Mackay & Whitsundays Residential Property Market Insights Half 1 2026

Milly Baker  | AAPI CPV
Regional Director - Northern QLD 

Welcome to the Mackay and Whitsunday residential property market insights for the first half of 2026.

Residential market conditions across Mackay and the Whitsundays remained firmly supported during the period, although the two regions continued to display distinct market characteristics. Mackay was driven predominantly by local employment confidence, limited available stock and sustained demand for established family housing, while the Whitsunday market remained more closely influenced by tourism, lifestyle appeal and investor activity.

Across Mackay, growth extended through detached houses, units and vacant land. The median house price reached $725,000, with units recording a median of $450,000 and vacant land $306,000. Demand remained strongest for well-presented properties offering practical accommodation, limited immediate expenditure and improvements such as sheds, pools, secondary living areas and good outdoor utility.

The Whitsunday market continued to trade at comparatively high lifestyle-driven price levels. Detached housing remained relatively stable, recording a median of $700,000, while units were the standout segment, increasing to a median of $575,000. Activity remained concentrated across Bowen, Cannonvale, Airlie Beach, Proserpine and Jubilee Pocket, with coastal position, views, presentation and rental utility continuing to materially influence buyer demand.

The common themes across both markets were constrained supply, elevated construction and replacement costs and continued competition for quality established property. Vacant land remained more variable due to limited transaction volumes, construction feasibility and the diverse nature of available allotments.

Mackay 

Dwellings

Mackay’s detached housing market remains the core driver of regional residential activity. The 2026 YTD median house price of $725,000 reflects a further uplift from the 2025 annual median of $660,000 and a material step above the 2024 annual median of $550,000. That movement is important because it shows the market has continued to re-price after the major 2024-2025 uplift rather than simply holding its previous gains.

At a practical market level, demand is strongest for well-presented, established family homes that allow buyers to avoid renovation risk and construction delays. Purchasers are paying premiums for modernised dwellings, secondary living spaces, sheds, side access, pools and good outdoor areas. The buyer pool remains a mix of local upgrading owner-occupiers and investors chasing rental depth, though affordability is making investors more selective in the higher price brackets.

• The Mackay LGA recorded 858 house sales in 2026 YTD / first half, with a median of $725,000.

• The house median has increased by approximately 9.8% compared with the 2025 annual median and approximately 31.8% compared with 2024.

• The strongest suburb-level growth is evident in Sarina, South Mackay, Shoal Point, West Mackay, Glenella, Blacks Beach, East Mackay, Rural View and North Mackay.

• The highest-volume detached housing suburbs in H1 2026 include Andergrove, Beaconsfield, Bucasia, Sarina, South Mackay, North Mackay, Slade Point and West Mackay.

• The prestige and upper-family-home market is increasingly normalising at price points that were less common in earlier Mackay cycles, particularly across beachside, elevated, larger-lot and modern family-home locations.

Units

The unit and strata segment continues to benefit from relative affordability. The Mackay LGA median unit price reached $450,000 in 2026 YTD / first half, up from the 2025 annual median of $410,000 and materially above the $350,000 annual median recorded in 2024. The segment remains attractive to investors and first-home buyers who are priced out of detached housing, while also appealing to downsizers and buyers seeking lower-maintenance accommodation close to employment, services and coastal lifestyle areas.

The key point for this segment is that unit values are still trading at a meaningful discount to detached housing, while replacement-cost pressures continue to provide underlying support for established product. Well-located units with practical floor plans, garages, improved presentation and manageable body corporate settings remain the most marketable.

Demand is strongest where weekly rents support the purchase price and where buyers can see limited near-term capital expenditure risk.

• The Mackay LGA recorded 242 unit sales in 2026 YTD / first half, with a median of $450,000.

• The median unit price is approximately 9.8% above the 2025 annual median and approximately 28.6% above 2024.

• The Mackay CBD/suburb area remains the highest-volume unit market, recording 48 sales for 2026 YTD.

