REVEALED: The fastest growing Gympie suburb to watch for
With improved facilities and affordable properties, this area of the Gympie region is one of the most desirable.
Grafton
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WITH the recent addition of a major medical centre and a shopping complex with Woolworths, restaurants, newsagency, gym, pharmacy, cafes and bottle-shops, the Southside precinct has become a central hub for a lot of the southern suburbs of Gympie.
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Emily Lang, licensee and office manager of Laguna Real Estate in Gympie said she and her team recognised the huge potential for growth in Southside several years ago, when they moved from their office in River Rd, Gympie, into the Southside Town Centre shopping complex.
There are many new housing developments in the area, offering small to medium acreage blocks which are proving popular with Sunshine Coast families, owner occupiers and investors.
"People are discovering they can sell down there and buy something comparable up here while wiping out a lot of their debt and being able to enjoy a lifestyle on some acreage," she said.
"They're finding it's only 40 minutes to Noosa, 50 minutes to the airport and close to the Mary Valley."
Ms Lang said some of the more sought-after areas on the Southside include Pie Creek and The Dawn, which offer larger blocks and room for small crops and livestock. Families in particular are being drawn to these areas.
"There's the Cooloola Christian College and South State School nearby plus it's in close proximity to the highway," she said.
Older residents are also downsizing to one of the three senior's communities on the Southside, close to all the medical facilities on offer.
These facilities include the Southside Medical and Excelsior Medical Centres, a QML diagnostic centre, an X-ray clinic and two dental practices.
There's plenty to do on the Southside with major events and sporting carnivals at venues like the Gympie Bowls Club, Gympie Hockey Club, Jockey Club Hotel, the Gympie Showgrounds and Pavilion and the Deep Blue Aquatic Centre.
Families are enjoying the lifestyle opportunities afforded by the cafes and Indian Restaurant in the shopping centre and the Gunabul Homestead, which has a restaurant, 9-hole golf course and driving range.
Investors too, are taking advantage of the tight rental market to capitalise on the affordable properties on the market in Southside, close to all of its facilities.
"Investors are looking at the healthy rental returns and investing in some of the many housing developments. We're seeing investors and owner/occupiers coming up from the Sunshine Coast in particular over the last few years as the highway access has improved," Ms Lang said.
Originally published as REVEALED: The fastest growing Gympie suburb to watch for
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