Maroochy River vs Newmarket

The median house price is $1.6M in Maroochy River and $1.7M in Newmarket, so Maroochy River is the cheaper entry point, with Newmarket houses about 1% dearer.

For units, Maroochy River sits at a median of $920K against $850K in Newmarket, which makes Newmarket the more affordable unit market and Maroochy River the pricier one.

Over the past year house prices moved +20.2% in Maroochy River and +10.5% in Newmarket, so recent momentum favours Maroochy River, although both suburbs recorded growth.

Looking back three years, Maroochy River houses are +27.0% and Newmarket houses +29.5%, so Newmarket has compounded faster than Maroochy River over the longer window.

Rental vacancy is 1.2% in Newmarket and 1.3% in Maroochy River, so landlords in Newmarket face less competition for tenants. Anything under 2% is generally read as a tight market where tenants compete for homes.

Newmarket is the bigger suburb, with a population of 5,083 against 1,667, roughly 3.0 times the size of Maroochy River; a larger suburb usually means a deeper pool of buyers and tenants.

In short: Maroochy River for a lower purchase price, Maroochy River for recent price momentum, Newmarket for the tighter rental market. Which matters more depends on whether the investor is buying for cash flow, capital growth or affordability.