The top property hotspots for Sydney downsizers: Dreaming of a new life in retirement now you don’t have to worry about school catchments and train lines? Read our definitive guide

Choosing where to live is one of the most important decisions a person can make.

But for those downsizing it is also a period of great excitement because – perhaps for the first time – it is a choice based solely on making the most of life, rather than the practical considerations of family and career.

Freed from the constraints of school catchment areas and public transport links, baby boomer retirees whose children have left the nest have the well-deserved privilege of wondering which coastal city they should call home.

Empty nesters who lived most of their lives in a crowded metropolis are increasingly selling up in expensive capital city markets like Sydney and relocating to coastal havens, either to live in a smaller house or to a village to retirees in regional New South Wales.

These postcodes also have much older populations with a median age of 60, much higher than Australia’s midpoint of 38.

They are primarily a four-hour drive from Sydney, meaning retirees who decide to move there can still regularly visit old friends by driving along the Pacific Highway or taking a train.

Downsizers typically bought their first property in the 1970s and 1980s, when homes were affordable for people with average incomes paying a mortgage on a single income.

With plenty of money in the bank after the sale, those old enough to access their retirement or qualify for the age pension now have plenty of options on the beach.

Data shows that baby boomers who are making a radical change are choosing coastal areas without busy main roads or even a single traffic light.

What makes these destinations so attractive, believes CoreLogic head of research Eliza Owen, is their proximity to major hospitals and abundance of allied health professionals such as physiotherapists.

“(Regional New South Wales) has historically been a cheap, coastal option for older Australians to enjoy their retirement,” he tells me.

“Those places would still be much cheaper than the Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast and a lot of healthcare infrastructure has also been built around that – like hospitals and aged care, physiotherapy – and there are young professionals in that sector moving there for all that job.’

Pearl Beach

• Coastal town overlooking Broken Bay
• Median age 64 in Pearl Beach
• Houses more expensive than even Sydney

This exclusive enclave on the New South Wales Central Coast has panoramic views of Lion Island’s Broken Bay and Palm Beach, on Sydney’s northern outskirts.

There is only one winding road to Pearl Beach through the Brisbane Water National Park.

The average age here is 64 years, while neighboring Patonga is older, 65 years.

Both are significantly higher than the 44 in nearby Umina, where Generation X and millennial couples are most likely to raise their children.

Pearl Beach’s median house price of $1.648 million is also more expensive than greater Sydney’s $1.474 million, suggesting those moving here to downsize are cashing out and abandoning larger suburbs. expensive to retire.

This area is more expensive than the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast, where houses near the beach often cost more than $1 million.

falcons nest

• The area has Australia’s oldest residents.
• Former Prime Minister John Howard holidayed there
• Just an hour’s drive north of Newcastle

This coastal town, an hour’s drive north of Newcastle, is where former Liberal Prime Minister John Howard holidayed with his family for 19 consecutive years.

That was until The Newcastle Herald in 1998 controversially published a photo of his holiday accommodation on the front page and encouraged readers to visit him with a bucket of prawns to protest the upcoming closure of a steel plant.

Hawks Nest, famous for its white sand, has a median age of 61 and a median house price of $886,539, well above Australia’s regional level of $654,849.

It’s across the bridge from Tea Gardens, where the average age is older: 69.

Both towns are near Myall Lakes, offering retirees the option of kayaking, golf or a beach perfect for fishing.

Camden Shelter

• Area south of Port Macquarie
• An average age of over 67 years.
• It has beaches, lagoon, lake and mountains.

The Camden Haven region, south of Port Macquarie, is located close to beaches, a mountain, a lake, a lagoon and several national parks.

This area on the central north coast of New South Wales also has a population ranging from 61 in North Haven, next to the surf, to 63 in Dunbogan, across the Camden Haven River.

Laurieton, the area’s main town centre, is slightly older at 67, and the area is home to several aged care centres.

Median home prices are below $800,000 in North Haven and Laurieton, but are closer to $900,000 in Dunbogan, which has a gated community overlooking the beach.

tuncurry

• Right next to Forster
• In the Great Lakes area
• Driving distance to Sydney

This town, across the Coolongolook River from Forster Beach, a three-and-a-half-hour drive from central Sydney, has an average population of 62 people.

It is in the Great Lakes area of ​​New South Wales, and covers Lake Wallis, known for its oysters.

Tuncurry has a median house price of $788,306 and a median apartment price of just $527,490, giving retirees with less savings some options in coastal accommodation.

Unlike other retrenchment points, Tuncurry has traffic lights on Manning Street, which leads towards Head Street Bridge towards Forster.

Since most retirement havens are close to Sydney, Owen says many choose locations within a short drive of their former homes.

“It’s not necessarily a quick trip from Tuncurry to Sydney, but it’s easier than hopping on a plane and traveling from the Sunshine Coast or Gold Coast,” he explains.