Central Maitland, Bolwarra and Chisholm all made Starr Partners residential sales manager James Rodrick’s suburbs to watch list, but they were topped by the growing Raymond Terrace area with “undervalued” Weston rounding out the top five.

Mr Rodrick said along with Maitland’s affordable price point compared to Newcastle, the younger generation were starting to see what the inner-city had to offer.

“We’re seeing an expansion of coffee shops, restaurants and bars,” he said. “It’s emerging as a trendy part of the region and had growth of 16 per cent this year.”

PRD Hunter Valley principal Luke Anderson also listed Central Maitland in his top two suburbs to watch for next year, depending on new inner-city development to increase prices.

Mr Rodrick compared the CBD’s “character-filled” terrace style homes to Sydney’s Marrickville, where prices have skyrocketed as it has become gentrified in the past decade.

While Central Maitland’s appeal is only starting to be realised according to Mr Rodrick, he said Bolwarra had always been a highly regarded area.

But the suburb’s larger blocks and changes to the catchment area of Bolwarra Public School will drive even further interest in the leafy suburb and see prices grow, Mr Rodrick said.

Chisholm’s proximity to Newcastle and booming development including a new school, medical facilities, childcare centres, recreational areas and shopping centres have put it on Mr Rodrick’s radar.

While property prices might be levelling out in Sydney, Mr Rodrick believed Maitland and the wider Hunter had not seen their best days yet.

As well as the inner-city, Mr Anderson predicted there would be big interest west of Maitland with Greta and Branxton “ready to see some great growth numbers” after the mining downturn, with Rutherford also one to watch.

But “well-connected” Tenambit topped Mr Anderson’s list for 2018 due to its affordability compared to neighbouring suburbs.

Hunter’s top five suburbs for 2018 according to James Rodrick of Starr Partners:

Attractive to first home buyers, Raymond Terrace offers affordability and value with a median house price of $355,000 and 9.7 per cent growth over the last 12 months. Close in proximity to the Nelson Bay area, only 35 minutes to Newcastle CBD and a short drive to Newcastle Airport, the suburb also benefits from being well-serviced by public transport as well as shopping centres, cafes and restaurants. 

The suburb of Maitland is often overlooked by buyers as many see it as being ungentrified, but it’s emerging as a trendy part of the region and had growth of 16 per cent this year. We are seeing more cafes, restaurants and bars open, and the streets in and around the CBD are lined with character-filled terrace style homes that almost make it the Hunter region’s answer to Sydney’s Marrickville.

Historically, Bolwarra has always been well regarded, but the larger block sizes are increasingly becoming more appealing from the younger generation of buyers who crave space. Changes to the catchment area of the popular Bolwarra Public School is really going to drive even further interest for this green and leafy suburb and see prices grow into the coming year and beyond.

The area has seen significant land releases over the last couple of years and I predict the area will continue to grow, particularly among families – the new school, medical facilities, childcare centres, recreational areas, shopping centres and proximity to Newcastle and Maitland enable an easy commute regardless of where people work.

Weston was on my list last year, but to me it’s still slightly undervalued with a median house price of $312,000. Being located close to the Hunter Expressway is a huge drawcard for the area as residents can easily travel to Newcastle, the Upper Hunter region, wineries and vineyards, and even Sydney. Weston is also going to be on the radar of those looking to invest in 2018 with rental yields of approximately 5.6 per cent.