Our regional mates in sunny Geelong may cop a bit of smack talk from we Melburnians, but let’s be honest, they’ll probably have the last laugh when it comes to their piece of Victoria.

Home to award-winning restaurants, a flourishing cultural scene, towering street art and the holy trinity of Joel Selwood, Patrick Dangerfield and Gary Ablett Jr, the port city provides a gateway to wine regions, the Surf Coast, Great Ocean Road and more.

And in an easing real estate market, Geelong shows no signs of putting on the brakes as the city’s growth continues to surge, according to the latest data from CoreLogic. 

Strong capital and population growth, investment in infrastructure, high demand and the lifestyle offerings across a huge demographic have contributed to the regional centre’s astronomical rise.

“There’s been a massive shift, especially in the last couple of years, towards a white collar workforce in Geelong,” said Buxton Geelong Group director, Ben Riddle.

Part of the Little Creatures juggernaut, Furphy is proud to be Geelong born and brewed.

“Old blue collar manufacturing such as Ford has been replaced by government businesses and that’s brought with it people who are now coming from Melbourne and seeing better value, not only in real estate but they’re also seeing a better lifestyle on offer. We’re twenty minutes away from some of Victoria’s best beaches, we’ve got great schooling, and there’s a new tourism vibe with our wineries and restaurants.

Aaron Turner's infamous 28-seater, IGNI, placed Geelong on the foodie destination map

“Geelong has emerged from being a regional city to being an extension of Melbourne, we’re really similar, just on a smaller scale and with our own unique personality.”

CoreLogic data revealed the city had recorded the largest jump in annual median values for both units (16.6 per cent) and houses (11.9 per cent) across all regional property markets in Australia. 

Painted by Geelong-born world-renowned artist, RONE, the Fyansford Silos are sky-high portraits of much-loved locals, Corinna Eccles, Cor Horsten and Kelly Cartwright.

The median house price in Geelong sits at $505,000 compared to Melbourne’s $740,000.  

“We’ve seen every suburb in Geelong pretty much perform at double digit growth for the past two or three years,” said Ben.

“Once upon a time, five or ten years ago, that was just the top one or two suburbs so we’ve had a massive shift in pricing from the cheapest to the most expensive suburbs. From a national perspective it’s probably outperformed any other market in Australia in the last two years. But Geelong’s not a secret any more. We’re well and truly on the real estate radar.”