Hunter land sales are up 70 per cent on last year in a boom one major developer labelled "unprecedented".
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Low interest rates and buyers cashed up with the $25,000 HomeBuilder grant and other government incentives have stoked demand, despite the economic impact of COVID-19.
Preliminary figures from property analysts CoreLogic show vacant land sales in the region outside Newcastle and Lake Macquarie numbered 510 in the three months to August, up from 300 a year ago.
In the two metropolitan local government areas, sales were up by one third, from 134 to 179, in the three months to August.
Leading Hunter land developer Jeff McCloy said demand was "60 per cent up on my previous best years" and McCloy Group's annual turnover would be "well in excess" of $100 million.
"We're almost sold out. We will have a record year by that much it's not funny," he said.
"We had them camping out at Medowie twice. We had them camping out at Lochinvar.
"We only have to put a peg in the ground and they're buying it in a day. Wyee we can't build the blocks fast enough.
"In all my days I've never seen sales like we've had."
McDonald Jones Homes, which operates primarily in the Hunter, said its sales were up 61 per cent year-on-year from June to October.
CoreLogic analyst Tim Lawless said HomeBuilder had a "key role" in fueling demand, along with the $10,000 first home buyers grant and stamp duty concessions for first-time buyers.
"The Newcastle and broader Hunter region has shown a resilient trend in housing values through the COVID period so far," he said.
The firm's latest house price data shows property values rose 2.1 per cent in the three months to October in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie and 2.4 per cent in the rest of the Hunter.
McCloy Group has active residential estates in the Hunter at Teralba, Medowie, Lochinvar, Kurri Kurri, Raymond Terrace, Edgeworth, Rutherford, Muswellbrook and Singleton.
Mr McCloy said record low interest rates and "unquestionably the move from the cities" to regional areas were contributing to the "spectacular" growth.
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Another of the region's major property developers, Hilton Grugeon, said he was having difficulty keeping up with "frightening" demand.
"We release 50 blocks in one area, and two weeks later they're all gone," he said.
He said state agencies had not been resourced to keep up with housing demand in the regions and the government's rhetoric on economic recovery did not match reality on the ground.
Maitland real estate agent Tim Peters said his firm had set a record of 104 land sales in the September quarter.
"The main reason is the cost of borrowed dollars," he said.
"People who have been leasing for decades are seeing that they can pay less each week by having a mortgage."
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Michael Parris
Michael Parris reports on politics for the Newcastle Herald. He started at the Herald in 1994 after working in the ABC Newcastle newsroom. Michael spent much of his career as a sub-editor before moving into political reporting in 2017. He was a finalist in the Sports Australia national media awards for his stories about a male-only tennis club in Newcastle. He has covered NSW and federal elections, state and federal budgets and local politics. He has also written extensively about the COVID-19 pandemic with a special focus on data analysis and the effects of lockdowns on the Hunter community.
Michael Parris reports on politics for the Newcastle Herald. He started at the Herald in 1994 after working in the ABC Newcastle newsroom. Michael spent much of his career as a sub-editor before moving into political reporting in 2017. He was a finalist in the Sports Australia national media awards for his stories about a male-only tennis club in Newcastle. He has covered NSW and federal elections, state and federal budgets and local politics. He has also written extensively about the COVID-19 pandemic with a special focus on data analysis and the effects of lockdowns on the Hunter community.
