Property Point

If you watch the national news and you’re easily spooked it would be natural to curl up in your darkened bedroom, pull the covers over your head and brace for the Armageddon that is about to rain down upon us.

War in Ukraine, Chinese spy balloons shot down over US territory, interest-rate increases strangling real estate markets, man-made climate change destroying the planet.

The message is: be afraid, be very afraid.

Well, I’m not afraid and most of the people I know in Mackay aren’t either.

The war in Ukraine is terrible and, while we feel for the people involved, there’s not much we can do about conflict in a far-away place. China is going to be an increasing issue and the US, Australia and other nations need to stand up and be bold but that’s international power politics, it’s not new and you and I can’t do much about that either.

The climate change narrative is a new religion among inner city influencers and big city media types but while we all know the environment must be looked after, those of us in the real world remember that weather extremes are not new.

These days every weather event is linked to climate change; if it’s cold, if it’s hot, if it’s dry, if it’s wet, if it’s windy … it’s all climate change and we are in peril.

But as the old poem says: We live in a sunburnt country, a land of drought and flooding rains. We always have. So we get on with work, paying mortgages, raising kids and celebrating life in a fantastic part of a wonderful country.

As for interest rate increases, they will have an impact and they certainly are in places like Sydney and Melbourne. But in Mackay, average mortgages are lower and people are getting on with life and buying properties.

I’m not going to pretend I have a crystal ball but the real estate indicators are excellent for Mackay; rental vacancies are low, unemployment is virtually non-existent, wages are generally good and our coking coal production and exports are looking good.

The real estate market has started well in Mackay this year and there is very strong activity among buyers at open homes.

The news around the Chinese economy is very promising for us. Political leadership in that country is pushing for the sort of strong economic growth we haven’t seen for some years and Bowen Basin coking coal is expected to be a beneficiary of that change.

We have diversified our export markets so we are no longer as reliant as we once were on China, however the easing of political and trade hostilities with the Chinese has created a fantastic economic opportunity for our region.

So if you see someone metaphorically curled up in the corner with the doona over their head worried about all the negativity, remind them of who we are and how good we’ve got it.  

We’re gonna be okay.

‍