Tree changing trends unpacked: Where they’re going – and why
Despite falling to their lowest levels since the Covid pandemic, tree changers continue to desert Australia’s capital cities for the regions.
The latest quarterly Regional Movers Index, released on Monday shows 26 per cent more people relocating from capital cities to regional areas than vice versa.
“Regional Australia is no longer a second choice – it’s the smart choice,” Regional Australia Institute chief executive Liz Ritchie said.
“From career opportunities to community connection, the regions are delivering.”
The index uses Commonwealth Bank customer data to track internal migrations and help identify growth trends in regional centres.
Among the most sought after regional centres are the NSW city of Albury on the Victorian border, the north Queensland centre of Townsville and the former gold town of Bendigo in Victoria.
The index points to these cities’ affordability, lifestyle, and opportunities as major draw cards.
Greater Geelong, an hour outside Melbourne – which was the lead destination in the March index – has slipped back to second place to make way for a return of the Sunshine Coast, north of Brisbane, as the top tree change spot.
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The Sunshine Coast returned to the No.1 spot for net migration to Australia’s regions in the year to June 2025.
Queensland maintained its position as a leading destination for internal migration, boosting its share of net movement from capital cities to regional areas from 19 per cent in 2023-2024 to 31 per cent in 2024-25. It is now second only to NSW at 34 per cent.
The Sunshine Coast is the top spot for regional migration. Picture: AAP
Tasmania also reversed its net outflows, recording a 4 per cent net inflow to regional areas.
Western Australia’s East Pilbara region led growth hotspots with a massive 311 per cent annual increase in migration, followed by Hinchinbrook (Queensland), Murrindindi (NSW), Greater Shepparton (Victoria), and Albury (NSW).
Albury had an incredible 16-fold increase in net migration from capitals in the year to June 2025.
“Albury and neighbouring Wodonga offer exceptional lifestyle and economic opportunities attracting both business investment and workers choosing to relocate there,” said Kylie Allen, CBA’s executive general manager of regional and agribusiness banking.
Albury and Wodonga were the site of a failed federal government plan to de-centralise major capital cities in the 1970s. Five decades later, the migration appears to be more organic.
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“The Albury market has gone through the roof,” local real estate agent Andrea Lever, the managing director of Ray White Albury North, said.
Liveability is bringing migrants from capital cities while affordability and rental yields attract investors.
“It’s a great regional city because of where we’re positioned,” Lever said.
“We’ve got great facilities as well.”
Albury is on the Hume Highway connecting Melbourne and Sydney, with trains to both capitals as well as a regional airport.
Lever estimated about 80 per cent of her buyers were not locals.
She said she began conducting online auctions during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I was scared because I had no idea what that even meant.”
She now does most of her auctions online.
“We can smash them out – and even if it’s half a dozen or whatever – they’re done within an hour.”
-with AAP
