The 7 cities yielding the best outcomes for investors

The top seven cities are Townsville, Western Sydney, Launceston, Darwin, Adelaide, Hobart and Geelong. Each have signed a recent 'City Deal' with the intention of creating a “vision of prosperity, productivity and livability” for each “strategically chosen” city.

Townsville was the recipient of the first of the City Deals, with its main focus on various infrastructure projects to accelerate industrial development. Launceston, similarly, has a focus on infrastructure, to make it the “nation’s most livable and innovative cities”.

Mr Pressley said there is an employment skill push in northern Tasmania that will look at putting forward a business case for the Defence Force’s cadet facility. In doing so, it will become “one of the strongest property markets in the country”.

Despite already having a population the size of Brisbane, Western Sydney received a City Deal designed to hit key benchmarks, including the completion of the North South Rail Link to allow for a 30-minute commute into the city of Sydney.

Hobart and Geelong have both received commitments for services designed to create more investment opportunities, including an improvement to international flights at the Hobart Airport and a new convention centre respectively.

Adelaide is working in a similar city deal, with plans underway to invest in a former site of the Royal Adelaide Hospital as a hub for research and innovation. The government has invested $26 million to establish the Australian Space Agency.

Mr Pressley said “more than any major city in Australia, Darwin desperately needs the support”, adding the city was once Australia’s strongest property market.

The deal is looking at delivering a number of initiatives to attract investors, such as the new Charles Darwin University campus and the development of State Square, “as well as climate-appropriate design to help cool the city and create tropical urban living”.

Mr Pressley said Perth and South East Queensland are also in the pipeline for a City Deal, but he cautioned that investors should consider more than just government plans.

“Whether a City Deal or anything else for that matter in isolation, it’s insufficient to make a decision as important as investing in property. One must first understand numerous factors which influence individual property and analyse the collective sum.”