AT the cutting edge of property transactions in the Goulburn Valley is Kevin Hicks, principle of Kevin Hicks Real Estate.
“Property prices flatlined for 10 or so years in the Shepparton region and the tail lagged compared to other regional areas, however…and a big however, Shepparton and the wider Goulburn Valley has now leaped frogged in price increases exceeding growth in many areas across the nation,” Kevin told Our Goulburn Valley magazine.
“We’ve had a massive correction in price which is sustainable as it was a catch-up scenario,” Kevin said.
Property prices across the board have increased dramatically, whether it’s broad acres, horticulture, orchards (which can be fickle in price), residential, commercial and industrial land, is experiencing healthy growth.
“Some parts of the of the property market, particularly residential has experienced unprecedented increases where buyers are capitalising on the low interest rates and excellent rental returns. The higher end of the market can at times be the quickest to sell. With good rains, high levels of storage of water and therefor the price of water being cheaper is having a strong effect on prices, Kevin said.
He added that commodities had improved and the dairy sector had livened up but there was less dairy product supply in the market due to a lot of dairy farms being decommissioned in recent years. More dairy processes had also opened in recent years.
Shepparton has definitely become a hot spot, according to Kevin.
Kevin Hicks’ colleague, Chris Drum said he had never seen anything like it before, “we are living in extraordinary times with all rural sectors doing well. Normally it’s two or three rural sectors that hold up the local market where other sectors were struggling, but in this cycle all sectors are up.”
Land specialist at Kevin Hicks Real Estate, Terry Shiels said “titled land is scarce, land is in high demand and the challenge is to have enough land for the demand.” He said the recent approval of the new Anglican school to be built on Verney Road was huge for north Shepparton.