Samuel and Laura Shooter's investment property would have sold for about $350,000 18 months ago.
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When they put the West Dubbo house on the market in August it fetched $131,000 more.
"We very quickly had both an owner-occupier and investor wanting to secure it, which led to a sale price of $481,000," Mrs Shooter said.
"This is a very typical scenario at the moment.
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"We've noticed a lot of investors making the decision to take their capital gain a few years ahead of schedule and sell while the market is hot.
"Whereas a few years ago we had investors deciding to leave their properties on the rental market even when selling was their preference, due to the growth just not being where they wanted it."
The managing director of SJ Shooter Real Estate and a committee member of the Real Estate Institute of NSW Orana Division, Mrs Shooter reports of a fast-moving and increasingly-expensive market which has not been interrupted by the lockdown.
"The stay-at-home orders coming into effect in Dubbo didn't change the fact we're dealing with an environment where demand outweighs supply, meaning upwards price pressure," she said.
Latest CoreLogic data shows the median house price at Dubbo reached $405,000 in the rolling year to May 2021, up $5500 on April 2021 and $45,000 on May 2017.
The 977 houses sold in the rolling year to May 2021 is a 10-year record.
The latest data shows 413 homes costing between $200,000 and $400,000 sold across 12 months, followed by 360 homes in the $400,000 and $600,000 bracket.
There were 113 houses in the $600,000 to $800,000 bracket which changed hands along with 54 under $200,000, 26 between $800,000 and $1 million, and 10 between $1 million and $2 million.
Mrs Shooter said the escape-to-the country trend following the 2020 lockdowns "took a lot of our sale stock off the market by people moving to town from the big cities and even returning to town after being abroad".
"The issue with supply has actually not been so much a decline in the number of new sale listings coming onto the market, but more of a reduction in the typical stock levels that the current demand will likely prevent from getting back to usual levels for some time," she said.
Mrs Shooter also told of public and private entities struggling to house workers.
"We've lacked an adequate supply of medium- density dwellings in comparison to other comparable regional centres, and this is now having a major impact on people trying to move here and also causing locals to be priced out of the market," she said.
The division spokeswoman expects the "steep upward trend" to continue.
"Dubbo is a very steady market with an average annual capital growth of 4.68 per cent," she said. "In 2018 and 2020 the prevailing conditions lead to zero or slightly negative growth, so it's not surprising to see the market making up for lost time and catching up with our average," she said.
Mrs Shooter expects a "small exhale after we've found the peak of this current cycle before continuing along the steady trajectory".
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