City homebuyers move to the regions

As real estate agents predicted, the Melbourne exodus has started, with city buyers flocking to regional Victoria for the space, freedom and value-for-money on offer.

Joseph Clifford is moving to the Bellarine Peninsula, where can afford to build a new home on a large plot, instead of investing in a two-bedroom apartment in the CBD. Picture: Yuri Kouzmin

JOSEPH Clifford is a Melburnian, born and bred, but the 33-year-old professional has decided to quit the city to move to regional Victoria, where he can afford to build a spacious house on a large plot and still commute into Collins St twice a week.

“I had been saving for a few years for a deposit,” says Joseph, who worked in Canberra for several years before returning to Melbourne in November last year.

“Really I had in my mind it would be small place in the inner city. Then the pandemic shifted that lens.”

Joseph works in law reform as a public servant.

“The pandemic and desire to have a bit more space, as well as my work being quite supportive of flexible work, all fuelled me to shift my focus to regional areas within an hour or two of Melbourne,” Joseph says.

Searching Mornington and the Bellarine Peninsula for property, he found an affordable block at Clifton Springs, about 20 minutes from Geelong. Encouraged by first homebuyer financial incentives, Joseph bought land and is building a Metricon home, all for $650,000.

The build is due to start in January.

Metricon general manager, regional Victoria, Phil Barrett says the company has experienced a rise in sales of house-and-land packages across regional Victoria since COVID hit.

He puts the surge in regional demand down to government grant incentives, which include the $20,000 first-time owners grant and the $25,000 home builder grant, the comparable value-for-money and Victorians’ new-found flexible working possibilities.

“The blocks are cheaper, and in some cases compared to Melbourne, they are bigger,” Phil says.

He says pre-COVID about 10 per cent of the company’s regional new-home builds were people moving out of metro Melbourne, whereas now it is about 18 per cent, with popular locations Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo, Shepparton and South Gippsland.

SURF COAST RETIREMENT PLAN

SPURRED into action by the pandemic, Andrea and Darren Beck moved into a new townhouse at Torquay, in the Quay2 development, in April this year.

Previously living in Melbourne, the couple were frequent visitors to the Surf Coast town, where their adult children had already made the sea-change.

When COVID-19 forced remote working, they brought forward their retirement plan.

“We’d been watching the Quay2 development during the past four years and loved the look of the townhomes,” says Andrea, who chose Avant Townhomes’ The Swan floorplan, a two-bedroom townhome with a separate living and kitchen-dining area. “Coming from a big family home in Melton, The Swan is so easy to clean and maintain.”

Avant Townhomes general manager David Lunardi says there are 15 townhomes still available, priced $499,000-$540,000.

The homes are energy-efficient with double glazing and solar energy systems.

“All living areas and bedrooms feature reverse cycle airconditioning units,” Mr Lunardi says.

Quay2 estate manager Adriana Falcone says inspections or virtual tours can be arranged.

Originally published as City homebuyers move to the regions