A growing desire for "tree changes" could be needed in regional SA, with the number of job vacancies rising above 2019 levels.
As Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack declared a big lesson from COVID-19 was that there was no need to "sit at a board table in Sydney", real estate agents say signs indicate an emerging trend of people relocating to regions.
Speaking at the Regional Australia Institute pre-budget address, Mr McCormack said there was increased awareness technology was removing barriers to where people lived.
"You don't have to be in a capital city, you can Zoom in," he said.
If the NBN does what it's supposed to do, it will be big for the regions, and (people relocating to regional areas) will definitely be a trend in the future.
- ANDREW SHIELDS
He said there were also a number of benefits, such as reduced mortgage costs - "a big chunk of the household budget" - and more leisure time, in regional areas.
Real Estate Institute of SA operations manager Andrew Shields said it was too soon to have data on any trends, but in speaking with regional agents, there was evidence people were looking to relocate from metro regions.
"More people are working remotely from home, and that will be a trend into the future," he said.
He said not all regions had experienced this, and in some cases there were other factors involved, such as investments in local industries, but areas with increased demand included Port Augusta, Whyalla and Renmark.
"We normally see people move five kilometres to 10km, within a town, but we're seeing one-third of sales coming from people out of town in Renmark," he said.
Mr Shields said listings had almost dropped off, with housing stock levels substantially reduced, while subdivisions had reached an "all-time high", and were largely selling well.
"If the NBN does what it's supposed to do, it will be big for the regions, and (people relocating to regional areas) will definitely be a trend in the future," he said.
It is a trend the District Council of Karoonda East Murray is hoping to use as it offers 17 blocks of land at less than $2000 - about 10pc of the normal price.
Mayor Caroline Phillips said the goal was to drive the region's economy by encouraging "tree changes".
"We're looking at opportunities for us to increase our population, because that means increased services and better sustainability of the district," she said.
Ms Phillips said the council-owned blocks had been available for some time, but they were offering a 90 per cent cash rebate in their Build Karoonda program, while buyers could also potentially access the $25,000 HomeBuilder payment and the first home buyers grant of $15,000.
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She said there were a lot of benefits to living in Karoonda, with it just 1.5 hours from Adelaide, near the regional centre of Murray Bridge, with two NBN towers in town and childcare five days a week.
But she said they were hoping the community could benefit from the new residents, by gaining much-needed skills. The scheme requires building to begin by March 31, which would help create jobs and stimulate the local economy.
Ms Phillips said the program had been so popular, they had a waiting list of applicants, and it had also stirred inquiries about local industrial blocks.
We're looking at opportunities for us to increase our population, because that means increased services and better sustainability of the district.
- CAROLINE PHILLIPS
"Most are from SA, particularly Adelaide, with some interest from tradies in relocating and older folks looking to retire - there's a range of demographics," she said.
There are also signs of increased employment opportunities in the regions, with more than 1100 jobs advertised in recent weeks outside metropolitan SA.
The RAI's September quarterly job vacancy update shows there are 18.5 per cent more jobs advertised in regional SA than at the same time in 2019 - and more than before lockdown began.
The same report from March showed 846 jobs available - itself a lift of 15.9pc from the same period in 2019 - while the June report showed a 21.2pc drop from 2019 figures.
At the time, that was the smallest percentage fall Australia-wide, with the national average for regional Australia down 33.6pc, while mainland capital city vacancies dropped 52.1pc.
Nationally, the September report showed job vacancies down 1.9pc from 2019. The biggest demand is for well paid mid- to highly-skilled professionals, such as legal or medical practitioners, and trades jobs.
These two occupations accounted for 42pc of all advertisements, and were also among the highest proportion of vacancies in regional SA.
Vacancies for labourers and community and personal services workers are also up - more than 10pc above August 2019.
The RAI update says there is a correlation between managing COVID-19 and vacancy numbers, with regional SA, WA and NSW - where cases have been low - the only districts to see a lift in job vacancies, year-on-year.
Innovation and Skills Minister David Pisoni said the increase was more cause for optimism in the regional and broader state economy.
"Anecdotally, we're seeing large numbers of South Australians flock to our world-class regions to holiday at home, and this is providing a real shot in the arm for our regional economies," he said.
"We would like to see our unemployment rate lower across the state, and while there are particular regions where the rate is higher than we would like, we're confident the continued growth in jobs in SA will put downward pressure on the unemployment rate in the regions."
With many businesses having difficulty finding skilled workers before migration was halted, Mr Pisoni said the state government would continue to work with its federal counterparts on designated areas of migration agreements to fill critical jobs.
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