For the third consecutive year, both Victorian Regional houses and apartments outperformed their metropolitan counterparts with strong price gains recorded over the year.

The vacancy rate for Regional Victoria remains very tight at 1.0%, down from 1.8% a year earlier;

Rents continue to grow for Regional dwellings with both houses and apartments haven risen to all-time highs with gains of 9% and 14% respectively.

Victorian Regional Residential Market Summary

Underpinned by the trend of people relocating from the metropolitan area with employees increasingly seeking to work remotely encouraged by their experiences during the pandemic, Victorian Regional housing markets continue to outperform the Melbourne Metropolitan. As purchaser demand continues to outweigh available stock, median Regional house prices and median Regional apartments prices have reached all-time highs.

Prices

For the third consecutive year, both Victorian Regional houses and apartments outperformed their metropolitan counterparts. Boosted by first-home buyers and buyers seeking lifestyle changes, purchaser demand continues to outweigh available stock. Over the year to 2021, the median Regional house price increased by 18.5% to $457,000 with the median Regional apartment price having increased by 17.5% to $367,000 over the same period. In comparison, Metropolitan median house prices declined by 7.9% over the year with apartment median prices having risen by 5.6% over the year to March 2021. According to the REIV, median house prices of the regional cities of Geelong ($614,000), Ballarat ($432,000) and Bendigo ($420,000) have all once again reached all-time highs in 2020 for the second consecutive year. Urban Property Australia expects that the Regional housing markets will outperform the metropolitan housing market in the short term underpinned by the trend of people relocating from the metropolitan area with employees increasingly seeking to incorporate an element of remote working as part of their working week.

Regional Dwelling Prices

Vacancy

According to the REIV, as at February 2021, the vacancy rate for Regional Victoria remains very tight at 1.0% (down from 1.8% a year earlier). The vacancy rates of the major Regional Cities also remain very low, led by Bendigo (0.8%), Geelong (1.1%) and Ballarat (1.4%).

Residential Vacancy by Region

Rents

Similar to dwelling values, Regional rent markets have continued to increase in contrast to the metropolitan area. According to the REIV, Regional Victorian weekly rental levels for both houses and apartments have also risen to all-time highs. Over the year to February 2021, the weekly median rent for houses in Regional Victorian rose to $380 per week, up from $350 per week a year earlier. Likewise, the weekly median rent for units rose to $320 per week, up from $280 per week a year earlier. By regional city, Bendigo outperformed both Ballarat and Geelong with the weekly median rent for houses up 8% to $370 as at February 2021. In comparison weekly median rents for houses in Ballarat increased by 3% to $350 with rents for Geelong houses increasing by 2% to $420 per week as at February 2021.

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