Australia
Brisbane City Council budget 2026: Winners and losers
Updated ,first published
Roads, levies and garbage are the bread and butter of any local government budget.
The average homeowner would pay about $1.22 more per week, or about $60 more per year, under the 3.97 percent interest rate increase.
Rate increases vary from suburb to suburb, taking into account fluctuations in land values.
The average rate increase for homeowners is below inflation, leaving rates lower than other south-east Queensland local government areas.
Don’t have time to read the full article on the $3.9 billion budget?
Here’s the winners’ and losers’ guide, with some of the headline announcements:
winners
- average homeowner – Depending on how you look at it, an interest-paying homeowner is a winner, as average rates for homeowners across Brisbane are set to rise by 3.97 per cent this year. This is below the Brisbane CPI of 4.6 per cent in the 12 months to April 2026. Much better than the 9.7 per cent rate increase on the Sunshine Coast. But people in some suburbs of Brisbane will face a bigger increase than others. We will update the breakdown by suburb when we receive it later today.
- Bicycle and scooter drivers – There will be new and improved cycleways including Shafston Boulevard in Kangaroo Point, Minnippi Link in Cannon Hill, Prebble Street connecting Rochedale and Wishart, and Melbourne Street in South Brisbane. Around $980,000 will be spent developing the council’s vision for Kedron Brook, including cycleways and lighting.
- park lovers – Park improvements will be made at Keating Park, Indooroopilly, 7th Brigade Park, Chermside, Honeyeater Street Park, Upper Kedron, Pallara District Sports Park, Upper Kedron, Carindale Recreational Reserve, Dorrington Park, Ashgrove and Teralba Park dog park, Everton Park and other locations. There will also be a new, inclusive nature-based and water play playground at The Lake Parklands, Forest Lake.
- road users – There will be a $110 million road renewal program involving some of the city’s busiest roads, including Albion Road in Windsor, Eagle Farm Road in Pinkenba, Forest Lake Boulevard in Forest Lake, Hawken Drive in St Lucia, High Street in Toowong, Ipswich Road in Annerley, Learoyd Road in Acacia Ridge, Mt Nebo Road in Enoggera and Toohey Road in Salisbury.
- retirees – The maximum retiree discount will increase to $1350 per year and almost 40,000 people will benefit. Seniors will continue to enjoy free off-peak transport on the Brisbane Metro, buses, CityCats and ferries.
- swimmers – The City’s $2 Summer Bottoms program will return to municipal pools this summer.
- People who like to exercise – The council’s Move Well program will increase the number of annual exercise programs from 9,000 to 20,000.
- People living in these neighborhoods – Prices will actually fall for those who own property in Dutton Park, Enoggera Reservoir, Fairfield, Nudgee Beach, St Lucia and The Gap. There will be an increase of less than one per cent in Bowen Hills, East Brisbane, Gordon Park, Kangaroo Point, Lutwyche, Mount Ommaney, Northgate, Nundah, Parkinson, Pullenvale, Stafford and Woolloongabba.
losers
- Users who like to compare budget books – Finance chief Fiona Cunningham said the council was moving to a new cost model that will modernize how the council manages its financial information and “better reflect the true cost of delivering services and projects”. Previously, some indirect overheads were attributed to projects, but these will now be held centrally. This means the 2026-27 budget cannot be compared to the previous year because costs are distributed differently. He insists this means people will have a clearer picture of what it costs to deliver projects and services. However, it becomes very difficult for an outsider to follow the changes compared to previous years.
- subway enthusiasts – As we pointed out last month after obtaining a leaked draft of the council’s updated transport plan, the council will have trouble delivering the controversial Metro extension to Carseldine, Springwood, Capalaba and the airport ahead of the Olympics. Today’s budget allocates almost $60 million in spending on current Metro operations as well as the business case over the next two years. With just six years until 2032, how much of the expansion will “depend on the commitments made by other levels of government,” Cunningham said.
- Municipality fee payers -Fees for various services offered by the municipality will increase this year, as every year. The cost of registering a desexed dog the first year will go from $46.30 to $48.50. The hourly rate for three-hour meter parking from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, in the first traffic area zone will increase from $6.35 to $6.85.
- People living in these neighborhoods – Bulwer, Cowan Cowan and Lake Manchester are affected by the maximum 7.5 per cent rate increase, while Wakerley, Sandgate, Robertson, Middle Park, Mackenzie, Eight Mile Plains, Corinda, Brighton and Algester are also approaching the limit.
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