At the beginning of 2021 there was a degree of Covid induced uncertainty and dare we say guesswork, involved in projecting what the year ahead had in store.
Would the Noosa hinterland property market continue to improve for sellers?
Where would the buyers come from?
Would border restrictions have an impact?
Well, now that a supercharged 2021 has drawn to a close, it has been the pandemic that has been driving the market to record levels.
Kess Prior and Graham Smith at Hinternoosa said the hinterland has seen median price growth of 36 percent over 2020 with Cooroy Mountain (84 percent), Weyba Downs (47 percent) and Doonan (38 percent) being the stand-out suburbs.
Interestingly, the number of sales in the hinterland has remained constant over the past two years at around 700 each year.
“The lockdowns in Australia’s two largest capitals have had a positive impact on the Sunshine Coast market generally and the Noosa region specifically,’’ Kess said.
“More and more people are fed up with the continual restrictions and they are looking for a new lifestyle and this includes expat Australians wanting to escape to the relative safety of Australia.
“These buyers have made decisions based on FaceTime inspections and a number of $3m-plus properties have been sold this way.’’
Australians are estimated to have saved $60b that would normally be spent on overseas travel and a lot of this money has been directed into prestige property in the Noosa hinterland.
“As usual, the big money has been spent in the ‘golden triangle’ around Cooroy Mountain,’’ Graham said, “with 491 Cooroy Mountain Rd leading the way at $9.5m followed by 198 Sunrise Rd at $4.5m and 92 Valley Dve at $4.3m.
“It is not only the prestige end of the market that has benefitted as the median sale price in some of the smaller centres has also improved dramatically, namely Carters Ridge (42 percent), Black Mountain (38 percent) and Cooran (20 percent).’’
The Hinternoosa team have potential purchasers from the southern states calling every day to declare they have made the decision to move to this part of the world.
“They are unsure of their timings,’’ Graham said, “but they are certain of one thing – they are coming.
“These buyers often gravitate to the perceived security of a 4567 postcode which has driven the coastal prices to unprecedented levels.
“The sellers of these properties are often people who came to Noosa for a ‘sea-change’ 25 years ago and are now more than happy to vacate what has become a busy cosmopolitan resort town to the far more tranquil and relaxed ‘village’ environs of the Noosa hinterland.
“We have seen a surge in population growth, and this had led to an appreciation that this region is more than just Noosa Heads.’’
Affordability, sustainability, and a family lifestyle are seen as the main drivers of this growth which is now having a positive impact of the smaller villages to the west of the Bruce Highway.
In fact, the Mary Valley is taking on its own identity and is becoming a destination with its boutique farm-stay accommodation, local organic produce, and village markets enough to rival the Byron Bay hinterland.
“This buyer influx has also seen a dramatic change in the way properties are sold,’’ Kess said.
“Auctions have now become the preferred method of sale with buyers appreciating the transparency of this strategy.
“Auction sales programs are now conducted over a reduced period of say three to four weeks which has seen the average time on the market reduce from 127 days in 2019 to 23 days in 2021.
“The average price of hinterland properties has also increased from $750,000 in 2020 to $1.35m in 2021.’’
And Hinternoosa’s predictions for 2022?
“An easing of Covid restrictions will see an influx of ‘lifestyle’ property purchases in the hinterland;
“The migration of one time ‘sea-change’ advocates to ‘tree-change’ adoptees will intensify;
“The Mary Valley and the Fraser Coast will become the ‘sleeping giant’;
“Property values will continue to increase albeit at a lower rate of around 10 percent per annum;
“Auctions will become the preferred method of sale.’’
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