Where Aussies are choosing to live in 2023, new moving data reveals

There’s one place — deemed ‘a powerhouse’ — that plenty of Aussies want to move to, according to new research, and a few we would rather not have anything to do with.

Moving data from Muval has revealed which Aussie cities and regions are still hot – and what’s not – since the pandemic.

Exclusive moving data across Australia has revealed what cities and regions are still hot since the height of the pandemic – and what’s not – with one region emerging as a “powerhouse”.

National online removalist booking platform Muval has shared its up-to-date migration data showing where Aussies are choosing to live in 2023.

The findings reveal what locations have stayed “hot” since the height of the pandemic and how rising interest rates and a rental crisis have played their part in where we are choosing to live.

NSW

BYRON BAY – STILL HOT

It’s been described as Australia’s “powerhouse”.

With celebrities moving in and the idyllic, relaxed lifestyle, Byron Bay was one of the hottest property markets in 2020 and 2021 with people from Melbourne and Sydney making the move up north during lockdowns.

And while it recorded a slight dip in mid 2022, Byron is well and truly back in the driver’s seat as one of the most popular places to live.

Chris Hemsworth has boosted the popularity of Byron Bay. Picture: Jamie McCarthy

Actress Margot Robbie has also been seen house hunting in Byron. Picture: Jeremy Piper

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“According to online moving inquiries, interest to move to Byron in the first half of this year is up 46 per cent on the same time last year,” Muval chief executive officer James Morrell said.

“When interest rates started going up in May 2022 we saw requests to ‘move to’ Byron drop to the lowest level after the pandemic peaks. However, since then it has been a powerhouse and is continuing to rise.

The property in Byron Bay recently sold for a record $37m.

“While Melburnians were the main movers during Covid, Brisbane and Sydney residents are now on par with those from Melbourne as metro residents exit cities for a sea change.

“Residents from the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast are also strong feeder markets as they swap their Queensland coastal towns for a northern NSW alternative.”

According to PropTrack the median house price in Byron Bay is $2,278m. Down 23 per cent over the past 12 months.

NEWCASTLE – HEATING UP

Newcastle appears to be on the cusp of becoming a hot property market according to Muval data, with interest in moving into the city up 90 per cent in the first half of this year compared to the same time last year.

“It has been a market on the move for several years but of late there has been major interest from Sydneysiders wanting to move in, as well as increased activity from Hobart,” Mr Morrell said.

Newcastle is “heating up”, with people keen for a laid back lifestyle. Picture: Troy Snook

Beaches of Newcastle are also a drawcard.

He said any area between Sydney and Newcastle offering better affordability – including Gosford and Woy Woy on the Central Coast along with Port Macquarie and Coffs Harbour on the Mid North Coast – were also starting to record “spikes of traffic”.

VICTORIA

MELBOURNE – FROM NOT TO HOT

The popularity of Melbourne is on the rise after a dramatic fall during the pandemic.

“With a quarter of all inbound major metro moving inquiries in May, Melbourne remains the number one city to move to in Australia for the 15th month in a row, showing the city is the place to be amid the cost-of-living crisis, in stark contrast to Covid,” Mr Morrell said.

Sydney residents are making up most of the movers down south, followed by Brisbane and Perth residents, while traffic moving out of Melbourne is also easing.

Melbourne has also grown in popularity in the first half of 2023. Picture: Andrew Henshaw

“The city is hovering near positive net migration based on moving inquiries,” Mr Morrell said.

“It’s currently at -15 per cent and was last in positive territory before the pandemic when it sat at 3 per cent in January 2020. During the pandemic it hit a negative net migration low of -61 per cent in August 2020.”

Muval data has also revealed an increase in moves to Ballarat, particularly from interstate.

QLD

GOLD COAST – NOT AS HOT

Interest in moving to the Gold Coast is waning according to Muval data, with inbound moving inquiries down 16 per cent between January to May this year.

“While the region is still in positive net migration (50 per cent in May), the big influxes we saw in recent years, particularly the pandemic high of 540 per cent positive net migration seen in 2021, are settling down, and there’s now growing interest to move out,” Mr Morrell said.

Interest appears to be waning for the Gold Coast.

“Inquiries to move out of the Gold Coast have increased 44 per cent in the first half of this year compared to the same time last year.”

Gold Coast residents are looking to move to a mixture of cities and smaller towns with some moving back to major cities and others seeking more affordable locations by the water such as the Central Coast, Port Macquarie and Newcastle

SUNSHINE COAST – STILL HOT

There Sunshine Coast remains a “hot” location to live in Australia.

“Inbound moving inquiries are up 20 per cent in the first half (Jan-May) of this year compared to the same time last year, while outbound inquiries are still relatively low albeit with some small increases,” Mr Morrell said.

The Sunshine Coast remains a sought after place to live.

“In interesting moving trends, residents from Canberra, Adelaide, Hobart and Geelong are starting to show increased interest in the coastal area.”

The main movement is coming from Brisbane, followed by Sydney.

BRISBANE – NOT AS HOT

Brisbane is the second most popular city to live in Australia.

However the river city appears to be losing residents to Melbourne and Perth.

Muval is also seeing more moving requests to out of Brisbane to the Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Rockhampton and Toowoomba due as “rental and rate rises continue to put the squeeze on city-slickers this year”.

Brisbane has recorded a lot of inquiries for those wanting to move away.

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“The city has hit a record high for outbound moving inquiries, accounting for 19 per cent of all outbound metro moves in May,” Mr Morrell said.

“With so many residents abandoning the city, Brisbane is hovering near negative net migration at +5 per cent in May, a far cry from the net migration highs seen in 2020 and 2021 when the city was a sizzling hot spot that was in high demand during the pandemic.”

CAIRNS – NOT

According to Muval, Cairns recorded pandemic highs of 200 per cent positive net migration in 2021 which continued to remain strong in 2022.

Now the humidity of the coastal town is cooling off with 50 per cent more outbound moving inquiries in the first half of this year compared to the same time last year.

Movers were heading back to cities such as Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney and Adelaide.

Cairns has recorded a drop in people moving to the region.

“There is still traffic coming in from these cities, mostly Brisbane, as cashed up city buyers snap up what may be some of the last bargains, helping to keep net migration positive in May,” Mr Morrell said.

He said looking ahead, there was a high rate of people moving in and out of Townsville along with an increase in people moving to Toowoomba, Bundaberg and Rockhampton.

WA

PERTH – HOT

Perth’s remains one of the hottest metro markets in Australia.

“With residents fleeing higher cost of living pressures in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, 18 per cent of all major metro moves in May were to Perth,” Mr Morrell said.

Perth is one of the hottest metro market in Australia. Picture: Sharon Smith

Many are lured by the white sandy beaches.

He said Perth recorded the fourth month in a row where more people wanted to move there as opposed to Sydney.

“While Perth remains in third place behind Melbourne (25%) and Brisbane (22%) as the most popular city to move to, the western capital’s outbound percentage was only 8 per cent in May, highlighting that more people are moving in than out, which may lead to a tightening of the housing market.”

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Originally published as Where Aussies are choosing to live in 2023, new moving data reveals