Embrace

The property market:

driven by the big shift

Rural and regional properties are booming, a fact that is confirmed by the company at the forefront of real estate, Jellis Craig, in its latest annual publication, The Report: Ballarat & Central Victoria. This hot regional boom is caused by demand with city dwellers deciding that the country is the better home option during these time of COVID. Nick Dowling, Jellis Craig Group CEO, writes in the report that "a huge number of Melburnians continue to drive growth in regional locations by purchasing both main and secondary residences outside of the city". "Similarly, the rental market has increased by up to 20 per cent over a 12-month period in some regional towns with the trend of Melburnian’s fleeing the city to work from home in regional areas." Bernard Salt, author and demographer, writes in the report that events of huge significance, such as the current pandemic, can cause a change in people's behaviour. "Events of this scale force a change in the way of life, and Victorians have form when it comes to fleeing the city and the state during calamitous times," Bernard writes. "During the early 1990s, in response to the last recession, Victoria recorded a net annual outflow of up to 7000. Comparatively, in the December ’20 quarter (ABS), Greater Melbourne recorded a net outflow of 8000. "And it makes sense: diminished employment opportunities prompted city-folk to look for a cheaper cost of living (and a better lifestyle) in the country. "And while there is evidence for an underlying flee-the-city narrative during any calamity, the requirement for as many workers as possible to work from home (because of the pandemic) has accelerated the move to the regions. "New data released by the ABS in February tracking this trend across Australia in 2020 shows that it is the 25–44 (mostly Millennial) cohort that is leading the escape to regional Victoria. By contrast, in 2019 the largest outflow from Australian cities was the 55-and-over tree-changer cohort." And at the end of the day, Bernard writes, taking into account low interest rates and government support, it's the change in the behaviour of city dweller that is driving the regional property market. (More insights from Jellis Craig about property and economic trends are available to read in The Report: Ballarat & Central Victoria, which is available from the contact details in the advertisement below.)