"Mining towns a hot investment"

Hi Followers

Thought this article would be a good read as we are the mining state!

Whether it's Queensland or Western Australia, mining towns are digging out much more than coal and gas. Property values are also being lifted, according to RP Data.

Research director Tim Lawless says with all the hype around the resources sector, mining towns are showing strong growth.

“There is a real boom with the housing markets around the resource-intensive regions benefiting from strong demand,” he says.

“As a result, this is driving up transaction numbers and home prices.”

RP Data says high levels of demand, coupled with scarcity of quality housing in some mining regions, is showing that median house prices are actually higher than many of the most prestigious suburbs in capital cities.

Western Australia’s Roebourne, Port Hedland and Broome council areas have recorded the highest median house prices outside of a capital city at $950,000, $775,000 and $660,000 respectively over the year to June 2011.

In Queensland, Isaac ($445,000) and Gladstone ($415,000) are showing the highest median house prices of any council region in the state, outside southeast Queensland.

Rental yields in mining towns are also well in excess of capital city averages.

The rental return in Port Hedland is 12.7 per cent, while Cloncurry in Queensland has a yield of 11.4 per cent.

“With the non-rural commodities sector gathering pace, resource-driven regions should continue to prosper,” he says.

However, investors should also be aware that mining towns are reliant on a single commodity.
“Any weakness in the resources sector is likely to be reflected within the housing market,” Lawless warns.

This information was gathered from:
http://apimagazine.com.au/api-online/news/2011/09/mining-towns-a-hot-investment

DEB BRADY
0405 570 903