Regional areas in the eastern states of Australia are booming right now and are prime for investors. From Geelong in Victoria to Newcastle in New South Wales and the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, there are some “pockets” that have really grabbed our attention for all the right reasons.

Treechangers and seachangers
For all the ways that Covid has had an impact on our lives, the desire for treechange and seachange is really evident in population growth in regional areas. People have found that they can work from home or anywhere. They are no longer tied to the cities for employment and they’re looking for lifestyle options. This has increased both buying and rental demand.

Affordability
Regional areas, in most cases, are far more affordable than city locations. As long as both the rental demand and yield are good, then it’s worth taking a closer look.

The consideration of affordability is also important to ensure you have strong potential for capital growth. Some areas such as Byron Bay and surrounds have well and truly peaked with the median house price increasing sharply by 27.3% from June 2020 to August 2021. This has a massive impact on both affordability and potential for growth and are red flags for investors to avoid if you’re planning for capital growth.

Infrastructure investment
As always, a key component to finding key investment locations is to look at private and government infrastructure investment. Is there investment in roads, shopping centres, gentrification, public transport options, etc? Will this investment bring more people to the area or is it being done to cope with forecast population growth?

Research is key. You need to know what’s going on where and then find the best options in those areas that meet the investment criteria of:

  • Capital growth
  • Rental demand
  • Affordability

I’m increasingly amazed at how fast properties in great locations are selling right now.

If you want to take advantage of the market – whether it’s regional or city, please arrange a time to meet with me so we can create a brief together and I can start your property search to match your criteria and budget.