Property market in strong rebound

MILDURA’S booming property market outperformed most capital cities – including Melbourne – over the past five years, new data shows.

A second leading analyst in as many weeks has trumpeted the strong property growth in both the Mildura and Wentworth LGAs since 2018.

Only Brisbane (63 per cent) and Adelaide (61.2 per cent) performed better of the capital cities than Mildura, which is now the second fastest growing regional city in Australia.

Independent national property analyst Propertyology reported on Tuesday that Mildura had 54 per cent residential capital growth over the past five years, despite a market slump in 2023.

In the Wentworth LGA, which takes in Buronga and Gol Gol, property values doubled over the same period, and the average days on market for a dwelling was slashed from 91 to 41.

The median property price in the “Mildura-Buronga” region is now $410,632, according to both Propertyology and CoreLogic.

The downside for renters, though, is the surging cost of average weekly outlays since 2018, from $310 to $460 in Mildura and a doubling from $220 to $440 in the Wentworth LGA.

Propertyology head of research Simon Pressley said the strong local economy had underpinned “high confidence” among investors.

“While Mildura has been a strong performing property market for several years, Australia’s 41st largest city still offers relatively affordable housing,” he said.

“Mildura is one of only a few major townships in Australia where one can still buy a solid house for just under $500,000.

“I’ve been incredibly impressed by the community’s marketing and promotion efforts that have been observed across Australia.

“The region’s unique tourism experiences, the high-quality amenities and wonderful lifestyle make Mildura a pretty special place.

“The 18-month period when interest rates increased took the heat out of Mildura’s market.

“It has been flat during the past six months, but the underlying fundamentals are rock-solid. Propertyology anticipates a return to normal rates of growth (2 to 5 per cent per year) for the foreseeable future.”

He gave a ringing endorsement of the property market on the NSW side of the Murray River.

“Wentworth might be small in stature, but its property market has packed a big punch in recent years,” Mr Pressley said.

“House values have effectively doubled over the last five years — much of that is due to a ripple effect from Mildura’s strength.

“Housing supply in Wentworth has contracted sharply and demand is very strong.

“There is considerable pressure in Wentworth’s property market — double-digit capital growth in 2024 is on the cards.”

The Propertyology analysis comes on the heels of CoreLogic forecasting a strong rebound to the “Mildura-Buronga” market following a 15.5 per cent dip in dwelling sales last year.

As local real estate agents report a strong opening quarter of sales in 2024, CoreLogic research director Tim Lawless said the five-year data to the end of 2023, where the regions are outperforming the capital cities, was “a fairly new phenomenon”.

He said the Mildura-Buronga market held up well amid the 2023 downturn, which he says was caused by cost-of-living pressures and immigration rates falling during the pandemic.

“The 0.5 per cent rise in values over the past year (in Mildura-Buronga) is slightly stronger relative to the combined regional markets across Victoria where values were down 1.3 per cent over the past 12 months,” Mr Lawless said.

“The slowdown in demand has helped the market to become more balanced with respect to buyers and sellers.”