5 best suburbs in Regional Tasmania to invest in 2024
Regional Tasmania continues to rank lowly in our analysis – 11th among the 14 jurisdictions, alongside 12th-placed Hobart. Its highest rating on any of the five assessment categories (those being sales volumes, quarterly price growth, vacancy rates, rental growth and infrastructure spending) is ninth. But there remains solid buyer demand in specific locations, particularly suburbs in the Launceston area.
20 Mar 2024
Regional Tasmania continues to rank lowly in our analysis – 11th among the 14 jurisdictions, alongside 12th-placed Hobart. Its highest rating on any of the five assessment categories (those being sales volumes, quarterly price growth, vacancy rates, rental growth and infrastructure spending) is ninth. But there remains solid buyer demand in specific locations, particularly suburbs in the Launceston area.
The rise and rise of the Tasmania economy up to 2021 coincided with the national trend of big city residents moving to regional areas to find a more relaxed and more affordable lifestyle. Regional Tasmania benefited from those events and experienced exceptional price rises for four to five years, alongside the boom in the Hobart market. Consequently, the median house price for Regional Tasmania is around $530,000.
In the October 2023 edition of the State of the States report by CommSec, there was a waning in the Tasmanian economic boom as it dropped to sixth among the states and territories. Buyer activity in the Regional Tasmania property market overall has faded, and the median house price dropped (slightly) in 2023, according to CoreLogic.
Top 5 Rising Stars
- Launceston
- Newstead
- Norwood
- Riverside
- Ulverstone
Launceston
Tasmania’s second city has been one of Australia’s leading performers in the past five years. And whilst Tasmania has moved from this peak, there do remain precincts which attract good demand, including inner-city Launceston. The inner-city precinct provides lots of amenities, including restaurants, parks, waterfront areas and Launceston General Hospital. Sales are evenly split between houses and apartments. Vacancies have fluctuated in recent years but have generally remained below 2%.
Newstead
Located right next to central Launceston, Newstead benefits from all the inner-city amenities, but it is more affordable. Median prices for both houses and apartments, is about $100,000 lower than the suburb of Launceston. This may explain why Newstead homes typically sell within three to four weeks, and the long-term capital growth rates are amongst the best in the Tasmanian property market.
Norwood
For greater affordability in the increasingly expensive Launceston market, Norwood (about 5 km south-east of the city centre) provides an excellent option. The median house price is $590,000. This is despite a long-term capital growth average of almost 10% per year. Demand remains strong here and houses generally are selling within four weeks. The suburb is surrounded by major parks and reserves, and there are a number of schools in the area.
Riverside
This waterfront suburb in the West Tamar Local Government Area (LGA) near Launceston is another Regional Tasmania location which has retained a reasonable level of affordability despite very strong price growth (a long-term capital growth average above 11% per year). Houses continue to sell quickly here. The West Tamar Highway runs through the town. Riverside has good amenities and infrastructure, including schools, sports facilities and shopping centres.
Ulverstone
This bustling seaside town of 12,000 at the mouth of the Leven River in Tasmania’s north, is just off the Bass Highway, 20 km west of Devonport. Ulverstone continues to attract buyers and make quick sales, with 120 homes sold in the past year. The long-term capital growth rate is above 11%, but typical houses still sell in the $400,000s. The vacancy rate is low at 0.4%. Ulverstone has six schools, including two private schools.
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If you’re currently considering a home loan, the comparison table below displays some of the variable rate home loans on our database with links to lenders’ websites that are available for homeowners looking to refinance. This table is sorted by Star Rating (highest to lowest), followed by comparison rate (lowest to highest). Products shown are principal and interest home loans available for a loan amount of $500,000 in NSW with an LVR of 80% of the property value. Consider the Target Market Determination (TMD) before making a purchase decision. Contact the product issuer directly for a copy of the TMD. Use Canstar’s home loans comparison selector to view a wider range of home loan products. Canstar may earn a fee for referrals.
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| Suburb | Median price |
1-yr growth |
10-yr average annual growth (%pa) |
Vacancy rate |
Median rental yield |
Initial Outlay (no concessions) on 20% deposit |
Monthly repayments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Launceston | $800,500 | 4.9% | 7.6% | 1.3% | 3.6% | $192,795 | $4,723 |
| Launceston (Unit) |
535,000 | -13.0% | 6.3% | 1.3% | 4.5% | 127,120 | $3,139 |
| Newstead | $715,000 | 0.0% | 12.6% | 1.3% | 3.9% | $170,770 | $4,195 |
| Norwood | $590,000 | -9.2% | 9.8% | 1.3% | 4.6% | $140,458 | $3,462 |
| Riverside | $592,000 | -5.2% | 11.7% | 1.3% | 4.3% | $140,943 | $3,473 |
| Ulverstone | $480,000 | 2.4% | 11.7% | 0.4% | 4.3% | $113,783 | $2,816 |
Source: www.canstar.com.au. Prepared on 22/01/2024. Based on a selection of suburbs’ median prices, growth and rent figures provided by Hotspotting by Ryder. Initial outlay figures include the deposit, stamp duty, mortgage registration and transfer fees; and lenders’ mortgage insurance (LMI) premium for the 10% deposit scenarios. Stamp duty calculated based on an owner occupier purchase of an established dwelling. LMI premium based on Helia LMI Premium Calculator for an owner occupier borrower and a loan term of 30 years. Monthly repayments calculated based on the average variable interest rates of 6.5% (20% deposit) and 6.8% (10% deposit) and a loan term of 30 years. Interest rates based on the average owner occupier, principal and interest variable rate for a loan of $600,000 over the past year, rounded to the nearest 0.1%. Percentage of income based on the average total income by Greater Capital City Statistical Area (ABS Personal Income, 2020-21), adjusted by the ABS Wage Price Index (Sep-2023) for each state.
Cover image source: Wirestock Creators/Shutterstock.com
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