report suggested that the regeneration of existing commercial precincts such as Inner South, Spring Hill and Petrie Terrace in Brisbane Metropolitan area and Robina in the Gold Coast has an increased likelihood to become a reality.

Following the conclusion of the Olympic Games, they noted that the conversion of Olympic Village accommodation represented a unique opportunity for build-to-rent investors looking to expand their portfolio.

More broadly, the report anticipated an indirect boost for Brisbane’s commercial and residential property markets as a result of its enhanced global profile following the international event.

“Opportunities for new office development or refurbishment activity may be present to meet positive demand and provide a new generation of office building to attract and retain talent to the Brisbane and SEQ workforce,” Colliers said.

In a statement released last week, Property Council Queensland executive director Jen Williams suggested that “as the recipients of a steady flow of interstate migrants, and with Brisbane on the cusp of being announced as an Olympic city, Queensland’s overarching economic conditions are very much trending in the right direction”.

She said that sentiment regarding the state’s economic growth prospects is “the highest on record” and that “we are the only state to record a boost on this metric over the past quarter". Ms Williams said that “ongoing investment in the activation of our city centres and the productivity of our CBD is essential as we set ourselves up for the 2032 Games”. In February, the International Olympic Committee called Brisbane their preferred candidate city for the 2032 Olympic Games.

*By Fergus Halliday - Smart Property Investment July 2021