• Andergrove, Blacks Beach, Beaconsfield, East Mackay, North Mackay, West Mackay and South Mackay recorded notable value growth in the 2026 YTD data.

• The segment’s affordability relative to detached housing is likely to remain its main advantage through the second half of 2026.

Vacant land

Vacant land remains the most supply-sensitive segment in the Mackay market. The LGA recorded 55 vacant land sales in 2026 YTD / first half with a median of $306,000. This sits above the 2025 annual median of $265,000 and well above the $229,000 median recorded in 2024, reflecting the combined influence of limited titled supply, higher construction costs, stronger replacement-cost considerations and buyers competing for build-ready or lifestyle-oriented land opportunities.

The vacant land dataset is thinner than the house and unit segments, which means suburb-level movements need to be read carefully. A small number of transactions can shift the median materially, particularly where sales include a mix of small residential lots, infill land, larger residential allotments and rural residential/lifestyle sites. The market narrative, however, is consistent: well-located titled land is scarce, and buyers are paying more for certainty of location, title, services and build timing.

• Mackay LGA vacant land recorded 55 sales in 2026 YTD / first half at a median of $306,000.

• The 2026 YTD median is approximately 15.5% above the 2025 annual median and approximately 33.6% above 2024.

• Bucasia was the clearest suburb-level land result, recording 6 sales at a median of $265,800 and 7.0% growth against the 2025 annual median.

• Land supply remains constrained relative to demand for new family housing, with construction costs continuing to influence feasibility and buyer budgets.

• The strongest land demand is expected to remain in established residential corridors, northern beaches locations, and lifestyle/rural residential settings where supply is limited.

Whitsundays

Dwellings

The Whitsunday detached housing market remains well supported, showing a 2026 YTD Whitsunday LGA house median of $700,000. This is modestly above the 2025 benchmark of $680,000 and remains materially above the 2024 benchmark of $585,000.

The strongest activity remains concentrated in the established residential and lifestyle locations, with Bowen recording the highest suburb-level house sales count in 2026 YTD, followed by Cannonvale, Proserpine and Jubilee Pocket. Coastal and lifestyle-oriented suburbs continue to attract a premium, although limited sample sizes mean individual sales can materially influence some suburb medians.

• The Whitsunday LGA house segment recorded 235 2026 YTD sales at a median of $700,000.

• The 2026 YTD house median is 2.9% above the 2025 benchmark and approximately 19.7% above 2024.

• Bowen, Cannonvale, Proserpine and Jubilee Pocket are the main recorded suburb-level house sales markets in the 2026 YTD data.

• Premium lifestyle and coastal locations remain highly variable due to low turnover and variation in dwelling quality, views, site attributes and accommodation utility.

• The market remains quality-led, with buyers placing greater weight on presentation, liveability, location and near-term capital expenditure risk.

Units

The unit and strata segment recorded the strongest broad percentage movement, with the Whitsunday LGA unit median increasing to $575,000 in 2026 YTD. This is approximately 19.8% above the 2025 benchmark and approximately 40.2% above 2024.

Unit demand is being supported by affordability relative to detached houses, tourism and accommodation exposure, and investor interest in assets with rental or holiday-letting appeal. Cannonvale and Airlie Beach remain the dominant unit markets, with Bowen and Jubilee Pocket providing additional depth at different price points.

• The Whitsunday LGA unit segment recorded 133 2026 YTD sales at a median of $575,000.

• Cannonvale is the dominant suburb-level unit market by transaction count, followed by Airlie Beach and Bowen.

• The segment benefits from a lower price point than detached housing, but body corporate, insurance and letting-management settings remain important purchasing considerations.

• Tourism-linked demand and lifestyle appeal support buyer interest, particularly for well-positioned units with clear rental utility.

• The uplift in unit values suggests investors and lifestyle buyers are continuing to compete for comparatively affordable stock.