Planning for the Hunter region

Last night I heard something on the news about Hunter City. I thought, Hunter City, what’s that? Having missed what NBN was saying, this morning I went looking to find out just what Hunter City is/was/going to be and I found my answer on the NSW Department of Planning Website in the form of a draft plan entitled Draft Plan for Growing Hunter City.

Obviously, being a mortgage broker I am always interested in how these things affect the property market and what impact that they might have. I have to say that the plan doesn’t really provide a whole lot of details but it does identify nine strategic centres. These centres are listed as Broadmeadow, Central Maitland, Charlestown, Glendale, Green Hills-Metford, John Hunter Hospital Campus, Newcastle City Centre, Raymond Terrace and University of Newcastle Campus and states that these centres are the ‘key to accommodating future growth’.

With regards to the supply of housing it identifies that infill housing, or the redevelopment of single lots within established residential areas, will provide some of the 60,000 new homes needed over the next 20 years. Take a drive around the inner city suburbs and we can already see this happening.

Single dwelling being replaced with multiple dwellings is a common occurrence already. A quick look at the Newcastle City Council Local Planning Strategy reveals that Islington, Mayfield, Hamilton, Broadmeadow and Adamstown are area identified for ‘economic and or housing renewal and intensification’. This strategy is supported by the Local Environment Plan maps which show large parts of these suburbs zoned for medium and high density housing.

At first glance 60,000 houses might seem like a lot of properties but a quick check of the Department of Planning website shows that the population in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie is forecast to grow between 1.5% and 2% per annum for the next 15 years and all these new residents will have to live somewhere. And why wouldn’t our population be growing, we do live in one of the most beautiful parts of Australia – we can’t keep it a secret forever.

So what does all this mean? Nothing really, I am not sure that much has changed. Yes the density in our inner city suburbs like Hamilton, Islington, Broadmeadow and Adamstown is increasing. You don’t need to read any report to know that. Simply drive around and see the construction that is underway for yourself. With higher density often comes more amenity as businesses open up to service the people that live there.

So if you are out looking for a home in which to live, make sure you know the density of housing that is planned for your area and if you are looking for an investment property make sure you have a read of the draft plan.

If you would like to discuss your home loan please feel free to get in touch for a no obligation chat with Newcastle Mortgage Broker Margaret Godfrey.