Wealthy buyers flock to sea and tree-change destinations

Cashed-up buyers are leading the march out of capital cities and into regional areas, snapping up homes in tree and sea-change destinations – some without setting foot inside the property.

City slickers with holiday homes in regional areas first rushed to their beach houses and country cottages to wait out the coronavirus pandemic in March, with buyers following suit in the months since to try get in on the sea and tree-change action.

Queensland’s Noosa Shire, Victoria’s Mornington and Bellarine peninsulas, and the Southern Highlands and Byron Bay in New South Wales are among a slew of regions where wealthy city buyers are fuelling strong demand for high-end homes.

Eight of the 11 registered bidders at a recent auction for a beachfront apartment in Noosa Heads, which sold for $9.8 million, were bidding remotely from Melbourne or Sydney, with another two Brisbane buyers and one local also competing for the three-bedroom property.

It went to a Melbourne buyer who had never inspected the property in person for well above the $7.2 million records show it last traded for in late 2018. He plans to rent it out as a holiday home in the short term.

SOLD - $9,800,000

11/37 'La Mer' Hastings Street, Noosa Heads QLD 4567

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“Interstate interest has probably tripled in recent months,” said selling agent Shane McCauley of Richardson & Wrench Noosa. “I would answer 20 to 25 inquiries a day from Sydney and Melbourne.”

Mr McCauley already has a dozen registered bidders for an auction this weekend, eight of whom are from Sydney and Melbourne. He said most interstate buyers were looking for an investment or holiday home, but some were looking to make a sea change off the back of the rise in remote working.

“They’re looking for somewhere safe to come and holiday. They won’t be travelling overseas in the near future and want a piece of something else that is going to be paradise,” he said.

Gillian McCauley, also for Richardson & Wrench Noosa, sold a three-bedroom apartment in Sunshine Beach for $2.15 million to a Melbourne woman who had never inspected the property in person. The new buyer plans to use it as a holiday home down the track.

SOLD - $2,150,000

1/33 Duke Street, Sunshine Beach QLD 4567

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Ms McCauley has seen strong interest from both Brisbane and interstate buyers, largely from Melbourne.

“I did about 25 private walk-through videos,” she said. “Listings are tight, but buyer inquiry has certainly gone through the roof. There is a lot of competition in the market.”

Mr McCauley added: “It’s [buyers from] the southern states who are pushing prices higher than where local buyers are, a few [locals] were probably annoyed at that.”

The Noosa Shire and greater Sunshine Coast is also proving to be very popular with expats looking to return to Australia, says Kirstie Klein Hunter of Klein Hunter Property Buyers.

“Interest has been pretty strong for the past two to three months,” she said. “The stock levels are very limited, so when a property does come to market, it often gets multiple offers within 24 to 48 hours.”

In addition to the great lifestyle on offer, Ms Klein Hunter said upgrades to the Sunshine Coast airport had made the region a more appealing base for those who could work remotely.

“Most who are buying would like to live here some time in the future, however the properties that they’re getting now are for an investment,” she said.

A similar pattern has held on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula where properties worth up to $8 million have seen strong interest from well-heeled Melburnians looking to purchase holiday homes.

SOLD - $3,250,000

26 Werrington Street, Burradoo NSW 2576

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And in the Southern Highlands of NSW, Ben Olofsen and Cameron McKillop of The Agency had all nine properties they sold last week – worth $15.5 million combined – snapped up by Sydneysiders. 

“Stock is down about 50 per cent, but buyer interest is up about 300 per cent,” said Mr Olofsen.

“About 80 per cent of our buyers are coming from Sydney,” he added, with increased interest from Canberra buyers too.

In the mix of sales were two prestige properties, a six-bedroom Berrima home marketed with a guide of $4.7 million and a five-bedroom Burradoo home, which sold for about $3.25 million.

SOLD - $4,500,000

224 Greenhills Road, Berrima NSW 2577

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While there has been a massive influx of buyers in the $3 million-plus market, there has been increased interest across all price brackets, Mr Olofsen said.

He added many buyers felt they would not be going back to the office anytime soon, so wanted to take the opportunity to downsize their mortgage and upsize their lifestyle.

Mr McKillop said many retirees had brought forward their plans to downsize from Sydney due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“People have had time to assess their priorities and want to make the change now,” he said.