The Mornington Peninsula property market is booming as city and suburban buyers flock to the sea on the back of a challenging year that has forced a lot of people to re-evaluate what is important to them – including where they live.

Beachside sales have dominated the first major auction weekends of 2021, with a strong 86 per cent clearance rate from 241 results, according to realestate.com.au.

The peninsula is to become one of the most expensive pockets in Melbourne within the next five years, according to Barry Plant Frankston director, Thomas Larkin.

“We are seeing a lot more inner-city people buying down here and appreciating the value they get for their money,” he said.

“People are prioritising lifestyle and having more space, especially after months of lockdown.”

A Rosebud investment property at 21 Second Ave, recorded a great result with seven bidders vying for the keys. A Melbourne couple secured the home $75,000 above the reserve, selling under the hammer for $605,000 with Barry Plant Rosebud auctioneer Paul Cunnington.

In another massive result, local buyers snapped up 21 Kars St, Frankston for $1.503 million, a whopping $400,000 above the reserve.

The sale of the five-bedroom property, currently used as a medical centre was handled by Mr Larkin.

A lack of properties on the market and a backlog of buyers are driving prices north, according to Barry Plant Mornington director, Danae Eden.

“There’s plenty of buyers out there, but we just don’t have enough properties on the market to keep up with the demand,” she said.

“The last half-a-dozen properties we sold prior to publicly listing, we had buyers ready to go.”

In a quick sale, 43 Hardy St, Mornington, was swept up by a local buyer before inspection and just days after listing.

“The buyer kept missing out on previous properties because of strong competition, so she rang me on a Sunday and offered the top end of the asking price and offered a $150,000 deposit,” Ms Eden said.

“It was quite unexpected, she didn’t care that she hadn’t inspected the property.

“But also it says a lot about the state of the market, people are doing what they can to avoid missing out.”

Ms Eden said there have been three to five groups making offers on private sales, which generally sell after one open inspection.

“The market has boomed. It’s very exciting to see the market active once again after such a quiet year,” she said.