Dodges Ferry’s median price is flying sky-high as people fall in love with the beachy lifestyle. Picture: Supplied
GOT a DeLorean or a Tardis, handy?
Smart property purchasers might tell you that the time to buy in this southern Tasmanian suburb was years ago.
After all, PropTrack data shows Dodges Ferry house prices have grown by 70 per cent in the last five years.
But what about more recently?
While greater Hobart’s median dwelling price has dipped by 9.4 per cent since the market’s peak in March 2022 — and is down 2.1 per cent annually — not every suburb is feeling that pain.
In the Real Estate Institute of Tasmania’s latest report, 10 suburbs were revealed to have bucked the downturn trend by posting solid — sometimes unimaginable — annual price growth.
Four of them recorded a double-digit increase, as if the market was going through a boom period. And the leader of these growth areas was the Southern Beaches hub, Dodges Ferry.
MORE: SOLD: Record price for Launceston lifestyle acreage hotspot
Ranelagh renters have never seen this before
Dodges Ferry, the secret is out.
Park Beach Cafe at Dodges Ferry.
This town’s remarkable year-on-year growth was 20.6 per cent, per the REIT.
Across 12 sales in the June quarter, the median house price grew by 24.6 per cent to reach a median of $747,500.
Local expert and resident, Raine & Horne’s Danny Boon, said the suburb has gone through changes over the years.
He said Dodges Ferry offers something everyone wants: a great lifestyle.
“These days there is a good school, an IGA supermarket, doctors, chemists, cafes — everything people need,” he said.
“People from Hobart’s western shore see Dodges Ferry as a sea-change destination. A chance to live a fantastic beach lifestyle.
“And this part of the market doesn’t really have a big surge in spring-summer, instead, there is demand all year round.
MORE: Luxury meets lifestyle in South Arm resort-style home
‘Exceptional’: It takes hard work, creativity to win the pub game
No.34 Jetty Rd, Dodges Ferry.
No.34 Jetty Rd, Dodges Ferry.
Over time, prices in Dodges Ferry have grown substantially. REIT figures show the median house price in 1996 was $78,000 and the top sale was $160,000.
Mr Boon said back in the mid-80s, his family bought a block of land for $5000. “We then spent $40,000 on building a 13 square house,” he said.
Over the past financial year, five Dodges Ferry houses were sold for $1m or more.
No.44 Jetty Rd holds the suburb record at $1.9m, followed, unusually, by five properties that each share second place with $1.4m sale prices, per realestate.com.au.
There are five properties listed for sale today in excess of $1m, led by No.34 Jetty Rd, priced at “Offers over $1.399m”.
Noted journalist Charles Wooley has written about property in this area — his patch — that was achieving sky-high prices. From a two-bedroom knockdown for $1m to a home priced at $2050 for a five-day holiday.
It led Mr Wooley to muse that Dodges Ferry might become Tasmania’s Byron Bay.
No.34 Jetty Rd, Dodges Ferry.
No.34 Jetty Rd, Dodges Ferry.
Meanwhile, the southern region’s next best performing areas were Old Beach and White Beach, with 16.8 and 16.4 per cent annual growth. Blackmans Bay was fourth with its 11.4 per cent year-on-year uptick.
At the opposite end of the tally, Battery Point’s median house price dropped by a staggering 41 per cent. Although over the quarter it was 0.9 per cent higher.
In July last year, Battery Point became the first Tasmanian suburb with a median house price above $2m, but the REIT now places it at $1.4125m.
Cygnet and New Town’s medians fell by 17 and 16 per cent, while South Hobart dipped 12 per cent lower.
It’s time to go back, back to Dodges ferry before prices started to zoom. Picture: Josie Hayden
REIT TOP PERFORMERS
Suburb, Quarterly sales, Price change quarter, Price change year
Dodges Ferry 12 $747,500 24.6% 20.6%
Old Beach 18 $700,750 6.7% 16.8%
White Beach 12 $698,500 19.3% 16.4%
Blackmans Bay 23 $908,000 14.5% 11.4%
New Norfolk 26 $495,000 0% 8.3%
North Hobart 11 $985,000 -3.9% 5.6%
Margate 10 $762,000 0.9% 5.2%
Midway Point 10 $618,000 -3.4% 3.7%
Mornington 12 $547,500 -4.1% 3.3%
Lindisfarne 17 $712,000 -2.1% 0.3%
Huonville 18 $725,000 3.6% 0%
Geilston Bay 14 $785,000 21.2% -0.3%
Bellerive 18 $908,500 5% -0.7%
Claremont 18 $525,000 -1.9% -1.1%
Kingston 39 $725,000 -2% -1.8%
West Moonah 16 $967,500 16.6% -1.8%
Berriedale 12 $567,500 -18.5% -2.2%
Mount Nelson 10 $895,000 -12.7% -2.3%
Sandy Bay 22 $1,292,500 7.7% -2.5%
Austins Ferry 10 $651,500 -1.6% -3.1%
Bridgewater 11 $435,000 7.2% -3.3%
Brighton 15 $596,000 7.4% -3.8%
Moonah 14 $572,500 -9.1% -4.5%
Rokeby 14 $612,500 4.7% -5%
Glenorchy 18 $540,000 -3.9% -7.4%
Lenah Valley 14 $720,000 -2.7% -7.6%
Howrah 42 $737,500 -1.7% -8.8%
South Hobart 15 $753,001 -18.2% -12.5%
New Town 14 $857,500 -10.7% -16.7%
Cygnet 10 $642,000 -14.4% -17.4%
Battery Point 10 $1,412,500 0.9% -41%
Source: REIT southern region, houses, minimum 10 sales
English (US) · 