General News
1 July, 2026
Steady growth for Mareeba
MAREEBA real estate was stable, upward moving and did not reflect the national market information making the headlines, a local real estate agent told Mareeba Chamber of Commerce luncheon on Friday.
Reported housing price slumps of up to $400,000 and other predictions following the reforms on capital gains tax and negative gearing, were geared to capital cities and surrounds, he said.
“There’s a lot of information out there, but not from our perspective,” Mareeba Property Office Residential and Rural Sales agent Damon Falvo said.
Speaking at the business lunch about the state of the Mareeba economy, he said housing sales in the Mareeba shire could be split into four areas: residential, rural, lifestyle and industrial.
“One of the biggest drawcards for the region was the sense of space and privacy, the cooler climate and the rural setting,” he said.
However, sales of large rural farms were slower because younger people wanting to start in the agriculture or farming industry had no access to the funds needed to buy a $3-4 million property. Buying a rural property was led by a business decision.
Lifestyle blocks, however, were led from the heart, and an affordable option for families wanting a slower-paced life. Mareeba was well placed to meet demand with the recent development approvals of larger estates surrounding the town.
The Mareeba Industrial Estate, which his office managed, was a good hub and had attracted interest and sales from both local and Cairns-based industries, showing a “commercial confidence in the area”.
Across residential housing in the township, Mr Falvo said prices had risen from an average $250,000 pre-Covid to an average sales price of $550,000, with a rapid leap over the past two years.
“This is our most popular market, especially for first home buyers, investors and people who want to downsize,” he said.
When asked whether this would change or if demand would slow, Mr Falvo said given the state of national and world economics, it would be impossible to predict in the long term.
Guest speakers at the lunch also included Candy MacLaughlin, the general manager at Skybury Coffee, who told the audience the business was changing under her second-generation approach, with a focus on “growing less and selling for more”.
“We are growing too much product, two-thirds more than we can possibly use,” she said.
She was also a supporter of the circular economy where we use the wastage.
“A lady came to our property and used a local seed from one of our papayas to make skin care products,” she said.
The lunch also heard from Deputy Mayor Lenore Wyatt and Mareeba Shire Council economic development officer, Jess Fealy, who provide data on the town’s growth over the past 10 years, which had slowly climbed by 1%.
Cr Wyatt said Mareeba was bucking the trend of regional towns, with growth consistently in the positive.
“Our shire is almost as big as Tasmania, we have a population of 24,205 and our gross regional product is $1.34 million, and we are growing,” she said.
The audience were also briefed by Sarah and James Mort, founders of SkyHaven and MiHaven, about buyer opportunities for the short-term accommodation facilities they are developing at the Cairns airport.
Chamber president and FNQ Growers president, Joe Moro, said overall the economy and growth across the Mareeba region was strong, with Gross Value Production showing citrus at $170 million, bananas at $169 million, followed by avocado ($151 million), mango ($54 million), berries ($48 million), table grapes ($44 million), and papaya ($40 million).
“We’re also the coffee capital,” he added with a grin.
He said transport was one of the biggest issues facing FNQ growers, with the region’s produce “flying out from the south” after being trucked down.
Ootann Road development would speed up the truck journey, as would improvements to the Kuranda, Rex and Palmerston roads.
