Mid North Coast suburbs become the first region to see a million dollar

When Nick Slater began selling houses in King Creek on the NSW Mid North Coast a decade ago, a seven-figure price tag was unthinkable now and he says it is the new norm.

It was five years ago in King Creek that we would have seen the first property exceed a million dollars, said Slater.

We began to see the first properties sell for over two million dollars.

The median home sales value in the semi-rural area went up by $425,000 in the year to May, according to the latest data from CoreLogic.

King Creek is one of 170 regional house or unit markets in the nation to have a median value above or above $1 million for the first time.

The total number is now 270.

It is a common trend in the area, with eight other Mid North Coast suburbs joining the million-dollar median club: Sapphire Beach, Moonee Beach, Korora, Bellingen, Bonny Hills, Lake Cathie, Emerald Beach and Bonville.

Slater said the increase was due to the shifting buyer demographic, with the area's acreage lifestyle located near a coastal regional centre attracting Sydney's retirees.

He said that the proportion of city buyers has increased tremendously.

He said younger families were priced out of the area.

These large homes on acreages are perfect for families, Mr Slater said.

The market has been disproportionately skewed towards semi-retired and retired couples over the past few years due to the fact that prices have grown substantially. As house prices rise, the issue of affordability continues to plague many prospective buyers.

Regional Development Australia Mid North Coast RDAMNC Chief Executive Kerry Grace said unattainable house prices were exacerbating a homelessness crisis and an essential worker shortage in regional areas.

There is just a lack of availability of housing in the market, whether that's due to the lack of rentals or the lack of houses that are affordable for people to buy, Ms Grace said.

The survey of key workers across industries including healthcare, aged care, childcare, hospitality, and agriculture showed that many had been looking to buy property in the region, but found it impossible in the face of low availability and skyrocketing prices.

Ms Grace said people who can't find rentals or get into the property market are hearing some harrowing stories.

Ms Grace said that the research done on the housing affordability crisis revealed not only a shortage of available accommodation but a problem of empty spaces in large homes.

Four of the top five median values in the region of NSW were taken from the Byron and Tweed region of NSW.

Byron Bay has topped the list with a median value of $2,741, 847, up about $400,000 from this time last year.

Casuarina, Myocum and Suffolk Park also made the top five, with medians of over $2 million. Burradoo in the Southern Highlands had the fourth-highest median at $2,416, 897.

The major new regional million-dollar markets are located in the regions of Southern Highlands and Shoalhaven, 18, Illawarra, 16, and Newcastle and Lake Macquarie, 23 regions.