Tim and Prue Duff with six-year-old Hugo, four-year-old Elke, ten-week-old Oscar and Theo the dog at the Graceville home they bought after selling in Chelmer. Picture: Richard Walker

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Chelmer has emerged as the star performer of the Greater Brisbane property market in 2022, with long-term homeowners in the inner suburb sitting on house price gains of more than 100 per cent as the median soars past $2m for the first time.

The leafy, family-friendly spot, only 8km southwest of the CBD, has recorded the highest house price growth this year, with the median jumping more than 57 per cent to a record high of $2.045m, according to PropTrack research.

Houses in the suburb also experienced the strongest price gains over the past five years compared to anywhere else in Greater Brisbane, with the median house price climbing 109 per cent since 2017.

165 Laurel Ave, Chelmer. was sold for $5,999,999 on October 4 this year by Alex Jordan and Georgia Pevy of McGrath Estate Agents Paddington.

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It ranks fourth highest on this year’s list of most expensive suburbs for houses in Brisbane, following the usual suspects of Teneriffe ($3.05m), New Farm ($2.55m), and Ascot ($2.3m).

Brisbane prestige agent Matt Lancashire of Ray White New Farm recently broke the record for a home sale in Teneriffe, with a riverfront property he marketed at 93 Macquarie Street fetching $7m.

This riverfront property at 85 Longman Tce, Chelmer, sold for $4.75m in October 2022.

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Mr Lancashire has just had a record month of sales for November, selling 10 houses unconditionally for nearly $53m — an average price per house of $5m.

He said the demand for prestige property in Brisbane’s inner suburbs was stronger than ever, with competition from expats and interstate buyers forcing locals to pay higher prices.

“There’s definitely been no drop in the high end,” Mr Lancashire said.

Among his other sales in November were 49 Union St, Clayfield, for $6.87m, and 42 Kitchener Rd, Ascot, for $6.5m.

This property at 47 Sutton St, Chelmer, sold for $2.9m in November 2022.

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Alex Jordan of McGrath Estate Agents has been behind many of the top sales in Chelmer so far this year, including a riverfront property at 165 Laurel Avenue that sold in October for the highest price in the suburb in 2022 of $5.99m.

Mr Jordan sold the home of Chelmer local Prue Duff, who has lived in the suburb all her life — mostly in the same street.

The Duff family have been entwined with Chelmer and now worry that the high prices are keeping out younger families. Picture: Richard Walker

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“I first lived in Laurel Avenue up until my 18th birthday,” Mrs Duff said. “I remember because we had booked removalists to come that day so I had to have my 18th party in our new house at the other end of Laurel Avenue, where my parents still live today.”

“Then I moved out at 23, looked at a couple of houses and ended up buying on Laurel Avenue again!”

Mrs Duff said she was not surprised by the jump in the suburb’s house price median.

“It’s a pretty tightly held area,” she said. “The hardest thing is you’re pricing a lot of young families.”

36 Laurel Ave, Chelmer sold for $2.45m on October 29.

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“The local schools are not hitting their capacity because they don’t have as many local kids in the catchment anymore.”

“We’ve got amazing schools and such a community feel. I think that’s why it’s so desirable — and the established leafy streets.”

Jason Adcock of Adcock Prestige also sells a lot of properties in the Chelmer area, and believes prices could climb even higher.

Mr Adcock said the high end of the market — $4m plus — was the most active it had been in a long time.

“Regardless of what’s happening in the marketplace, triple A-grade properties always have buyers and they aren’t affected by interest rates,” Mr Adcock said.

He said sellers who had cashed out of properties in the area had been waiting until now to offload — knowing they had made “on average 50 per cent” in the past two years.