20 Apr 2026
Words Sarah Hutchins Informer

Southern Comfort

Sarah serves ResortBrokers’ clients in one of Australia’s most stunningly gorgeous regions. Based in the Mollymook–Ulladulla area, Sarah’s territory stretches south as far as Batemans Bay, north to Shellharbour and inland to the Southern Highlands and Goulburn.

With such a diverse and highly desirable zone, it’s little surprise buyers are lining up to secure opportunities here. In this Q&A, Sarah offers her insight on buyer profiles, current market conditions and how vendors can get the most out of them.

Sarah, you represent ResortBrokers in one of the most beautiful parts of the country. Are we entitled to be a little envious?

You are [laughs]. We’re pretty blessed where we live. I always feel so grateful when I’ve been away to come back home. Where we live is like a country town but on the coast.

It’s not overdeveloped like north of Sydney where high-rises dominate. Where we live, it still has that untouched country town holiday feel about it.

Buyers are attracted for the same reasons?

They are. The market is hot right now. I’ve got so many buyers at the moment.

Other than the obvious attractions — the gorgeous beaches and great weather — lifestyle is a big thing here. And that’s true whether you’re a big corporate player or a family operator.

We’ve got some pretty big buyers in my area, but I’m seeing a lot of newcomers as well. People who may be a little tired of their corporate life, who are looking for a change and want to work for themselves.

They come here on holidays and think, ‘Hmm, what could we do down here?’ I can’t think of a better business than the accommodation business, especially in this neck of the woods.

If someone was looking to sell, what advice would you give them?

Be thoroughly prepared. In the current market, buyers are very savvy and need information. It’s not just a matter of engaging a broker and saying, ‘Here’s my property, just sell it.’

That just won’t wash in the current market. The best way for vendors to achieve market value or better in the current market is by having all their financial and other information as up to date as possible.

That’s so they can be as transparent as possible with buyers so that a deal doesn’t fall apart in due diligence.

In short, engage industry experts and have the best quality information to help transactions go smoothly with buyers.

What are buyers looking for in an accommodation asset?

Each buyer is different. But generally speaking they’re after good locations and good returns. Neither is hard to find in my zone.

Something to bear in mind about this part of the coast is that it’s still very tourism based. You have your peak season and quieter season.

That scares some people because obviously with peaks and troughs you have to manage financially throughout the year.

But others see it as a good thing because it enables them to have a break. The winter period is their downtime when they can either go on a little holiday themselves or do maintenance and upgrades to get ready for the summer ahead.

That said, the market isn’t as seasonal as it once was. It used to be dead quiet down here come winter.

But it’s not like that anymore. We now have visitors coming at all times of year, especially grey nomads who travel while everybody else isn’t.

Where’s buyer interest coming from?

I have many buyers out of Sydney, including a lot of big players. In the 40-plus rooms space, I have plenty of buyers.

Traditionally, Sydneysiders have gone north, but in the last couple of decades they’ve really discovered the South Coast.

The Mollymook–Ulladulla area where I live and further south has substantially grown in popularity with Sydneysiders.

We’ve also seen a massive influx of young people, especially since Covid. Mollymook–Ulladulla is very much the older generation who have holiday homes and retired here and their kids went to school here.

In the past, those kids left for Sydney or Canberra when they finished school. But many aren’t doing that anymore. They’re sticking around.

We’re also seeing a lot of Sydneysiders who once favoured coastal destinations north of Sydney like Toukley, Terrigal, Forster and Shoal Bay for their holidays. Nowadays, a lot of them come south because the north is very commercialised.

Where else is buyer interest coming other than Sydney?

I have some Canberra buyers. Some from Victoria too. Merimbula in particular is very popular with Victorians. Queenslanders not so much because we’re a more expensive market to what they can secure up there.

For Canberrans, Batemans Bay was where they would once go when they went to the South Coast. It’s only an hour and a half from Canberra. We used to say it’s another suburb of Canberra. If they had a holiday home, that’s where it would be.

But Batemans Bay isn’t as sleepy as it used to be. There’s a lot of Canberra developers in Batemans Bay building high-rises and other large scale projects.

So, Canberrans have branched out a little further now.

You worked in residential real estate for over a decade. What’s the biggest difference between residential and commercial real estate?

Chalk and cheese. Ressie can be very emotional. You’re dealing with people who generally purchase once every 10-15 years or so. So every purchase/sale is quite a big deal and generally very emotional.

You’re dealing with a lot of things that are happening in their life, whether they’re buying a bigger house because their family is expanding or a death or marriage breakup.

There’s always something behind a purchase or sale in ressie. I used to say, ‘You don’t really sell houses, you’re really managing people and their emotions.’

But with commercial real estate, it’s more about the numbers. It’s more of a transaction based on income and profit rather than an emotional connection to the property

Even with small family operators?

For mum-and-dad operators, it’s more about the blood, sweat and tears of what they’ve put into the business.

By the time they’re ready to sell, they’re just ready to get out, whether it’s to take a break or to set themselves up for the next opportunity. And they’re grateful for what you can do to help them achieve that.

So in my opinion, it’s completely different. Ressie and commercial are two separate worlds. I enjoyed my time in ressie, but at this stage of my career commercial appeals to me more. END