Jacobs Well - Alberton Leads Gold Coast Yields at 4.5%

Yields across 53 Gold Coast suburbs range from 4.5% in Jacobs Well - Alberton down to under 3% in the premium beachfront strip. That spread is meaningful alongside the city-level short-term vs long-term rental gap, which means both where you buy and how you rent it out shape the return. This ranking shows which suburbs currently lead on gross yield and explains why the pattern is so pronounced in a market that carries a city median of $1,155,372.

The Gold Coast is a premium tourism market. Holiday rental yields at the city level reach 7.7% against 4.0% for long-term rental, so the short-term rental premium is real. But suburb selection still dominates the return equation, because the cheapest rankable suburbs sit below $1 million while the most expensive push past $2.6 million.

Jacobs Well - Alberton Leads the Ranking at 4.5%, Backed by Northern Growth Corridors

Gross yields = annual rent divided by sale price. Based on 3-bed house medians. The dashboard shows every property type and bedroom count.

The Top Suburbs Share a Northern, Entry-Priced Pattern

The top-yielding Gold Coast suburbs cluster in the northern growth corridor and inland middle ring, not along the beachfront tourist strip. Jacobs Well - Alberton sits at the northern tip of the council area near the Pimpama River estuary. It is semi-rural, away from beach tourism, and entry prices around $976,849 sit well below the city median of $1,155,372. Rents have held up because tradespeople, young families and workers tied to the Yatala industrial corridor need accommodation within commuting distance of employment.

Pimpama - North and Pimpama - South are the engine of the Gold Coast's long-term rental story. Pimpama is one of the fastest-growing master-planned areas in southeast Queensland, with rail access on the Brisbane line, new schools and continual house-and-land releases. Rental demand comes from long-term tenants commuting north to Brisbane or south to the Gold Coast's services economy, which suits long-term rental better than holiday letting. Merrimac and Coomera tell a similar story: middle-ring family suburbs, affordable relative to the coast, with steady tenant demand rather than tourism upside.

None of these top-yield suburbs are traditional holiday rental territory. Investors who want the short-term rental premium on the Gold Coast typically end up in Surfers Paradise, Broadbeach, Mermaid Waters or Mermaid Beach, where the yield starting point is lower but nightly rates and occupancy are materially higher than inland.

The Yield-Price Trade-Off Is Larger on the Gold Coast Than Most Australian Markets

Gold Coast yields follow the classic inverse relationship with price, but the spread is unusually wide because the market spans more than a threefold price range, from around $806,000 at the cheap end up to roughly $2.64 million at the top. Cheaper northern and inland suburbs yield more because rent does not fall as fast as sale price: a $1,401 a week ($6,073 monthly) Main Beach property does not collect three times the rent of a $693 a week ($3,005 monthly) Pimpama house, even though it costs more than three times as much to buy.

An investor entering at $976,849 in Jacobs Well - Alberton versus $1,155,372 at the city median is taking on a very different capital-risk profile. The smaller entry price means less absolute exposure to a Gold Coast correction, but also less absolute participation in any growth cycle. Premium beachfront suburbs carry higher yield risk-adjusted for growth, but the capital outlay is substantially larger.

Premium Suburbs Trade Yield for Growth and Holiday Rental Upside

For context, here is how some of the Gold Coast's most in-demand suburbs compare. These are established beachfront and canal-front postcodes where investors typically accept lower long-term yields in exchange for capital growth, liquidity and much stronger holiday rental revenue.

High-demand beachfront and canal suburbs for context. Same methodology as the yield ranking above.

These premium suburbs yield less as long-term rentals because buyers are paying for lifestyle amenity, beach access and capital growth rather than income. The picture shifts significantly when viewed through the short-term rental lens: beachfront and canal-front stock commands higher nightly rates, stronger year-round occupancy and a meaningful tourism premium, which can push the short-term rental yield above the long-term rental yield by a wide margin. That is the core investment thesis for the coast's premium postcodes.

What the Yield Table Does Not Show

A high gross yield can mean depressed prices rather than strong rents. Some northern Gold Coast suburbs have rankable yields because of oversupplied greenfield stock rather than tenant competition, and new releases can cap rental growth for years. Yield is a starting point, not a verdict. The dashboard shows net yields, after-tax cash flow and property-type breakdowns, which is where the ranking changes most noticeably.

