An ACT postcode can almost double the price of land

When Katrina and Ian Hughes compared the price of land in the ACT with nearby fringe townships it cemented their decision to move to Googong.

The family is not alone; as land in the ACT edges towards $1000 a square metre in new suburbs, buyers are crossing the border where these costs can be halved.

When blocks were released in Throsby earlier this year, buyers paid an average of $108,000 more than the advertised reserve price.

This worked out to an average of $920 a square metre. By comparison, the advertised price of land in Googong is an average of $580 a square metre, while land in Tralee averages $588 a square metre.

In 2014, single residential blocks in Lawson sold for 25 per cent over the reserve price – an average of $81,692. The average price was $900 a square metre.

Available land in Denman Prospect also costs about $900 a square metre.

Only land in Moncrieff, released in November last year, compared with the cross-border value when it sold for $548 a square metre.

However, many buyers missed out on snapping up land in the Gungahlin suburb. More than 800 people registered for Moncrieff’s last 77 blocks and they were sold within three minutes.

According to Googong project director Malcolm Leslie, land availability coupled with rising costs in Canberra have broadened the appeal of the growing township.

He said once people have taken their first drive to Googong they discover it’s much closer than they had expected.

“Considering Googong is only a 26-minute drive to Canberra CBD, compared to a 17-minute drive from Throsby, it’s really a no-brainer for frustrated Canberra buyers to consider alternative options over the border, such as Googong,” Mr Leslie said.

Proximity to Canberra was of particular importance for Mr and Mrs Hughes. They have three children, Hamish, 12, Peytan, 10, and Reagan, 8.

The family had spent three years living in Cootamundra, but they were advised by a doctor to move back to the city for their son’s health.

Hamish has cystic fibrosis and needed to be closer to Canberra for regular visits to hospital.

“We had moved to the country to be mortgage-free,” Mrs Hughes said.

“We moved back to Canberra and lived with my parents for 14 months and we couldn’t afford to buy, but we found out we could buy in Googong.”

Mr Hughes said the Googong commute to school, work and the children’s various after-school activities compares favourably with the ACT, but the town provides a country lifestyle that the whole family loves.

“It’s a really friendly place to live and you feel part of the community,” Mr Hughes said.

“It’s country living, but it’s close to the city.”

Elders Real Estate Yass and Murrumbateman agent John Lennie said there would always be a large sector of the market that wants to buy in Canberra, but he believes more people are realising the benefits of the country lifestyle.

Mr Lennie made the move from Canberra to Murrumbateman 20 years ago and said the perception of life in the town has changed dramatically.

“When I first built out here there was this feeling that Murrumbateman was on the other side of the moon, when in reality it took them longer to get home [from the city] to Tuggeranong,” Mr Lennie said.

“The tyranny of distance is being broken down very, very rapidly.”

A drive from the Canberra CBD to Murrumbateman averages about 34 minutes and the commute is less affected by peak-hour traffic than ACT suburbia.

A handful of blocks are available within the Murrumbateman village centre averaging $348 a square metre.