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Mermaid Beach, Gold Coast
Photograph: Tourism Australia | Mermaid Beach, Gold Coast

Australia tops the global charts with the most sought-after cities to buy a second home

The Gold Coast, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth are four of the top ten places to buy second properties worldwide

Melissa Woodley
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Melissa Woodley
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We get it, times are tough right now. Buying a home is a very distant dream for most Aussies, let alone the idea of owning two. But while we’re just making do, others are making dough, enough so that they’ve got keys to multiple properties. What’s on the wish list for this lucky bunch? Apparently, it’s the Gold Coast’s sunshine and Melbourne's hipster vibes.

A recent study by estate agent comparison site GetAgent has unveiled the most in-demand cities for purchasing a second property around the world, with two Australian cities leading the pack. The researchers gauged global interest in property investment by analysing search trends for terms like ‘second home in [location]’ and ‘holiday home in [location]’.

Australia dominated the list, claiming four spots in the top ten rankings. Famous for its golden sands, thrilling theme parks and laid-back holiday vibes, our very own Gold Coast claimed first place as the most popular city to buy a second property or holiday home. It amassed just shy of 50,000 searches in the past year, which was more than anywhere else in the entire world. 

High Street, Melbourne
Photograph: Josie Withers | High Street, Melbourne

Melbourne, the Gold Coast’s hipster and cooler cousin, ranked second with almost 45,000 annual searches for second and holiday homes in the city. It’s pretty clear why this cultural hotspot is where the crowds want to be, with Melbourne having recently been crowned as home to the coolest street in the world right now. 

Adelaide and Perth also featured in the top ten, landing in sixth and seventh place respectively, while Sydney claimed the 13th spot and Brisbane followed closely in 15th place.  

GetAgent also crunched the numbers for global searches at a country level. Topping the charts as the most searched countries for a second or holiday home were Ireland, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, with Australia earning a respectable 15th place.  

Here are the top ten most searched cities around the world for second homes:

  1. Gold Coast, Australia
  2. Melbourne, Australia
  3. York, United Kingdom
  4. Cape Town, South Africa
  5. Malaga, Spain
  6. Adelaide, Australia
  7. Perth, Australia
  8. Auckland, New Zealand
  9. Edinburgh, United Kingdom
  10. Inverness, United Kingdom 

We like to play with fire, which is why Time Out has put together our very own rankings of the best places to live in Australia – do you agree?

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