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LIVING WITH COVID WILL CHANGE THE HOUSING LANDSCAPE Industry experts report that the COVID-19 pandemic has helped to accelerate certain trends which were already underway in the Australian economy, including more flexible working arrangement, and the desire to have a housing market foothold in desirable lifestyle locations. Recent developments from countries with further advanced vaccination rollouts suggest that the Delta variant of the virus is leading to persistently high case numbers detected. There is little doubt that the virus will persist, and with it, related disruptions. The federal and state governments have agreed to a four-stage process to open up and live with COVID-19, and the final step arrives when more than 80 per cent of the adult population is fully
vaccinated. In substance, it means that Australia, like many other countries, will live with COVID. Not surprisingly, this is likely to have key implications for Australia’s economy, demographic trends, and the domestic housing market landscape. Pete Wargent, co-founder of national property buyer’s agency network BuyersBuyers, says they expect to see a continuation of the
“there has never been a better time to buy an investment property” current trends for more flexible work and working from home well into 2022. “We are getting increased levels of enquiry from buyers seeking to buy in peri-urban locations, away from the major city centres, but still within a reasonable travelling distance. “These trends were already in evidence a few years ago, but the pandemic has accelerated them.”
Leading national property expert, James Fitzgerald, who has bought, sold and developed more than 2000 properties, says there has never been a better time to buy an investment property on the Sunshine Coast, with extremely low vacancy rates and demand for property at all-time highs. Despite recent price rises, there are still good investment opportunities within suburbs which were in high demand with renters. He Mr Fitzgerald, who has launched his new book Bulletproof Investing on the Sunshine Coast, says his three top picks are Caloundra, Palmview and Birtinya. “All three suburbs are affordable and have a lot of demand for property from growing populations,” he says. “They will also benefit from key infrastructure spending over the next five to 10 years.” He says Caloundra is an affordable suburb close to the beach. “Plus, it is still considered close to Brisbane, so it is well placed for those who wish to continue working from home even once COVID lockdowns come to an end,” he adds.
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