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At the recent Urban SEQ Market Insights event, MOTIV’s Founder and CEO Carly Cottam joined a panel of leading industry voices to explore the trajectory of the Southeast Queensland property market.
At the recent Urban SEQ Market Insights event, MOTIV’s Founder and CEO Carly Cottam joined a panel of leading industry voices to explore the trajectory of the Southeast Queensland property market. The discussion spanned buyer sentiment, demand trends, and how to sustain momentum in an environment defined by caution and selectivity. Below, we share highlights from the Q&A session, offering insight into how MOTIV is navigating — and leading — in this climate.
Q: How do you see the property market in South East Queensland playing out this year across different segments?
According to our Director, Carly Cottam, 2025 has brought a recalibrated yet confident property landscape in Southeast Queensland, underscored by nuanced differences across buyer groups.
Population growth continues to underpin demand. Queensland has welcomed over 144,000 new residents in the past year, with a notable contribution from overseas migration. This influx is placing continued pressure on housing supply, particularly in Brisbane and the Gold Coast, reinforcing a strong foundation of demand even amidst shifting macro conditions.
Segment-specific trends include:
- Investor activity is building. While enquiry hasn't yet converted into high-volume transactions, expectations are that rate cuts from the RBA will unlock more momentum. With yields remaining strong and rental markets tight, sentiment among investors is steadily improving.
- Downsizers and rightsizers are proving resilient. Often well-capitalised and less dependent on lending conditions, these buyers are motivated by lifestyle and life-stage. However, their confidence to transact is closely linked to the economic outlook and their ability to exit existing assets smoothly. Interest rate cuts may not affect them directly, but they remain a key psychological trigger.
- First home buyers and young professionals are finding more accessible entry points, supported by policy shifts such as the First Home Stamp Duty Concession. These buyers respond quickly to both sentiment and incentives and are gravitating towards lifestyle-rich, well-connected locations just outside core CBDs.
Overall, the demand is present — but it’s highly discerning. Today’s buyers expect clarity, confidence, and value at every step of the journey. For developers and marketers, this means a deep understanding of buyer intent, motivations, and behaviours.
Q: In a softer market, how are you driving demand through product?
Precision is everything.
Rather than increasing supply, MOTIV’s approach is to shape the right product for the right buyer. That starts with identifying clear gaps in the market and leaning into them with purpose.
Key product trends include:
- Rightsizing over downsizing: Affluent downsizers are seeking considered scale. They want functionality without excess—layouts that offer spaces for wellness, work, and occasional guests.
- Multi-generational living: There’s growing demand for floorplans that enable connection and privacy across generations. Flexibility is critical.
- Luxury within a modest footprint: Particularly in the sub-$2M space, buyers are seeking 85–110sqm apartments that deliver premium design, strong amenity, and efficient use of space—without the price tag of ultra-luxury finishes.
Design-wise, the emphasis is on spatial intelligence over extravagance: intuitive layouts, dual-purpose zones, and storage that genuinely works.
In the sub-$2M market, storytelling is vital. Buyers are value-conscious and often unaware of the true cost of quality and amenity in today’s construction environment. Clear communication of the value proposition—across design, location, and lifestyle—is essential.
In the $2M+ space, the focus shifts. Buyers here aren’t just purchasing property; they’re buying a sense of place. Exclusivity, scarcity, and a private, club-like experience are key drivers. The more tailored the product, the more decisive the buyer becomes.
Q: How have your businesses leaned into tech and AI advancements, and are you using different systems or technology than three years ago?
MOTIV has embraced AI as a strategic driver of performance—particularly in automation, lead nurturing, and campaign optimisation.
AI enables the team to:
- Build hyper-personalised email journeys based on real-time behaviour.
- Score and prioritise leads with stronger purchase intent.
- Continuously refine messaging and campaign content based on performance insights—not assumptions.
The result is faster decision-making and smarter segmentation—without sacrificing the human element that underpins all great marketing.
AI is also helping MOTIV’s media team enhance performance across META platforms, including creative testing, audience targeting, and spend efficiency. These insights are actively reshaping ad structures and feeding directly into improved conversion outcomes for clients.
As Carly notes, "It’s not about replacing human insight—it’s about amplifying it with smarter tools and more agile strategies."
Southeast Queensland’s market may be more discerning, but the opportunity is still immense. The projects that succeed now are the ones anchored in clarity—of product, of brand, and of audience.
— Carly Cottam, Founder & CEO, MOTIV
