It’s a well-known property investment philosophy – buy the worst house in the best possible street.

And across Queensland there remain plenty of rough diamonds to choose from, but buyers need to be realistic and be able to afford to invest the time, and the money, usually required to restore the sparkle to these hidden gems.

The Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ) has researched the top house sales across the state over the past financial year to discover the suburbs where bargain buys amongst prestige property can still be found.

“While median house prices are a general indication of overall property prices in a suburb, the types of properties that are available for sale at both ends of the market can often go by unnoticed,” REIQ managing director Dan Molloy said.

“And in prestige suburbs where the median is well above what many people can afford, bargain buys can still to be found, if you have your finger on the pulse.

“But, buyers need to be realistic, getting your foot in the door via the bottom end of the price range usually comes with some sacrifices on space and actual location within the suburb or some serious work required on the property itself.”

Rough diamonds in Toowoomba

While East Toowoomba recorded the region’s highest sale at $2.8 million for a five-bedroom house on a substantial 4,300sqm block, it also recorded a very affordably priced three-bedroom workers’ cottage, selling for $160,000. Such a low price however came with a sacrifice in land size – with the house set on a 304sqm block.

Mount Lofty came in with the region’s second most expensive house sale for the year ending June. Selling for about $975,000 was a three-bedroom house in Simla Street; on the other hand, the most affordable home in the suburb sold for $195,000 on busier Bridge Street.

Another suburb of Toowoomba known for its prestigious homes is Rangeville, which recorded a top sale of $957,000 for a new four-bedroom home on a 1,144sqm block in Kingfisher Street. At the other end of the scale, a buyer acquired a three-bedroom lowset house on James Street for $209,500.