Capital growth is the other missing variable. Premium Gold Coast suburbs like Mermaid Waters, Mermaid Beach and {{suburb_53_name}} have historically delivered stronger capital growth than the northern growth corridor, because coastal land is genuinely scarce and demand from interstate buyers keeps bidding prices up. Total return (yield plus growth) often favours the premium end, even though the yield number looks worse on paper. Vacancy risk and data lag also matter: medians can lag six to nine months in fast-moving suburbs, and thin rental pools in semi-rural areas can mean longer void periods between tenants.

Gold Coast Yields Sit Above Queensland and Close to the National Median

The Gold Coast city-level yield of 4.0% sits above the Queensland median of 3.9% and tracks the Australian national median of 4.0%. The top-ranked suburbs at around 4.5% comfortably beat both benchmarks, while the premium beach suburbs in the table above fall below them. That spread, inside a single city, is larger than the gap between most Australian capital cities and is the central argument for going suburb-by-suburb rather than relying on a city-wide figure. Investors targeting yield should focus on the northern corridor; investors targeting growth and short-term rental revenue should focus on the coastal strip.

Negative Gearing Reshapes the After-Tax Ranking

The gross yield numbers above are pre-tax. Australia's negative gearing rules let investors offset rental losses against salary income, which materially changes the ranking for high-income buyers. A premium beachfront property running at a modest cash-flow loss as a long-term rental produces a tax deduction; a profitable short-term rental in the same suburb does not, because there is no loss to offset.

The benefit scales with marginal tax rate. An investor on the top bracket (income above $190,000, 45% marginal rate) recovers $0.45 of every dollar of rental loss. At the $45,000 to $135,000 bracket (30%), each dollar of loss returns $0.30. Depreciation amplifies the effect: the building depreciation allowance runs at 2.5% of construction cost for buildings under 40 years old, and fixtures and fittings depreciation covers air conditioning, carpets and appliances. For a newer Gold Coast property with a high building-to-land ratio, these non-cash deductions can turn a small pre-tax loss into a meaningful after-tax surplus.

The 50% capital gains tax discount for properties held more than 12 months applies equally to long-term and short-term rental strategies, so it does not change the comparison between them. But negative gearing can tip the choice toward a premium long-term rental in a capital-growth suburb over a profitable short-term rental in a yield suburb, especially for top-bracket investors.

Queensland Regulation: Check Before You Buy

Check state/council regulations for specific requirements Council-level rules are an active legislative area across Queensland and investors should verify current state and council rules before committing. Regulatory risk is one reason many Gold Coast short-term rental investors still cross-check the long-term rental numbers: if short-term rental rules tightened tomorrow, the fallback return needs to stand on its own.

Transaction costs also apply on any Gold Coast purchase. Queensland stamp duty, legal fees and inspection costs can add a significant percentage to the acquisition price, and rates vary depending on whether you are a first home buyer, an investor or a foreign purchaser. Confirm the exact figure with your solicitor before signing a contract.

Which Suburb Is Right Depends on What You Are Buying For

If you are buying for yield and cash flow, the northern growth corridor, led by Jacobs Well - Alberton, Pimpama - North and Pimpama - South, delivers the best starting point. If you are buying for capital growth and optional holiday let revenue, the premium beach and canal suburbs offer lower yields but significantly higher total return potential, particularly at top marginal tax rates where negative gearing softens the cash-flow gap.

These are city and suburb medians. Individual streets, property types and bedroom counts diverge significantly inside each suburb. Explore Gold Coast rental data in the dashboard to see suburb-level numbers for every property type, and use the market score methodology and data sources pages to understand how the yields and scores are calculated. The dashboard also calculates your after-tax position including negative gearing and depreciation based on your income, so you can see how the tax treatment changes the short-term rental versus long-term rental comparison for your tax bracket. For a closer look at why inland suburbs currently lead the yield ranking, see how inland Gold Coast yields roughly double the beachfront strip. Apartments Outyield Houses Across Most Bedroom Counts in Gold Coast provides further context on the yield-versus-growth trade-off.

Data reflects market conditions as of April 2026.

This information is for educational purposes only and should not be considered financial or legal advice. Regulations and market conditions change frequently. Verify current rules with local authorities before making investment decisions.