According to RP Data’s Home Value Index, Canberra was Australia’s third-highest performing city, as the nation experienced its strongest capital gain over the three months of winter since 2007.

Property valuer and agent Geoff Payne said this was the case in Batemans Bay as well, with houses prices increasing from an average of $350,000 to $450,000.

“Now we are seeing signs in Canberra of activity in the property market, they generally will then come down the coast and look to retire and holiday and buy,” Mr Payne said. 

“Our prices in Batemans Bay compared to Canberra are seen as very cheap. 

“People are mainly interested in the house market, not so much the land market.”

He said several sales had been reported at the top end of the housing market recently.

“That is happening in the August/September period, which is pretty rare and it means the smart money is coming into town,” he said.

Mr Payne said Canberra controlled the Batemans Bay market more than Sydney did, and he expected the area to boom. 

“If Canberra starts to get equity and move, then we will follow,” Mr Payne said. 

With 50 per cent of the area’s employment in trades and housing, if the property industry was not doing anything, then Batemans Bay wasn’t. 

“You have to stimulate the employment situation and that is going to be from the property industry,” he said. 

Eurobodalla’s property market had been depressed since the global financial crisis (GFC).

“I estimate a 25 per cent decline over that period in values and turnover,” Mr Payne said. 

Elders Batemans Bay agent John Haslem said the area was very dependent on consumer confidence in Canberra and there were signs the market was about to improve. 

He said three to four bedroom houses under 15 years old were in demand. 

“The number of houses coming onto the market has declined and many agents are short of listings in the popular price ranges, from $280,000 to $440,000,” Mr Haslem said.  

He said the past 12 months had been as soft as he had seen in a decade and he blamed poor consumer confidence. 

“When the Canberra market starts to increase, our market looks cheap and buyers move in,” Mr Haslem said. 

“Land is very cheap at the moment, so people wanting to build houses can do so quite economically.”