Australia’s premium housing markets have had a wild ride over the past three years, Lawless says.

While values in the million-dollar-plus sector of the residential market are up, sales volumes remain low, he notes.

His analysis of recent movements in the top end of the property market reveals that the most expensive 20 per cent of Australia’s suburbs climbed 19.8 per cent in value in 2007, compared to 13.7 per cent across the broader market.

“As the global financial crisis kicked in and started to bite, with shares and property being sold off to recoup further portfolio losses, values across this same set of premium suburbs fell by 7.4 per cent compared with a 2.5 per cent fall in all home values,” Lawless says.

The premium market turned again in 2009, recording growth of 12.1 per cent over the calendar year, compared to 11.3 per cent across the board.

“For those that can afford the premium price tag premium property markets have generally provided stronger capital gains than the broader marketplace thanks to the inherently tight supply of inner-city, coastal and character properties,” Lawless says.

Almost $27 million has been spent on Gold Coast luxury apartments in the past fortnight, including $2.75 million for a penthouse in the Ambience twin tower development at Burleigh Heads.

A Brisbane couple, who did not want to be identified, bought the 15th floor penthouse.

The penthouse has three bedrooms and a study, three car parking spaces and an 86sqm wrap-around balcony offering sweeping ocean views.

Buyers are realising that prices aren’t getting any lower and brand new developments are becoming more harder to come by.

People have been sitting on their cash, but the property clock is at the bottom. People thinking they will sit around trying to pick the bottom of the interest cycle — they’ve missed it — it was two months ago.

Most of the buyers were from capital cities.

They’re from Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne and they’re seeing the value in our top end.

They’re doing their research and they’re buying based on quality and location. They’re not buying based on price but they’re still getting good value.

Two other Ambience apartments have sold in the past two weeks including a three-bedroom, 13th floor apartment for $1.6 million and a three-bedroom, third floor apartment for $1.2 million.

The towers were finished in January and house 95 units, with only 15 left for sale.

Other Burleigh Heads apartment sales in the past fortnight include the penthouse and sub-penthouse at Ivory for $4.85 million and $3.8 million respectively.

The penthouse in the second Ambience tower, which is identical to the one just sold, is expected to sell quickly.

Four people, including some from Sydney, are ‘flashing their cheque books’ and have shown interest in the apartment in the past few days.

When it rains it pours.

Burleigh Heads appeals because it’s a touch quieter, families come back year after year on holidays and it’s an easy drive from Brisbane.