Your expert guide to choosing the right Canberra suburb
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Selecting the right suburb is one of the most critical decisions in your property journey, yet it’s often where buyers make costly mistakes. With Canberra’s diverse range of locations offering different lifestyle benefits and investment potential, knowing where to buy can feel overwhelming.
We spoke with Josh Morrissey, Director and Auctioneer at HIVE Property, about how to make smart suburb choices. Josh co-founded HIVE with a vision to create a real estate company centred on unparalleled excellence, and under his leadership, the company has transacted over $2.5 billion in Canberra property. His expertise spans across all price brackets and suburbs, with impressive record sales including an $8 million property in Red Hill, $4.3 million in O’Connor, and $3.29 million in Hall.
His progressive approach and sharp business acumen caught the attention of the wider real estate industry – in 2021, Josh became the first and only Canberra agent to be featured on the cover of Elite Agent, the leading magazine for real estate professionals.
Here’s his guide to navigating Canberra’s suburb selection process.
Understand that every suburb has macro and micro markets
Not all suburbs perform equally, and Josh explains there are multiple layers to consider.
“There are macro and micro markets in every city and there are so many factors that drive suburb performance. Affordability, market saturation, holding patterns, capital growth performance and lifestyle opportunities are all driving factors that contribute to the results.”
In Canberra’s smaller population of around 475,000, higher-priced suburbs naturally have fewer potential buyers, which affects how quickly properties sell.
“Higher price points generally restrict buyer pool access… we typically see longer days on market for higher price points mixed with lower buyer activity.”
Focus on five key factors when choosing location
Josh recommends evaluating potential suburbs based on these critical elements:
- Historical suburb performance: Look at how the area has grown over time
- Future uplift potential: Consider planned infrastructure and development
- Lifestyle potential: Assess amenities, schools, and community feel
- Affordability: Ensure it fits your budget and borrowing capacity
- Resale benefits: Think about future marketability
“Understanding key market drivers is critical to achieving suburb records when looking to break through a new pricing ceiling,” Josh notes.
Make your primary residence work as an investment
One of Josh’s most valuable insights is treating your home as both a lifestyle and investment decision.
“Investing in a key performance primary residence is a great way to hold tax-free capital growth.”
His strategy is comprehensive: “Do your research, look for layers of opportunity within the purchase. Try to position yourself to make money going into the deal and on the way out.”
He emphasises that you can actively increase your property’s value during ownership through “renovations, facelifts, extensions and the like.”
This approach maximises your capital growth potential while you’re living in the home.
The current market offers unique opportunities
Today’s market conditions are creating interesting buyer behaviour patterns.
“There is still an abundance of choice with some buyers, which means buyers are really taking their time to get exactly what they want, which is a result of inflated stock options on the market and minimal rate movement over the past 18 months.”
However, Josh warns against one common mistake: “Buyers are more than willing to let properties pass in at auction to try and negotiate with the seller after auction. This is a very counter-intuitive way to position yourself as a serious buyer with the seller.”
Market confidence will drive the next growth phase
Rather than predicting specific suburbs for growth, Josh focuses on market-wide indicators. “It’s confidence-based. Some micro markets are up 10% and some are down 10%, so there is still a 20% gap between a lot of markets here.”
The key drivers he’s watching for the next growth phase include: shorter days on market, further rate drops and clearance rate increases.
“Confidence needs to shift first,” Josh explains. “Stats and facts still have us in a mixed market.”
The bottom line
Choosing the right Canberra suburb isn’t just about finding somewhere nice to live – it’s about making a strategic decision that serves both your lifestyle and financial goals. Josh’s approach of looking for “layers of opportunity” and treating your primary residence as an investment vehicle can help you build wealth while enjoying your home.
With Canberra’s current mixed market conditions offering both challenges and opportunities, taking the time to research historical performance, future potential, and your ability to add value during ownership will position you for long-term success.
The key is thorough preparation and understanding that successful property selection combines emotional satisfaction with smart financial strategy.
Feature image by Nineteen Creative.
