RICK MOSS | Townie Issues | CONTACT
According to new data from one of those property magazines that thinks unsustainably inflated house prices are a good thing, rural Australia is fast approaching the same levels of unaffordability seen in metropolitan areas.
This is most visible in regional New South Wales, as hundreds of thousands of city slickers flock to the bush to escape Sydney’s downturn, with the fear of yet another lockdown ever present in the back of their minds.
Almost very council area in the state outside of Sydney recorded double-digit price growth in the year to June, even in those prison towns that you would only stop in for a maccas lunch on the way out west.
While this socioeconomically disastrous phenomena is forcing young families into poverty and homelessness, it also has rural property investors and real estate agents licking their lips – as the face of regional Australian irreversibly changes.
Aside from the introduction of oatmilk and warm fairy lights in the main streets, this unbridled tree-change-aided gentrification has also affected the very essence of bush life – as waves of grown-ups with self-diagnosed gluten intolerance issues rush from the city.
Gone are the days where a works burgers at the roadside truck stop is veiwed as the height of regional cuisine, as gastrobars and Asian fusion restaurants open up one by one across country NSW.
Another unexpected cultural shift on the other side of the Blue Mountains is the notable spike in Patagonia and North Face puffer jackets.
However, the most clearly visible transformation is the type of family pets that now call these towns home – and the implementation of the once laughable ‘dog parks’.
According to the rural pet store owners and veterinarians from Grafton to Coota, their entire industry is now overwhelmed with the sheer administration that comes from tending to dogs that can’t breath that well – specifically pugs and French Bulldogs.
New findings from the RSPCA can also confirm that the fried-chicken-looking ‘Cavoodle’ is now most popular breed of dog in rural NSW – officially overtaking the top spot from the two-face putrid mutts – often seen making noise at the shuttle bus transfer station and starting fights in the Facebook comments of local buy/swap&sell pages.
