At first it was the COVID pandemic that put the push on Canberrans to realise the dream of an easy-going rural lifestyle. Now, it’s by choice.

More people are making the move to the regions with flexible work-from-home arrangements the new norm.

MARQ Licensed Agent Sam McGregor said regional locations within an hour’s commute from Canberra were thriving real estate opportunities, but the outlying locales had not been immune to the price pressures seen in the city.

He said an increasing number of city dwellers were making the decision to up-stumps from Canberra, with a surge in demand for properties in Murrumbateman, Bungendore, Gundaroo, Sutton, Yass and Braidwood.

“Without a doubt, over the last 12 months we have seen huge interest towards Murrumbateman and equally to Bungendore,” Sam said.

“The reason why I zero in on those towns is that 12 months ago, until very recently, they’ve represented the perfect combination of lifestyle, property and value to Canberra buyers. People have been able to sell in Canberra and for a similar price and move to a lifestyle property, small acreage or a bigger residential block.”

But now interest has crept to further outlying areas amid price rises.

“The value proposition has changed recently. The demand, through COVID, really pushed prices up in those super appealing areas, so people are now looking that little bit further out to try and find value again,” Sam said.

“Six months ago we saw a shift… These buyers are looking for a small acreage, a four bedroom home, likely with a swimming pool and a nice big shed.”

He said people were making conscious decisions to leave the city, driven by more flexible remote working arrangements.

“A lot of Canberra incomes are public service based and a lot of public service work is very flexible. Now that people are able to work say two days a week from home, they’re realising that dream that may have been tucked away and perhaps hindered by the commute to work.

“Now it’s about the change in value proposition. The strength of the housing market means that people can sell for an excellent price in Gungahlin, for example, and take that money and buy their dream home in a rural area.

“You can’t ignore the fact that because of the change in values out there, governments are also investing in infrastructure so there are more schools and shops popping up. The lifestyle opportunity is more feasible than it was five or 10 years ago.

“It’s like a perfect storm, in a positive way, for people who want to make that change,” he said.