Mildura region holding value thanks to resilient agricultural sector: HTW rural
Property values in the Mildura region are remaining relatively steady, with the agricultural sector appearing mostly insulated from the contemporary economic downturn, according to the latest rural report from valuation firm Herron Todd White.
“The huge amount of uncertainty resulting from the outbreak is still likely to stall some property sale negotiations, however the fundamentals for food production remain sound and we expect that sales will eventually resume and that the impact on values will be less than for other property sectors,” the report found.
The 15 percent slide in the exchange rate, to current levels of around US $0.57, is expected to help maintain export returns for the local horticultural economy, despite predictions that there may be issues around accessing key markets.
“We note that domestic market prices have risen in some cases due to concerns about shortages of supply,” the firm continued.
“An issue for some of our labour intensive industries (think manual harvest of table grapes and citrus) will be the availability of casual labour.”
Many growers in the region rely on sourcing itinerant workers from the Pacific region or south-east Asian countries, and this will be reduced due to the pandemic.
The report found that the regional almond industry will face challenges as a result of the destruction of a huge number of bee hives during the summer fires.
“Almonds rely on bees for pollination and the simple economic theory of supply and demand will see the cost rise significantly.”
The full 'Month-in-Review' Herron Todd White report for April 2020 can be found here.
The full Herron Todd White 'Month-in-Review' for April can be read here.
Note regarding COVID-19:
This edition of Month In Review had its topic defined in late February with submissions from our offices collated through to late March. During this period, shifts in the social and economic landscape due to COVID-19 became increasingly dramatic, as demonstrated by the varied information provided by offices over the course of three weeks.
This month’s residential theme on baseline property market drivers remains a common thread, and provides an indication of what influences to monitor as the property sector recovers post-crisis.