Ray White Mt Gambier last week hosted an insightful Property Management Investment Seminar at Wulanda Recreation and Convention Centre.

Ray White Mt Gambier principal Tahlia Gabrielli said the seminar was a great success and received more than 140 registrations and approximately 35 virtual attendees.

“It was very well received and just shows there is such a demand for further knowledge for people at all levels of their investment journey or property journey to see what’s out there, what they could be doing and what they need to know,” Ms Gabrielli said.

“I think property and investment is always something that people have quite a lot of interest in because it does affect the majority of people.

“Also, lots of people have been to seminars or Q&A nights, but I think because we did try to make it a bit more of a premium experience, it was still inviting, but really brought that next level of a conference seminar to our region.

“It was amazing, I am glad we did it, it was a great outcome and I am glad that so many people really enjoyed it and actually found it informative and really useful.”

Speakers included Ray White Group chief economist Nerida Conisbee, local financial planner Max Bruins, Eckermann Conveyancers owner and general manager Brad Eckermann, mortgage broker Tegan Kuhl, Nathan Frost from BMT and Ray White business development executive Chris Tepper.

“It was really good having different elements, opinions and ideas from people spoken about on the night,” Ms Gabrielli said.

Ms Conisbee said the South East experienced record house price growth during the pandemic.

“We had never seen it move so quickly,” she said.

“But what was unique about the South East was it was strong population growth, so we did see record movement of people out of capital cities and into regional areas.

“It had a lot to do with people did not necessarily have to be in capital cities for their jobs, they were able to be elsewhere.

“In that part of South Australia, we also saw really good agricultural conditions, so that contributed to very strong economic growth for South Australia broadly but did lead to a lot of population growth around Mount Gambier.

“Renting has also seen very, very strong growth, but unlike prices, which slowed down a little bit last year, rents have not slowed and are not going to slow because not only are we still seeing population growth, but we have got a housing supply issue because construction costs are so high.

“So, there is a real problem at the moment trying to get enough homes to the people who want to live in the South East or have jobs in the South East and need places to live.”

Ms Conisbee did not envision the housing crisis improving in the foreseeable future, however there were factors helping the situation, such as an increased likelihood of people moving into share accommodation.

However, she said South Australia’s population continued to grow because it was considered a very attractive state to move to, which was great for the economy, but lack of housing was a challenge.

Ms Conisbee said first home buyer activity had decreased, with the HomeBuilder Grant no longer available and rising interest rates being major factors.

“There has been a little bit of a pickup over the last month, it is interesting because interest rates are still very high, but I think there is a little bit more confidence amongst first home buyers the interest rates are close to peak,” she said.

“Also, there is a national availability of the first home buyers’ scheme which allows you to buy with a 5% deposit, so there are things out there available for first home buyers.

“I think what is apparent is there are still affordable pockets in Mount Gambier, but it is becoming much more expensive than what it was, so there is quite a bit of pressure around affordability growing.

“On one hand we do tend to celebrate price growth and think it is a great thing, but on the other hand, it is quite stressful for people who are trying to get into the market who maybe do not earn a lot of money.

“It still is affordable, but it is becoming less so to buy a home in the region.”