The result has been market price increases between 30-40% and up to $150- $200/week on rental values in some centres in the past 18 months – 2 years. What this has created is unprecedented demand for housing and lifestyle blocks all over regional Australia, with the strongest demand being on those communities who are a return day trip or have direct flights to the major capital cities, particularly on the east coast. With the onset of Covid restrictions and shift to remote working and learning, a permanent move into Regional Australia has become a very real reality for the thousands of city-based workers and their families who have relocated to the country and still been able to retain their city-based jobs and pay cheques. The phenomena of the FIFO worker in the mining sector has been common place for years, and was adopted by a select few office based workers who returned to the regions on the weekends, but still did their Monday to Friday face to face in the city office. There is a reason why property markets of all shapes and sizes across regional Australia are booming, and its not a flash in the pan mine expansion or localised infrastructure project, it is the fundamental shift of people relocating from larger urban centres to more affordable housing and lifestyle options. Whilst some of the changes the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to our lives are obvious and impacts us all daily, through lockdowns, social distancing, mask wearing and travel restrictions, there is a quiet side effect of which is not as obvious.

Curren$y the game plan