Geraldton cracks top 10 list for housing growth across Australia according to Hotspotting data

Geraldton cracked the top 10 of a national list for the best suburbs in Australia to invest in, according to the latest data from Hotspotting’s The Pulse report.

The report showed the median house price in Geraldton had risen 11.6 per cent to $355,000 for the quarter.

Geraldton came in at No.10 on the list which highlighted suburbs with the best capital growth and rental yields and was topped by Dalby in Queensland and included Armadale, Balga and Carey Park in Bunbury.

Hotspotting managing director Terry Ryder said Geraldton was becoming a popular place to invest because of the proposed expansion of infrastructure.

“We think this area is going to show growth because the State Government is investing to make Geraldton more of a commercial hub,” he said.

“There’s expansion of the port, there’s all sorts of infrastructure happening or proposed.

“When you look at the population, it’s projected to grow in the next 20 years to above 60,000, which is quite substantial growth.”

Mr Ryder continued, saying the diversity within Geraldton made it an attractive place to buy.

“Places we recommend have got strong, diverse economies, not just resources,” he said.

“If you look at where the jobs are in Geraldton, there’s a lot of different things providing economic growth in the region, which is pretty important to the property market.”

It comes after CoreLogic data had Geraldton record the highest increase in median house prices across Australia’s 50 largest non-capital cities over the past three months, up 8.8 per cent.

Mr Ryder said conditions were beneficial for buyers.

“Median house prices in Geraldton is below $400,000, and they have very low vacancies around the region,” he said.

“There’s really good rental yields above 6 per cent available, which is attractive to investor buyers.”

Geraldton’s rental vacancy rate in May was 1.2 per cent, according to the Real Estate Institute of WA.

One new Geraldton homeowner, who wished to remain anonymous, said his situation was likely against the trend of typical buyers.

The 25-year-old bought a house in Utakarra, saying he wanted to get into the market.

“Seeing how much property prices keep going up, and not being in the market, so I wasn’t seeing any of the benefits of the market going up,” he said.

“The property I purchased was about half my borrowing capacity, and I had a pretty sizeable deposit.”

He said he was able to purchase a house within three months of looking, but understood he was in a fortunate position.

“I had set myself for being well within my budget, so I didn’t have a high bar,” he said.

“I don’t think I’m a fair reflection of what I hear about people struggling to get into the market.”