Land values in the Hunter have exploded according to the most recent data from the NSW Valuer General.
The valuation only takes into account the worth of the land itself and not that of any homes or structures built on the site.
While the worth of the land homes and businesses are built on going up in value might sound like a good thing, it can be a double-edged sword. Higher land values mean higher land tax and council rates with owners expected to be shelling out more in the coming months.
Across the regional Local Government Areas of Cessnock, Dungog, Maitland, Muswellbrook, Singleton and Upper Hunter the total land value skyrocketed 66% between July 1 2022 July 1 2021, from $32.9 billion to $54.6 billion.
The boom in residential land values outpaced the gains in commercial and industrial land values in these areas, increasing 57.6% overall. The big drivers were attractive lifestyle options, relative affordability and proximity to Newcastle and Sydney.
It appears though that property in more remote parts of these LGAs are becoming the hot ticket with rural land values posting even stronger increases, up by an overall 72.2% as demand for lifestyle properties with remote working options and links to city centres grew. Favourable seasonal conditions and commodity prices have also seen primary production properties become more valuable.
Commercial and Industrial land values posted strong overall increases of 51.3% and 42% respectively as consumer confidence returned to both sectors. Limited availability of commercial property because of booming demand for new residential estates was another major driver. The coal mining sector also had an impact on industrial land values.
The coastal LGAs of Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Port Stephens and the Central Coast experienced an increase in total land value as well but not to the same extent, posting an 18.5% rise from $171 billion to $202.6 billion between July 1 2022 and the same time the year prior.
In these areas industrial land values jumped the most, keeping pace with the rest of the region with an increase of 48.8% overall. Continued growth in e-commerce and logistics combined with the relative affordability and proximity to Sydney were behind the result. A general shortage of quality industrial stock available to the market also factored.
Commercial land value only rose 24.2% overall, propped up by rebounding consumer confidence in the commercial property market and limited availability.
The value of residential land posted a 16.7% overall increase thanks to demand for coastal amenity and and lifestyle as well as the relative affordability and easy access to Sydney.
In a similar story to the regional areas, rural land values in the coastal LGAs boomed by 33.6% overall with relative affordability as well as strong demand for properties with remote working options and links to city centres influencing values.