Red Hill
Postcode: 4059
Considering its proximity to the city heart and its commanding views, Red Hill was not considered a very desirable address when the shire of Ithaca was opened up for sub-division in 1887.
The prime deterrent was the citizenry’s belief that the hill was created for mountain goats. But, after some grading enabled horse-drawn trams to make the top, the value of land surged, and so did the rates, from 1.5 pence in the pound to 7 shillings in the pound.
The view from the top might have changed dramatically with the passage of time, but Red Hill is closer than ever to all the action of modern Brisbane.
Gem among the suburb’s reserves is Woolcock Park, which follows a beautiful, tropical stretch of Ithaca Creek. Woolcock’s picnic and play areas are surrounded by native bush featuring a dominant stand of eucalypts. The bush is a sanctuary for a range of native animal life including water dragons, birds and nocturnal marsupials.
Red Hill has attracted renewed interest during the past two decades and much of the character of the suburb has been retained through renovation of workers cottages, Queenslanders and colonials. The renovations of older style homes and the suburb’s proximity to the CBD have contributed to the higher median sale price.
The suburb is popular with owner-occupier professionals working in the CBD and has a healthy rental market based on young city workers and some students.
Property managers report rental conditions in the Red Hill and adjoining suburbs are tight for a variety of reasons. These include, close proximity to the City, the limited amount of land for redevelopment and zoning restrictions preventing redevelopment and the high underlying value of land, which can make redevelopment uneconomical.