For many, the coronavirus was the last push they needed to get out of the city for good, and the ability to work remotely has made it feasible for them to do so.

As a result, agents are reporting high demand for quality rural properties. Homes in the Southern Highlands region, which is 110 kilometres South-west of Sydney, are experiencing a 150% increase in open-home attendees. One agent reported an average of 37 groups per open.

As a result of this demand, prices in the Southern Highlands region have increased by 2.1% over the last three months.

Tim Lawless of CoreLogic remarked that the flight to rural regions is helping those markets weather the downturn better than the capital cities.

“The normalisation of remote work through the pandemic could make proximity to major cities less of a factor in home purchasing decisions,” Mr Lawless said.

And it’s not just buyers—renters are also turning their eyes to the cheaper housing of rural areas. SQM Research cites the sharp drop in rental vacancies in regional areas as evidence. The Mornington Peninsula region in Victoria has recorded its lowest levels on record at 0.8%.

We’ll see how this trend continues as the capital cities begin to ease their way out of lockdowns.