Gold Coast Bulletin, Tuesday 8th of July 2008
by Jenny Rogers
PROPERTY in the path of new transport infrastructure and in water-rich locations is emerging as new real estate hot spots.
The Tugun Bypass has been dubbed the most influential piece of new transport infrastructure in Australia and suburbs around and south of it are set to boom.
And water-rich Canungra and the Northern Rivers of NSW made it on to the latest list of property hot spots because they both get bucketloads of rain every year.
All have been identified as prime property investment hot spots by a national property researcher, Terry Ryder.
Mr Ryder said the availability of water was set to play an increasingly important role in property buying trends across Australia.
Canungra and the NSW Northern Rivers region were included in a list of water-rich locations in the 'Oasis Change' study as places well placed to enjoy a property boom on the back of plentiful water supply.
"The whole issue of water security is now much more deeply embedded in the national consciousness than it was 12 months ago," said Mr Ryder.
"Our research suggests people are not yet fleeing towns or cities because of water problems, but we can all expect to pay more for water in the future and it is logical that property buyers will increasingly investigate the long-term water security of an area before making an investment."
Canungra, which has recorded its best rainfall in 12 years in the first half of this year and 767mm of rain in May alone, was named one of the top water-rich hot spots.
"It made the hot list because it gets such good rainfall, sometimes too much rain for its own liking -- early this year the Canungra Valley vineyard suffered damage when the town received 800mm of rain in one week," said Mr Ryder.
"But when Brisbane is facing tough water restrictions and almost every capital city is under some sort of water restriction, places like Canungra, with good water security, are going to be top of the list for many property investors in future.
"Canungra has also had solid, double-digit growth in its property market in the past year and the median house price there is now over $400,000."
The Northern Rivers of NSW was another water-rich location.
Mr Ryder said new transport infrastructure had become the single biggest wealth-creating factor in real estate and the Tugun Bypass was the single most important transport infrastructure project in the country.
"It (the bypass) is the most influential piece of new transport infrastructure in Australia,' said Mr Ryder.
"Few things drive up real estate values better than new transport infrastructure and it is now the number one factor in determining future property hot spots.
"The greatest beneficiary of the Tugun bypass will be the Tweed Shire as well as places such as Ballina and Yamba farther south.
"These areas will be more accessible to the larger population bases of southeast Queensland and will also benefit from the ongoing upgrade of the Pacific Highway, including the Ballina bypass.
"On the Gold Coast itself, the beachside suburbs of Tugun and Bilinga will benefit from decreased traffic volumes and noise in their area as a result of the bypass."
Mr Ryder said several big development projects, including a $1 billion master-planned development at Cobaki Lakes, were set to go ahead in the wake of the bypass opening.
"Many major development projects were just waiting for the bypass to be completed before cementing a major construction boom."
He said Australia as a whole was on the verge of a massive new commitment to spending on transport projects and property investors looking to pick the next property hot spots should be buying in the path of progress.