Queensland home buyers flee Brisbane for regional property hotspots amid rate hikes

Key points

• Cash-strapped Queenslanders are moving away from Brisbane's established suburbs towards regional mining, farming and manufacturing towns, according to new quarterly sales data from InfoTrack. The Reserve Bank's four rate rises this year lifted the cash rate to 4.6 per cent, cutting borrowing power.
• Regional hotspots such as Kirwan in Townsville, Maryborough, Gracemere and Emerald appear in the state's top 10 house markets, with median prices well below the $890,000 statewide average.
• InfoTrack's Lee Bailie said affordability is driving the shift.