The net migration of people moving from capital cities to regional areas may be slowing, CBA research has found.
The flow of capital-city dwellers moving into Australia’s regions fell to its lowest level since the December 2019 quarter, with net migration dropping for a third straight quarter, according to research from the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA).
The bank’s June quarter Regional Movers Index (RMI) – which tracks migration from capital cities to regional areas – fell by nearly 20 per cent in the June quarter, falling to a level 16.5 per cent lower than a year earlier.
CBA’s latest data may represent a break in the trend of migration from capitals to the regions, which has been high since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, despite the downward trend, the direction of relocations continues to favour the regions. Internal migration from capital cities to regions (11.2 per cent of all movements) continues to outpace flows from regions to capital cities (8.9 per cent).
The net flow from capital to regions also remains 17 per cent higher than what prevailed before the pandemic.
Despite the slowing number of city dwellers moving into regional Australia, the regions are still a major draw, with 26 per cent more people moving from capitals to regional areas than the other way around in the June quarter, according to research from the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA).
Although the flow of city dwellers relocating to regional Australia has slowed, regional areas remain a strong draw, with 26 per cent more people moving from capitals to regional locations than in the opposite direction.
Since the pandemic, city-to-region migration has remained high due to perceived affordability and lifestyle benefits, as well as career opportunities.
Housing affordability at record lows has also driven more prospective home buyers to consider opportunities away from capital cities, where prices are low and may be growing at faster rates.
