The Road Best followed….time to Invest in your Future!

Has 2020 and the pandemic reinforced how fed up you are with city prices for real estate, endless traffic, claustrophobic public transport, crowded busy lives?  Now perhaps working from home successfully means you can seriously consider moving to a regional centre or small town.

Reflections about life has been one of the good things about the pandemic for many people.  Life changes in your home and buying real estate can be about savings, investing in the best life possible for yourself and your family. In real estate investment, location, lifestyle possibilities and eco features can help you make the best future.

Real Estate Prices

Values may seem cheap compared to Melbourne, Sydney, even Brisbane. So, the relief alone and way less mortgage stress of course is fantastic.

Real estate ownership is one of the most important investments you will make. There are some key things to consider.

Which location to go to?  So many people say 2 hours from Melbourne or 3 hours from Sydney but many of these communities have already had major real estate price hikes and already significant migrations over the last 10 years.  Regional centres and associated small towns further out often provide some of the best places to go to.  And, guess what, you don’t actually want to back to the city very often.  More important for you may be transport access.

Future of Work

This is where NBN and internet come in.  Whatever your work now, or in the future, you are going to need good internet coverage.  Check that out.  Both in the town, and at the property which can sometimes be poor.

When we leave our dense cities, space seems so wonderful.  Space has probably become one of the most important features to consider in your regional home.  Working from home, schooling and uni at home, suddenly have become incredibly important.  This could be for always.  Whilst we may recover from this pandemic, we need to face the very real possibility of ongoing further pandemics, and climate change is now at a critical phase.

Spaces

Last week I visited a property where I counted 18 fantastic different spaces for what was needed by a family and all their various needs and stages of life.

If you not only want to go regional or small town but want to grow veggies and fruit you need a site that has plenty of sun – and the right sort of sunlight, and the right amount through the growing seasons.  A few things here.  Check out the climate.  Check out the specifics of the property you are considering.

You can improve the soil anywhere by learning about Permaculture and organics but it does take time.  Buying somewhere with good soil already, or established gardens, can be a real bonus.

Power and Growing Stuff

Then of course water. Growing your own food is incredibly healthy – pleasurable and nutritious. Plucking and eating your greens daily is one of the best things you can do for yourself.  But veggies and fruit and nuts need water.  If you are on town water you will be paying for it through water rates.  If you are on water tanks then you need good rainfall and good clean tanks for drinking and cooking.

For solar panels and to generate your own hot water and electricity you need to have the right roof top and right solar access.  With masses of solar energy installations over the last 5 years you need to check that the property has systems that work well.  Ask to see power bills and energy use.  If neither is yet installed and you know you want to,  you may want to check with a local recommend solar installer and see how they assess the property.

Other important considerations are beach, lakes, ocean, bushland, tourist towns, remoteness.

What about what is the size of the land.  Many of our best properties have an upside that may not be immediately apparent.  Understanding the local community and likely developments not just in the next year or so, but in 5-10 even 20 years.

Increasingly your best investment is what suits your own immediate needs – your own affordability and immediate lifestyle of course.  But buying costs are high, real estate values are far more variable in rural and regional Australia.

We have seen increase in property sales in rural areas and demand for areas that aren’t usually top of people’s lists.

Invest in Values

What is not going to change is the human need for space, for water, for good soil, and one of the most important things now threatening our very existence, climate change.

Look out for our further series on all these issues – you can subscribe on our website to our Eco Updates.

Eco Property Examples

To check out one of our best eco property rated current listings ideal for making your move now. In Victoria

http://ecoreal.co/NungurnerVIC

In South Australia http://ecoreal.co/KeppochSA