Where you can buy on the beach for under $500,000
Secret beachside locations usually only known to local buyers are now being uncovered by out-of-towners determined to snag themselves a bargain holiday home.
While homes with a seaside setting have set some of the biggest property price records across Australia, there are still some little-known coastline towns where property can be snapped up with a budget as small as $400,000.
But they may not be a secret for much longer.
Local agents say that since the coronavirus pandemic hit our shores, buyers looking to escape their smaller inner-city pads have been casting their search nets wider, stumbling across coastal spots they may have never even heard of before.
In Bramston Beach, about an hour south of Cairns in Far North Queensland, calls are coming in from residents of major cities like Sydney and Melbourne as soon as a property hits the market.
“Interest has just skyrocketed,” Cairns Property Office City’s Robyn Hawley-Whitton said.
Ms Hawley-Whitton said the locals who usually bought in the area for their retirement or for a holiday home were now having to compete with buyers from outside of town.
A three-bedroom home at 10 Paperbark Street, Bramston Beach was getting calls from interested interstate buyers within the first week of it being listed.
Listed for sale for mid-$400,000s, it had already had one open home with eight prospective buyers looking through the 1980s style home.
For a town with a population of 150 people, excluding tourists, that was a big turnout, Ms Hawley-Whitton said.
“The reason people love the area is because it’s where people can enjoy their retirement, it’s not too far from regional cities and towns,” Ms Hawley-Whitton said. “It’s got rainforests and the town is right next to a national park and a beautiful beach.”
While Bramston Beach was bringing in the buyers, other seaside areas like Etty Bay, Flying Fish Point and Coquette Point, all close to Innisfail, were also proving popular, she said.
At Flying Fish Point, also south of Cairns, a four-bedroom beachfront house is asking $499,000. There is a reef – yes, a reef – right out the front, and a boat ramp to get to the nearby islands only minutes down the road.
In nearby Etty Bay, an 804-square-metre allotment with a high-clearance boat shed fitted with a grid-connected 5.7-kilowatt solar system is listed for $195,000.
It also, according to the advertisement, has direct access to some of the best fishing and crabbing grounds in Australia.
Further south again, a high-set timber home nestled into the hillside of a rainforest at Mourilyan Harbour is asking $345,000.
Only minutes from the beach, it’s advertised as being ideal for boating enthusiasts.
But not all the bargains are in Queensland. In NSW, the beach and riverside village of Stuarts Point, about five hours north of Sydney, has caught the attention of city buyers.
A seaside town on the Macleay Valley Coast, it had seen a lot of buyers from the Central Coast and Sydney looking for a bargain and a lifestyle change.
“It used to be the [retiree] demographic but we’re finding that’s changed a lot over the past few years,” Nambucca Valley Property’s Caterina Cooper said.
“A lot more younger families are moving into the area and that’s helped with the whole atmosphere of the village with more children around,” she said.
Ms Cooper listed a property at 3 Nineteenth Avenue, Stuarts Point on October 1, and in less than two weeks it had received serious offers.
The property was listed for sale with a price range of $380,000 to $410,000.
Other areas including Grassy Head, also on the Macleay Valley Coast, were offering similar prices for homes.
In Victoria, the pandemic has seen a huge increase in the number of people looking to move to a regional area or seaside town.
While many look to the Mornington Peninsula and its multimillion-dollar mansions, those looking for a cheaper buy could try Seaspray near the regional town of Sale.
Home to around 320 people (excluding tourists), Seaspray has seen an influx of Melburnians over the past two years, Elders Real Estate Sale’s Tracey Wrigglesworth said.
It was pushing prices higher, but not to the same level as Sorrento or Portsea.
“It was always a local area but now it’s being discovered more by Melbourne because it’s on a peninsula and it’s only two-and-a-half hours from the city,” Ms Wrigglesworth said.
A home, plus general store and post office at 37 Forshore Road, is for sale, listed for $590,000.
Not only will the buyer enjoy a new home by the beach, but they can also own their own business, she says.
“It’s affordable and it’s in a beautiful spot at the end of 90 Mile Beach,” Ms Wrigglesworth said.
Meanwhile, those looking for a bargain closer to the Gippsland Lakes near Seaspray, could also try Golden Beach or Loch Sport, which are both close to the ocean and to Lake Reeve.
Listings show some properties are priced for under $300,000 in those areas.
“It’s a really good spot,” Ms Wrigglesworth said. “It’s one I would recommend.”
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