Greater Brisbane Australia’s largest capital city by land area, coming in at 15,824 square kilometers, and ranks number three worldwide. It has Australia’s largest city council and northern neighbour Moreton Bay City Council comes in third, Logan Council to the south, comes in at number 7.   For outsiders, Brisbane’s “North/South” divide is a little-known thing.  But for locals, being “North of The River” or “Over the Bridge” is the source of fun and rivalry.  In fact, fewer than 6% of Brisbanites move “across the brown snake” to live their lives on the other side.  A Brisbane resident is more likely to move interstate or overseas, than they are to swap sides of the river.  Rivalry based on a few key myths that you’ll hear again and again, in conversation with any Brisbanite.  But, is there any truth to the myths?  And does Brisbane’s North/South divide have real world impacts for residents?

Risks

Brisbane’s new threat is flooding.  Formerly residents worried mostly about bushfires, especially on the western edge of the city but ongoing flood risks have marred suburbs across both the northside and southside of the city.  

“We’ve seen a sharp increase in flood related calls over the last decade from both Brisbane’s northside and southside.  The flood risk across the city is increasing and insurance issues are making some Brisbane suburbs undesirable” said John Salmon, Plumber North Brisbane.  

It’s not just floods, the South Side faces ongoing issues with fire ants.  North Brisbane has had termite swarms.  There’s subsidence, aged infrastructure and issues with asbestos and other “era” related buildings.  Learn more about Brisbane-wide pre-purchase building inspection results here.

Demographics of Greater Brisbane

The southside of Brisbane is considerably larger by both land size and population.  Brisbane’s southside offers cosmopolitan living, with some suburbs, including Sunnybank, being made up of more immigrants than Australian born residents.  Brisbane’s southside includes population hubs for new Australians arriving from Greece, Italy, African Nations, Vietnam, China, Taiwan, Pacifika nations and India.  With these populations come vibrant cultural events, best-in-class dining experiences and access to international treats and traditions.

By contrast, the Northside’s largest growing population hub, North Lakes (part of Moreton Bay City) is colloquially known by locals as “Little Britian” and the area’s biggest events revolve around more traditional “colonial” themes.  

Infrastructure and Opportunity

While business is booming on both sides of the river, major infrastructure and employment opportunities clearly favour the north.  Major public employers largely reside north of the river.  Investment in infrastructure, delivering major new employment opportunities on Brisbane’s north side include Victoria Park Redevelopment, Botanic Gardens expansion, Queen’s Wharf, Brisbane Life, Waterfront Precinct, Airport expansion, Herston Quarter, a new cruise terminal and expansion of the Howard Smith Wharf entertainment precinct.  Under Moreton City’s jurisdiction is the $125 million knowledge and Innovation Centre and major upgrades to South Pine Sporting fields. The Southside, has just the Bulimba Barracks and West Village cultural hub on the cards.  The future is looking up for investment in the southside as new builds and upgrades commence in preparation for the Olympics.

Real Estate 

Brisbane’s best performing area is neither north nor south, it’s the West.  The western corridor to Ipswich is claimed in part by the North side and part by the South. The residents there consider themselves “Western Brisbane”.  Brisbane does not acknowledge their status.  

While both sides of the river include diverse socio-economic postcodes, you’ll generally pay more in rent, more into your mortgage and find more properties for sale on the Southside. This differs from data prior to the current “boom” where similar homes, on similar land parcels at a similar distance from the city were once $100k or more on Brisbane’s north side.  The boom has created a dire housing shortage which has hit the southside (where more new properties are available) harder than the north.