‘Golden circle’ to emerge around Adelaide, other capital cities and regional towns as Aussies seek out lifestyle change after COVID-19
New research has revealed the SA suburbs and towns where the population is set to swell as Aussies go searching for a lifestyle change after COVID-19. EXPLORE THE DATA FOR SA.
SA News
Don't miss out on the headlines from SA News. Followed categories will be added to My News.
A new ‘golden circle’ is set to emerge around our capital cities in the wake of COVID-19 as Australians move further afield from our population centres in search of lifestyle change, a national report has revealed.
These emerging outlier areas are expected to see much higher population growth than previously forecast, according to newly released research from property investment company Ripehouse Advisory.
The surprising research, which drew on the expertise of 129 property professionals, strongly indicated that post-coronavirus, home buyers would be looking to purchase in regional bands within two to three hours of the key metropolitan markets.
Ripehouse Advisory CEO Jacob Field said these areas - traditionally not reliant on overseas migration - would see strong net benefits from sea and tree changers looking to work from home or combine this with occasional commutes into the cities.
“The research found the middle ring suburbs of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, such as Parramatta, Southbank and Kingaroy could be the most affected by what we have termed The Great Australian Population Shift,” he said.
“We are seeing a golden circle emerge around our key metro cities.”
“Regional NSW is set to benefit most from the post-COVID population shift, followed by Queensland and South Australia.”
South Australian areas leading the population shake-up include Kapunda, Port Wakefield, Normanville, Clare and Mount Gambier.
Mr Field said areas reliant on overseas migration, including parts of Adelaide’s CBD, were most likely to be impacted in the next 18 months to two years.
“Strict and lengthy public health restrictions during the height of the pandemic sent the majority of Australians into virtual lockdown, and many have since realised they don’t need to be living within proximity of major cities and workplaces,” Mr Field said.
“Employers have also embraced the working from home model, with many encouraging workers to continue even as restrictions ease.
“Some employers are only requiring staff to return to office locations for 20 to 40 per cent of their working week.”
SA MORTGAGE CALCULATOR: WHERE YOU COULD WORK FROM HOME AND PAY OFF YOUR LOAN QUICKEST.
Mr Field believed this would be great news for first home buyers, who could now look further afield for a property, and take advantage of government stimulus packages like the HomeBuilder scheme and continued low interest rates.
“A changing Australian population landscape is providing a once-in-a-generation investment opportunity,” he said
“It is fitting with the iconic Australian concept of ‘have a go mate’, that through adversity, we see first-home buyers and young aspirational investors set to benefit most for the positive elements of this population shift.”
The report identified 10 Australian suburbs where previous population growth forecasts, for the next three years, were set to dramatically increase. These included:
Ripehouse also identified the top 10 suburbs where previous population growth forecasts, for the next three years, were set to dramatically decrease. These included:
Real Estate Institute of South Australia president Brett Roenfeldt said many people who had been working from home for the past few months were likely reassessing what was important to them.
“I think there is a slight motivation for people to look further afield as far as securing lifestyle is concerned,” he said.
“A few people are even making those sorts of decisions now.
“I wouldn’t say it’s huge but I suggest there are people making those sorts of moves now because of COVID-19 and affordablity.”
However, he said not everyone would be in a position to leave the city behind, particularly those who couldn’t work from home or relied heavily on health services.
Chief economist at realestate.com.au Nerida Conisbee said the move to more regional areas of Australia was already happening before COVID-19, but had strengthened further since the pandemic hit.
“We are seeing elevated levels of regional searches through realestate.com.au,” she said.
“It’s a good outcome for regional parts of Australia.”
The trend could also have a stabilising effect on prices in the capital cities.
“It’s good for affordability, it could calm prices down a bit in the capital cities and stable house prices are a good thing.”
Among other key findings, the research found blue-chip, upper socio-economic suburbs in key metropolitan areas would be unaffected by the population shift.
And more than half (56.3 per cent) of experts who contributed to the research, including presidents of most state real estate institutes, believe property prices will be higher in 12 months.
This was well up on the industry survey Ripehouse Advisory conducted in April, in which only 28 per cent believed prices would be higher in 12 months.
“There is no question that the past few months are going to bring major changes to the way we live and the types of properties people will be looking at will also be changing,” Mr Field said.